Next month, I will mark my fourth anniversary in specializing in mental health, in addition to helping military members start their civilian career path.
The following job search tip originated from researcher Marsha M. Linehan, who authored the book,
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The Dialectical Behaviour Therapy
Skills workbook for bipolar disorder: Using DBT to regain control of your emotions and your life. Perhaps you are questioning why I am referring to bipolar disorder or DBT in this article? Dr. Linehan refers to a DBT skill called “distress tolerance skills.” These are skills that “get you through a crisis situation without engaging in self-destructive behaviours that likely would make the situation worse for you.” Let’s face it, if you have been unemployed for some time, it is far easier, especially in a crisis, to opt for negative behaviours that decimate your confidence and delay your recovery from the “activating event.”
I have adapted RESISTT to a successful job search:
Reframe- instead of concentrating on what things have gone wrong in your career/job search, think of what has gone
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right.
For example, reframing the layoff experience could be something like,” I honestly disliked my last job anyway. If I had stayed for another year, I would have hit rock bottom. The layoff opened the door to improving my chances of breaking into a new career. The layoff wasn’t as traumatic as I once thought!”
Mindfully
- Engage
in an activity-Many activities produce better results in a job search. These are activities that engage your mind. The possibilities are endless….
Do
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something
for someone else- Take a break from your job search. Help someone else who is already struggling (could it be a former colleague in the military?) or volunteer your time or expertise. Volunteerism will sharpen your existing skills and civilian employers will take notice on your revised résumé.
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Intense sensations
In a physical sense, this refers to extreme conditions, such as taking a hot bath or a cold shower. In another context, if the sensation is internal, and it could possibly improve your job search, explore that sensation. Perhaps it is a sensation from your abdomen, (which explains our expression, “I could feel it in my gut…..”). That is an energy point in your body which the Chinese call meridians. How many times has your own intuition guided your decisions? Don’t discount intuition). It could be the breakthrough in your job search. Going one step further, self-soothing activities that involve our sensations can temporarily distract you from the existing troublesome thoughts.
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Shut it out
-A drawn out job search is more likely to plague the mind with negative self-talk. See the “reframe” reference above. The negative words associated with unemployment or a stalled job search could fill this page. Shut the negative thoughts out out of your mind, even temporarily, and replace them with a positive thought.
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Think neutral thoughts
– Maybe you’ve sent out X number of applications and have not received an interview invitation yet. Think neutrally. The hiring could be stalled or the employer may be on the brink of landing a lucrative contract, which could result in hiring you as the value-added expert. (Remember, you will achieve better results if you brand yourself as a solution-builder with an employer, rather than a “generic” job seeker).
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Take
a break. Get off the electronic job board highway. Take a detour. Job boards only yield a 1-3% success rate. Do something for yourself. Go to the gym (the best anti-depressant!), have a coffee with a friend, spend time with your pet or just do what it takes to take your mind.
Do something completely different from job searching.
Try the RESISTT technique and give it ample time to bolster your job search.
