Career Advice Talk

Ugly Workforce Statistics

11th November, 2008 - Posted by Robin Ogden -

And they just keep getting uglier…the labor statistics released for October are dismal to say the least and the stats for November will be released December 5th.  I can only imagine what those will show.  So far for 2008 a staggering 1.2 million jobs have been lost.  So, with over a million of us looking for work the competition is fierce - not to mention new grads hitting the market are hungry for work too.

With layoff after layoff occurring (Mattel is up on deck to release 1,000 soon, as well as Fidelity set to release even more than that) how can one focus on ‘getting the job’ in such a miserable job market with so much competition… and on top of all that it is holiday season.

Well, here is a suggestion for you - get yourself into the job search ‘zone’.  You may think “what, that sounds crazy”, but hear me out.  You’ve probably read over and over again how top athletes master the mental zone when competing, just think about that for a second.  Imagine the mental stress an Olympic athlete is under to achieve the ‘gold’, or any other athlete for that matter who wants to achieve mastery.  In sports psychology it’s all about the mindset and getting the athlete into ‘the zone’.

Getting into ‘the zone’ around job search is like infusing sports psychology into your job search game in order to win the job you desire.  Here are some sport psychology points that certainly apply during job search, I’m sure you’ll agree:

* Break through mental barriers

* Stay focused on the mental skills necessary to be successful in any competition

* Improve your attitude and mental game to help you perform your best

* Identifying limiting beliefs

* Improve focus and deal with distractions

* Grow confidence

* Develop coping skills to deal with setbacks

The list goes on and on and I’m sure you can see how it can apply itself to your job search.  My point here is to reframe your thinking around job search and get into ‘the zone’ in order to find a career that is a great match and lets you thrive - you deserve that.  So, make a decision to job search differently tomorrow.

Posted by Robin Ogden - FiredUP Careers

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