Although obtaining a college degree can result in earning up to $1 million more over the course of your career, the sad reality is that many new college grads are either unemployed or underemployed.
Unemployment is defined as highly educated or skilled employees working in low wage jobs, or people who prefer to be employed full-time but are only able to find part-time work.
Although high paying desirable jobs are scarcer than they used to be, there are still jobs to be had. But finding those jobs can be difficult and it can be hard to stay motivated while you are looking for a job.
If you are struggling with staying motivated while you are looking for a job, here are five tips to help.
Be Realistic
Don?t expect to find your dream job on day one. Finding a job you truly desire can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months depending on your field and where you live. If you think you are going to land a job in a week or two you will likely become discouraged and unmotivated.
Look at Finding a Job as a Process
If you think of finding a job?as a process instead of one large task you will likely be more motivated. For example, you can set goals along the way for different ?sub tasks? like how many people you want to network and connect with and how many interviews you want to secure within a certain time frame.
Use Time Wisely
When you are unemployed or underemployed it?s easy to lose track of time and end up in a rut that is hard to climb out of. This is why it?s important to use your time wisely so you can stay motivated to find a job. Plan out how you will use your time, searching for job opportunities, responding to them, submitting applications, networking to find more opportunities, etc. This will also help you avoid getting sucked into time sucking activities like watching TV or mindlessly browsing the Internet.
Maintain Your Health
Your health is always important, but it?s even more important when you are trying to stay motivated while looking for a job. This means eating well, exercising regularly and getting enough sleep. You should also avoid things than disrupt your sleep, like alcohol and too much caffeine.
Take a Break When You Need It
Hunting for and applying for job opportunities can be exhausting. Although finding a job is important, it?s necessary to take a break now and then too. This means limiting how many hours you spend on finding a job each day, and avoiding looking for a job on the weekends if possible. Taking a break will help you stay motivated when you return to searching for a job. Plus taking a break might be just what you need in order to find the perfect opportunity for you.
Finding a job can be difficult and you are bound to have days when you feel disappointed and unmotivated, but hopefully these tips will help you to have more good days than bad days while you are looking for a job.
Have you ever had trouble while looking for a job? What other tips do you have for staying motivated while looking for a job?
Photo courtesy of: trudi1
Wise Dollar
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Great tips Kayla! My younger sister is currently looking for a new job and she uses her time wisely.
I’m glad she’s using her time wisely! That’s definitely important!
Being unemployed is super tough. I don’t think many people appreciate the mental anguish people experience while being unemployed. One thing I tried to do was make a bit of cash on the side. One way was cleaning out old stuff on craigslist (made about $1,200). Another way was to donate blood plasma once per week (that brought in ~$150/month).
Having a bit of extra cash coming in helped improve my mental state a lot.