Sometimes life and career simply don’t work out as we had hoped. Regardless of our desire or effort, there are times in life (that, for some reason) we don’t get the job or new opportunity. This week we are sharing our best advice for dealing with real-life career problems and setbacks. Our hope is that at least one (1) tip will be a new, simple idea to create a big breakthrough. A breakthrough that will help you dust yourself off, think big, dream bigger, and believe in yourself along the way.
Tip #1 You can’t plan for tomorrow until you stop thinking about yesterday.
Although you can’t re-write history, you can become a new person with a new goal. Sometimes the thing you were born to do changes. And your mindset needs to change with it. Former athletes can become extraordinary coaches when they focus on their love for the game.
Tip #2 You can’t put your tears behind you until you’ve wept them.
There may be ‘no crying in baseball,’ but there is always lots of crying and disappointment in life and career. Give yourself permission to be disappointed and upset for a week or two. Then, wipe your tears and disappointment away and move on one day at a time.
Tip # 3 You can choose to be stuck and bitter or free and happy.
Bitterness happens when you ignore or try to avoid feeling pain and disappointment. Refocus your frustration by asking what did I learn? What will I do differently next time? And, what is the “upside” of things NOT working out ask planned? Remember, optimism creates opportunities.
Tip # 4 You don’t have to turn your back on what was happy about your past.
The best way to move on to a bigger and brighter work opportunity is to embrace the good parts of what was taken away. Knowing exactly what you like about your former position or career will help you recognize it when you see it in a new position.
Tip # 5 You have to grieve what didn’t happen in order to create what can.
Grieving is a personal process that each person goes through in their own time and in their own way. Equally, it’s an essential step to reflect on what ‘was’ in order to create what can be. If you don’t grieve, you can’t unlock your ability to move forward in time and create a brighter future.
Tip #6 You can be angry at your current life, or you can use that energy to create your future.
You may not like your current job or life, for that matter, but getting upset with your present situation is kind of like biting the hand that feeds you. The truth is, your current job or work situation may not be glamorous, but it helps pay your bills and sustain your lifestyle. Focus your energy not on what can’t change but on networking with those in your field and exploring new ways to find new opportunities.
Tip #7 You can change your present circumstances slowly, piece by piece, until you get things turned around.
Change often happens slowly over time and not all at once. The best thing that you can do is to embrace a ‘slow and steady wins the race’ mentality and work like crazy towards the career and life you deserve. Watch out for jumping ‘out of the frying pan and into the fire.’ Sometimes a career or personal rebound leads us to attract something that is worse than what we just experienced.
This week try just one change in how you think about the past in order to create a bigger and brighter future.