“The more man meditates upon good thoughts, the better will be his world and the world at large.” Confucio.
Sometimes at the beginning of a job search we can have in our head negative thoughts like these:
“I’ll never find a job.”
“I don’t know where to start.”
Networking is so stressful, I don’t know anyone and I don’t want to talk to strangers.”
But how can we manage this anxiety and stress ?
The good news is there is a solution. MINDFULNESS is the Key !
Research has shown that daily meditative practice or just a few minutes a day of “no thinking” and observing your breathing can literally positively change brain structure.
Infact spending time every day on Mindfulness practice will be worth it. It will help you calm your nervousness before an interview or reduce the negative thinking that can occur when your job search is not going as fast you would like or it is going wrong.
But what is Mindfulness ?
A definition I appreciate a lot is the following : “Mindfulness is the quality of being able to stay with the present moment on purpose and without judgment. A mindfulness practice is an exercise that helps one to cultivate this quality of attention” as Caroline Contillo said.
Therefore, it can be very helpful in many areas of your life, including your job search. It doesn’t take much time.
But, how can we apply Mindfulness principles to job search ?
Here are 5 Mindful Habits to improve your job search right now :
1. Cultivate Purpose and Intention.
First of all, Mindfulness in the job search involves paying attention on your PURPOSE, your WHY. Everyone has a WHY. Your purpose that inspires you. It is the key to everything you do. Your WHY is whatever you want to have. Your WHY is whatever you want to be. If you don’t know what your WHY in life is; Look at the things you always dreamed to do. Look at the things you love doing.
So, Instead of just clicking “apply” and submitting résumé after résumé, develop a plan and be intentional about the applications you submit. The blanket approach is usually not very successful, and search committees or hiring managers can tell when someone has applied to a job without really thinking about it.
2. Start to practice Mindful Breathing.
Set a timer for a certain amount of time, such as five minutes. Close your eyes, take deep breaths and count your breaths from one to 10, and then backward from 10 to one. If you find your mind wandering, just slowly bring your attention back to the present.
3.Stay in the present moment.
Don’t focus on the past and don’t relive past job search blunders. Focus on the job search task at hand and you will be better positioned to combat negative thinking.
Remember, job searching can be tiring, frustrating and unpredictable with many factors at play. Do your best to stack the deck in your favor, have a support system, but don’t beat yourself up when things don’t go as planned. It’s not a matter of if you’ll find a job, but when.
4. Pay attention to your feelings.
When you listen to them, your feelings can give you a lot of information. For example, if you have to drag yourself to an interview and you feel yourself almost hoping that you don’t get the job, that is a strong indication that it’s not a good fit. Trust your gut; the right opportunity will come along.
5. Adopt an attitude of gratitude
If you are finding the job search process difficult, then you are completely normal. It’s hard for everyone. Be kind to yourself. Feeling grateful for all the good things that are in your life can help you become more mindful of all the things that are going well, and help you to focus less on what’s missing.
So if you aren’t getting calls from employers, it’s not because you aren’t good enough; it is because it takes time. When you start feeling the self-doubt, treat yourself with the grateful that you would extend to a friend. Do your best to trust the process and have faith that you will eventually find the right job for you. Gratitude will get you through the tough times in life and help you to enjoy the good things — like getting a job offer — when they do come along. And they will.
Originally published at medium.com