Are you on the emotional roller coaster of a job or internship search? Let’s chat for a minute about how rough this process can be. It’s a lot of work and often it means facing radio silence from employers or dealing with rejection before it leads to job offers and progress.
The Career Center is a safe place where I welcome you to come vent, talk it out, let it out and embrace some of the really difficult feelings you may experience during this process. In fact, I encourage you to use a Career Coach as a sounding board for whatever you are feeling so that you face the next steps of the job hunt and the next interview without any of those negative influences. The Career Center is a judgment free zone where we want you to feel free to be real about what’s going on; we understand and want to help.
Remember, its NORMAL to feel stress, pressure, sadness, frustration or worry (and lots of other things) during the job or internship search process. The job and internship search process often requires a significant amount of time, energy and work and that takes an emotional toll. Be sure you find outlets for these feelings – working out, meeting with a Career Coach, unloading on friends/family, journaling, dancing, screaming into a pillow…. whatever works for you! Expect it to feel hard, but also make a plan to deal with those feelings.
Keep at it. ROI is sometimes slow when it comes to a job or internship search. It can mean weeks or months of online researching, hours of resume and cover letter edits, submitting many applications, and traveling for interviews before you get an offer. Don’t give up just because it hasn’t happened yet. Career Coaches are happy to work with you so you can be confident in realistic timelines to expect and understand all the steps in a career plan based on your unique career interests and industry of choice.
Develop back up plans. It is important to consider plan B, C, D… and what steps you should take to ensure you can pursue other job or internship plans. Go for the dream job or internship first, but also develop plans that are smaller steps in the same direction and reasonable compromises that are still in line with your career goals. If you aren’t sure what that would entail, it’s a great time for a conversation with a Career Coach.
Ask for help. If you have not had a resume reviewed, practiced with a mock interview, utilized a mentor, or tapped into networking, it’s likely you are missing the advice, feedback and support those around you can offer. The Career Center is a great place to start, but don’t skip the value the mentor program or your network can offer.
You only need one "yes". That might mean you hear "no" first, and often, but it doesn’t matter how many times "no" comes at you because one job or internship offer can mean success!