Gradually, then suddenly, it feels like all we’ve achieved has started to unravel. There was a brief time when life seemed to improve. Businesses reopened and people left their homes to travel, dine out and reacquaint with family and friends. People went back to work and the stock market and real estate prices boomed, creating a wealth effect and injecting positivity into the nation—but it didn’t last long. Inflation, higher prices, layoffs, political strife, empty shelves at stores, a war in Eastern Europe and a crashing stock and cryptocurrency market has shaken us. The letdown has been compounded by the collective trauma the nation has endured over the last two years.
You Can Thrive In Challenging Times
A major key to success is creating a positive mindset to cope with and overcome adversity. You want to develop the skills and mental toughness to not only survive, but thrive in challenging times.
It’s understandable for you to lose faith and hope. There are so many things that are out of your control, which leads you to feel helpless and lost. The easiest thing to do is to give up and accept defeat. This is not the answer. It will actually make matters worse.
Bear in mind that bad times don’t last forever. While the short term may be difficult, it will get better. This happens all the time. In the U.S., the pendulum swings both ways. The economic cycle is based upon growing, booming, getting too big, then falling back to earth and starting all over again.
You should adopt the mantra of “this too shall pass.” You will need to summon the strength to fight back against the unrelenting cascade of bad news that could easily overwhelm and mire you into inertia, not knowing what to do next.
Take Action
Despite all of the noise around you, don’t get distracted and always remember all that you want to achieve. If you lost your job due to downsizing, it’s normal to have a grieving period and feel sorry for yourself. Set aside time to process what happened. Think of any lessons learned that will help you in the future. Once the psychological wounds start healing, leap into action.
The goal may be to find a great new job. Start by asking colleagues for the names of some good recruiters who specialize in your space. If you haven’t been on the job hunt in a long time, get in touch with career coaches and résumé writers to help you get up to speed. You may not have used LinkedIn because you’ve been happily employed. Now is the time to start networking. Let people know you are in between jobs. There is no shame in asking for help. Hone in on the companies you want to work for and find people you know who could provide a recommendation and share your résumé with an insider at the organization. Internal referrals are almost always prized before random résumé responses to job ads.
Interviewing For A New Job
Hiring managers want to select people who come across as positive, motivated, enthusiastic and charismatic. While it’s important to possess the skills referenced in the job description, interviewers—being human—want to hire people they like, feel comfortable with and believe that they will be a good influence in the workplace.
If you are feeling dejected and beaten down, it will come across in the interviews. A defeatist attitude is a turnoff and makes it easy for the hiring manager to move on to the next candidate. It’s not a charity; they want winners who can perform well. Selfishly, the supervisor desires a person who can make them look good. If a hire turns out to be a dud, it reflects poorly on the judgment of the boss.
With this in mind, you need to summon all of your energy to come across as upbeat and driven. Your words and body language should show that you are a confident go-getter, who will immediately add value to the team.
This is something you can control. Make sure that you read and understand the job advertisement. Match up your skills with their demands. Prepare an elevator pitch that helps you to effectively sell yourself in about 30 seconds to a minute. Investigate the interviewers on LinkedIn to see their backgrounds and if you have anything in common with them to break the ice.
Find a person in your network that may know them to give you some inside intel on what they are like and what they want in a candidate. Take a look at your social media footprint to ensure that there is nothing inappropriate, which could alienate a human resources professional.
Before a video interview, check your phone or computer’s connectivity. Do you have the right time for the meeting? How is the sound quality? Is there appropriate lighting and does your background convey a message consistent with your brand?
How To Hold Onto Your Job
It’s understandable that even if your job is relatively safe, you are still feeling afraid. You’re not alone, as it’s natural to be concerned about events that are out of your control. Focus on what you can control. This entails asking for a meeting with your boss to find out where you stand and how the company is positioned financially. This is especially important if you are working at a startup that is still raising money, has a high valuation and isn’t profitable.
Do everything in your power to show that you are an important part of the organization and they desperately need you. Put in the extra time and effort to achieve and exceed goals and expectations. Turn yourself into the go-to, trusted person when a project needs to be done quickly and correctly. Volunteer for assignments, help people in other divisions, offer suggestions and embrace people who are not handling things as well as you are. Become a positive voice. Rally the team when they are feeling burned out.
Take Care Of Your Body And Mind
It’s important to take care of yourself mentally, physically and spiritually. Pace yourself for a projected challenging time period. Even if it doesn’t happen, it’s a good habit to build. Eat healthily and don’t indulge in excessive drinking, illicit drugs or abusing prescribed pills and other dangerous behaviors. Go to the gym, take long walks, work, do yoga, lift weights, meditate and go to the doctor, dentists and other relevant medical professionals regularly to be proactive.
You are in control over your mind. Block out any negative and self-defeating thoughts that keep popping up in your head. Don’t ruminate over the things that you can’t change. Develop a positive, successful mindset. Tell yourself that you can achieve anything you truly desire. Practice visualizing yourself being promoted to the next level. Consider using mantras, which is a type of self-talk that you continually say to yourself. Ignore past failures. Think of all the people who want you to do well. Stay calm when everyone else is losing it and keep following your dreams.
Source: Forbes
