Getting your first job after college can take time and it can be frustrating. Today I want to talk about staying motivated. You need to know that you’re not alone. Its common to struggle getting your first job out of college.
A year after graduating, a friend once joked about how useful his PhD was . . . it's given me the opportunity to wait tables, work bars, and cart furniture. His experience is a common one, so don’t feel bad if this happens to you.
Find a way to embrace a positive mindset
"Sure" you say. That's good to know, but I don’t care about other people. At the moment "this bit is all about me". What I say to that is… yeah you're right!
If you feel down and unmotivated sometimes, that’s normal. But, you need to understand that its unhealthy to stay like that for too long. It can also impact the people around you.
It’s important that you find ways to fight negative feelings. Start by taking a break from negative people. And from toxic job forum threads. Too many "I've sent off 126 resumes in the last month" posts are unhelpful.
There’s plenty of advice out there on how to stay positive. Yoga, keeping fit, catching up with friends, reading motivational books, bla bla bla. All good advice. There’s no one size fits all path with this. You’re going to have to experiment to find out what works for you.
Don’t be afraid to seek professional help. There is no shame in this. We all find ourselves at low points at times. Especially when you can't find a job after college. The real shame is the time lost by not doing anything about it. You'd be surprised at how many people you know have sought help they but just don’t tell you that they have.
Read self help books
Self help books are a good place to start. Find an author who resonates with you. Google best self help books. Jack Canfield is a good author starting point, but there’s plenty of others. Jack is a great story teller, and his books tend to be littered with examples of people who’ve overcome life obstacles.
Listen to podcasts
Business building and autobiographical podcasts are another place to look. They're littered with these types of stories too. Just today I was listening to an interview with Katherin Hutson on the Self Publishing Show episode 293. She tells her life story in the first 15 minutes. In her 20s Katherin was working multiple jobs to support herself, her education, and her heroin addiction. The justice system supported her to rehabilitate. These days Katherin is a successful writer who pumps out 15,000 words a day. Yep. That’s not a typo.
The Bobbi Brown Cosmetics story is another example. It's one of my favorites.
Bobbi was never afraid to talk to people about what she did. She built her professional network while doing low paid jobs early in her career. That’s what led her to higher paying jobs and later into business.
Now, there’s a bit of a theme going on with both those podcasts. And that is that even though these people kept on getting knocked down, they got up again.
o She was there (and not at home watching YouTube)
o She hustled
o She was brave and seized opportunities as they appeared.
In 1854 Louis Pasteur said that chance favours only the prepared mind. So, serendipity is far more likely to happen if you're prepared. I'm going to talk a lot about that – being prepared that is. It’s the big idea behind my job seeking advice
How do you stay motivated? Hit reply and tell me. I’d love to know.