I once found myself in the situation of needing a new job fast in order to remove myself from a work environment that was affecting my health and well-being. I was in survival mode which is not the best time to figure out what you really want to do. You just don’t have the head space for it. So, with only vague notions about where I wanted to go, I followed this simple strategy below to get a new job, any job, and it worked for me within three months. Once you set an intention and put all your willpower and desire behind it, it will become real.
Here is what you do:
- Start with a quick skills analysis. Write down all the skills and talents that you have to offer and all the types of work you could do. Survival mode is not the best place for creative and inspired thinking, so don’t beat yourself up if your list is short. You can always add to it as you go along.
- Write down a few areas you would be interested in working in. This will give you an idea of who to talk to first.
- Tell anybody you know or meet that you are looking for a job. Start with the people who work in or have connections to the areas you are interested in. Even if they don’t have a job for you, they might offer ideas to add to your list. As you are looking for any job at all, you can try recruitment agencies as well.
One of the first people I talked to lead me to my next job. It was a job in an area I was interested in. It wasn’t my dream job, but it gave me time to recover and get into the head space to think about what I really wanted. If you want to know what I did next, read my next post: How to get into a job you like.
Did you find this post helpful? How did you get out of a job that made you miserable as fast as possible?