Easy question that can provide, at times, a very complicated answer.
As a Career Coach working with primarily university students and as a consultant doing career support for all types of demographics, my clients are often a bit cautious how they move forward.
As a job hunter, it’s important to recognize that all markets are competitive. Some more than others – But all create a competitive landscape. How does one manage that?
You do all the obvious. You research the market. You learn as much as you can so you can find the intersection points, the alignments between you and ‘them’. You develop an ‘industry fluency’ so you can talk in their language. You reach out to your network and get a dialogue going. Who you know is awesome, but who they know is even better. You make sure your credentials are in place and aligned with the market you are pursuing. You utilize ALL your resources and when push comes to shove, you might even need a Career Coach to talk to – DO IT!!They can help.
And, as you get everything in place, you should feel confident about moving all of this, on your behalf. I meet with so many clients that do have it all in place and yet, they are paralyzed. Afraid to press on. They exhibit FEAR. Normal, yes but at the end of the day, you must take charge and make ‘it’ happen.
Ask yourself – “what have you got to lose?’ The answer is absolutely nothing. What’s the worst that can happen? Failure, people don’t respond, you hit the wall. OK, learn from it and continue.
Defeat can teach us a lot. It teaches us how to reverse, to overcome, to look for triumph and find solutions. If you don’t lose something, there is nothing to find.
So, when fear strikes its ugly head – you must stare it down, look it right in the eye and tell yourself, ‘I have nothing to lose and everything to gain’.
