Let’s start with definitions. What is resilience?
Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. Career resilience is the ability to adjust to the career change, whatever the circumstances may be, and to navigate all the ups and downs and twists and turns on your career path. In today’s world, career resilience is no longer optional; it’s a core professional competency.
People who can bounce back from defeat or temporary roadblocks win!
How does this relate to job hunt in particular? When we are told after an important interview that we were very close but unfortunately we were not successful at this time and they wish us best of luck. What if this is a third time in a row? It can make you feel like a failure and see your future in grey…
But there’s an alternative. Just because we were not successful three times in a row it doesn’t mean that we won’t be the successful the fourth time round. This is resilient thinking! You’ve heard it before: “If at first, you don’t succeed, try again.” Sometimes you may feel like that’s just a saying, but it is absolutely not. Although the exact number of tries has been debated, ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 attempts, it’s safe to say Edison tried and failed a huge amount of times before he successfully created his beacon of light (light bulb).
Job-seeking may not always go your way, it can be both an exciting and difficult time in your career and multiple things may interrupt your job search. If you shut down, give up, or quit, then you will likely face even more challenges as your options become more limited.
A vital part of job-seeking is having the ability to adapt to whatever you encounter on your path to a new job. Resilience is about being able to bounce back and carry on and learn from your experiences, even after you have had bad news. Sometimes looking for a new job can take much longer than you may have originally expected, and this can be the case for whatever stage of your career you are in right now.
- Focusing on what can be changed and accepting the things that can’t is a common trait of resilient people.
- Resilient people have figured out how to find the good, despite the negative challenges they face.
The good news is that you don’t have to do it all alone. Reaching out for support is a great sign of resilience.
A Career Coach can help you to:
- Discover your best career fit
- Transition to a new career
- Advance in your current career
- Establish a stronger personal brand
- Improve your interviewing skills
Stay well, and stay resilient!
