Job Searching: How to Stay Positive

Let’s say you looked for a new position in the last two years.

• Did you apply for a position and hear back immediately from a hiring manager or recruiter?
• Did you get a lot of messages from recruiters on LinkedIn about different positions at their company for which they thought you were a good fit (and you hadn’t updated your profile, commented on anyone’s LinkedIn updates, let alone your own)?

Those days may be over.

Unemployment still remains very low – it’s about 3.6 percent – which is considered to be in the range of “full employment,” which means that there are enough jobs available for everyone who wants one.

Yet…..

The number of job openings declined in March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ March Jobs Report (released in early May). The number of total open jobs dropped to 9.54 million, the lowest number since May 2021. (The article goes on to say that this drop is a reflection of the Fed Reserve’s “yearlong campaign to cool off the economy” by raising what is called the “federal funds rate.)

Layoff rose by nearly 250K to 1.8 million in March, the highest level since December 2020. The number of new hires remained unchanged at 6.15 million and “quits” decreased to 3.85 million (from 3.98 million).

This is a sign of a probably “tougher” market for job seekers because employee quits often are a sign of worker confidence – people feel they can find a job quickly.

Meanwhile, the article continues, an increase in layoffs/”discharges” are an indication that employers are “more cautious to hire and more likely to cut jobs,”

Most importantly, those two – quits and layoffs – tend to “move in opposite directions when the labor market starts to weaken.”

The job market therefore may be turning into an “advantage employer” situation

Which is much different than the candidate market of the years even before the pandemic’s start and certainly the first two years into it.

This slowdown has been felt predominately in the transportation, warehousing, construction, utilities, and other sectors, yet these scenarios often lead to slowdowns in other business sectors down the line.

And, as written in our previous post, job searches overall have started taking longer and longer in recent months.

And now you may be saying to yourself: “Job hunting is rarely enjoyable, and now you’re telling me this irksome process may now become even longer!?” 

Unfortunately, yes.

Yet there are many ways you can speed it up and make it a big less disagreeable. Here are a few:

• Take a break.

Just about every job-search advice post tells you to look for work for eight hours a day, Monday through Friday.

That’s a lot of time spent crafting resumes for each job, scouring job boards, reaching out to connections and referrals…

And hearing – at best – “crickets” and at worse, “No.”

Seemingly. All. The. Time.

So, stop. Take a break every hour or so. Or take a full hour in the afternoon. Read. Relax. Go for a walk (probably the best idea for an hour’s respite.)

Even if your job hunt for “just” four to six hours a day, make sure to take regular breaks. And do so by moving away from your computer and desk.

It’s also OK to take a full day off, and we don’t mean a weekend day; go ahead and take a full day off, especially if you feel your outlook sinking more and more as your job search continues.

• Reduce your stress

A job search is stressful, especially when it appears no one is interested in your background and skills

This is why it’s absolutely critical that you work to reduce the stress you’re feeling.

Exercise, healthy eating, and getting a good night’s sleep are all important.

But so is seeing friends and family, venting your frustration to a sympathetic ear, etc.

• Yet another great way to remove stress is to serve others.

Helping people who are more problems than us is proven to help reduce our worries and put our situation into proper perspective.

Doing so provides our body with a whoosh of endorphins to our brain. It keeps our minds from our own troubles while we aid others in meaningful ways.

You truly may have had no time when to volunteer or participate in hobbies when working full-time.

Now you have that time. Take advantage of it.

It undoubtedly will help you “get through” your job search in a much better frame of mind.

You’ll also find that your local network expands greatly, which potential could expand your professional network greatly.

• Switch up your job search.

If you’ve been looking for weeks/months with little to show for it, consider registering with one or more staffing companies to help you find work.

Companies such as Dexian, for example, help IT/tech, finance, accounting, administrative, and marketing professionals find contract, contract-to-hire and direct-hire career opportunities with terrific companies. (Our clients, in fact, are among the top globally in the tech, banking, financial services, insurance, healthcare/life sciences, retail, manufacturing, transportation and even government industries.

Take a look at some of our current opportunities and apply to any that appeal to you. You also should register with us even if you don’t see anything of interest as we often fill positions before we need to post them.