Stressed About Your Job Hunt Heres How to Deal

Stressed About Your Job Hunt Heres How to DealStressed About Your Job Hunt Heres How to DealIve been hunting for a new job for almost five months now, and it would be a lie to say that Ive never felt anxious. There have been timeswhen anxious thoughts consumed me. Why hasnt the recruiter e-mailed me back? What if the hiring manager didnt like the answer to my question? When will I find my next job? I havent totally eliminated my job search anxiety, but here is some advice that I have followed that help me feel less stressed.Dont put all of your eggs in one basketAtthe beginning of my job search was putting too much emphasis on one job. I would dwell on aparticular job and lose sight of all of the other opportunities around me. My advice is to apply to as many as jobs that youre qualified for at this present moment. Its nice to have options, and a job that didnt seem interesting at first might become a front-runner once youve interviewed with the hiring manager. Dont judge a book by i ts cover. After youve sent in your application, just let it go. Worrying about whether an employer will contact you is a major time-suck, and your time can be better used applying for other jobs or researching other companies that interest you.platzset action-oriented and realistic goalsLanding a job has always been easy for me, so I started my job search with the goal of finding a job within one month. After one month, not only was I disappointed, but I also felt unmotivated by my goals. I decided to change how I set my benchmarks of job search success. I reworked my goals to make sure they involved a realistic action instead of goals that were vague that I cant fully control. For example, apply to three jobs a week versus get hired by the end of the week. Applying to three jobs a week moves me forward in my job search, whereas getting hired by the end of the week is dependent on so many factors.Dont compare yourself to othersIt was hard not to feel jealous when my friend was offer ed a job after one week of searching and I had been searching for months. Rather thanfeeling bitter, I changed my outlook. I realized we both had different skill sets. She had some strengths I didnt, and I had experience in some areas where she didnt have any. Everyone has a different job search experience, so there is no use in comparing it to others.Find your own personal way to handle stressMy number one way to de-stress is take a few minutes to focus on my breath and meditate. After that I feel rejuvenated and motivated to continue applying for jobs. Take the time each day to do something that will refresh and energize your mind like taking a walk, cooking or journaling.This article was updated on June 23, 2017.