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I heard from someone recently who is getting very tired of the whole process of applying for work.  He still wants to work, but he is just fed up of making applications that don’t get replies.  He is bored staying at home every day.

His routine is now to stay up late watching television and then get up at noon, the next day, just to hang around the house.

It is all too easy for this to happen when you don’t have the stimulus of a regular job. On top of that, constant rejection, or worse the feeling that you are invisible, can lead to depression.

My friend may need quite an intervention to get him moving again.

What about you?  If you feel yourself slipping into a similar state, you need to act and quickly

First, you need to be quite firm in establishing a new and healthy routine.

Go to bed and get up at the same times you did when you had a job.  This doesn’t apply to those who had a long commute obviously, so use some discretion, but generally stick with your previous sleeping pattern, if you can. If you are not sleeping talk to your pharmacist about trying some of the gentle herbal remedies that are around to help with sleep.  If that doesn’t work then you should talk to your doctor

Make a new routine for yourself during the day and set yourself some new goals.

How about going to the gym or taking a long walk in the morning before you even tackle anything to do with your job search.

Then allocate a certain period each day for work at home on your job search but please do not spend all day on it! Spend some of each day on a hobby that has nothing to do with your job search.

Now is the time to review and refresh your job search material, CV etc.  Could you ask a friend to review it for you?  If you have access to a coach, then work on it with your coach.

This might be the time to widen your job search field. Could you do some work with a coach to identify new opportunities?  Think about things you have enjoyed over the years, what have you not yet considered as a work opportunity?

In any case review your progress so far!  If you have got to interview stage in any of your applications, what feedback were you give?  If you didn’t ask for feedback, is there still time to make a phone call and talk to the recruiting manager?

Having set a time for your search at home, now think about opportunities to meet up with friends or contacts outside the house.  Make a point of getting out and meeting people at least once or twice a week.  These meetings won’t be to ask for work, but to keep up with people and find out what is going on around you.

If you belong to a professional association, now is the time to go to meetings! It is important to keep up with what is going on in your field.   Make some time during your days at home to keep up with developments on the internet – it is usually much cheaper than buying magazines.

Think as well about investing in a training course; either to refresh your present skills or to gain new ones. It could make you more valuable and give you some new contacts.

Think about taking on a voluntary role.  It is very good for self esteem and it helps to be able to show potential employers that you are using your time productively.

Now is not the time to brood or become that couch potato. Get up, review, revise, refresh and get out there!  Set yourself some new goals and move forward, there are still opportunities around – it is time to look for them in some new places.

I am Wendy Mason. I work as a Personal Development Coach,

 Consultant and Writer.I have worked with many different kinds of people going through all kinds of personal and career change, particularly those

• looking for promotion or newly promoted,
• moving between Public and Private Sectors
• moving into retirement.

I am very good at helping you sort out what you want, overcome obstacles and handle change. I offer face to face, telephone and on-line coaching by email or Skype

Email me at wendymason@wisewolfconsulting.com or ring ++44(0)2084610114 or ++44(0)7867681439 to find out more. 

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