A Love Letter to all Job Seekers (February 2023)
My love for job seekers started over 20 years ago. I can remember when I got my first job as a recruiter; I thought “this is great, are they really going to pay me to do this?”. In all the years since, through the twists and turns of my life and the ups and downs of my jobs, helping people find work that lights them up has been the constant in the happiness I have experienced in my career.
What I recently experienced was a first for me. I was laid off from my job. I have been coaching others through job transitions for 20 years, so surely this would be a piece of cake for me, right? Wrong! It was unexpected and hard. I felt like a failure. I felt like I let my team down. I doubted all the good work I was proud of. I worried about money. I worried about finding another job that I loved.
My experience is not unique and searching for a job is challenging. As a job seeker, you are expected to present the best version of yourself to land your next job, while you may be navigating self-doubt, nerves and worry at the same time. This mix of expectations and emotions is what makes the job seeking process so vulnerable. As a recruiter, it is both my privilege and responsibility to be fully present with a job seeker’s vulnerability and give it a safe place to express. I am so very grateful to the tens of thousands of job seekers who have trusted me and my teams throughout my career with their fears, truths, dreams and wishes.
I want to say thank you to those job seekers I have met and the many I have not - by sharing what helps me…
There is only one you
There is no other human on this planet that has your unique mix of values, perspective, gifts, skills, experience and heart. YOUR UNIQUE MIX IS YOUR SUPERPOWER! Own it, write it down and remind yourself of it every day. There is a job out there that needs exactly what your unique mix will bring them.
It is okay if this feels hard
I am a naturally positive “always looking for the silver lining” type of person. So, it has been hard for me to admit that this process is hard. Particularly with the (sometimes very loud) voice of doubt telling me that with my years of experience in this area, this should be easy. But it is not. So I use my tools to remind myself of my unique mix of gifts, I seek support (from a coach and trusted friends) and I allow myself time to be sad when I need it.
And I try to remember:
things can change in moments and seconds
this too shall pass
tomorrow is a new day with new possibilities
Triple down on what brings you joy
Dancing, singing, hugging, ice cream and time with loved ones are a few of the things that bring me joy. Searching for jobs, applying to jobs, preparing for interviews and waiting on feedback, are a few of the things that do not bring me joy when I do them to the exclusion of everything else. So mix it up. Schedule joy throughout your day so you can shift your perspective and practice seeing the joy, excitement and possibility in every step of the job seeking process.
There is a lot happening in the world right now and layoffs are a regularly reported occurrence. Each one of the layoff numbers in those press releases is a human, likely experiencing something similar to what I have described above. If some of these humans are your friends, just being there and loving them is one of the greatest gifts you can give them. If there is anything I can do to help you or anyone in your networks, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
With my deepest love and gratitude,
Bridgette