7 Key Questions to Ask Yourself to Find the Perfect Job

You are over the moon. You’ve written your CV and cover letter, updated your LinkedIn profile, attended interviews, spent weeks networking, and finally landed that job you wanted so badly.

The first day of work arrives, and you can’t contain your excitement. Pure bliss.

The first week goes by, and the second, and the third…?

And then, there it is: the Sunday blues. You dread going to work.?

You are disappointed with your job; it’s not what you expected. The situation is frustrating.?

What happened? What went wrong??

Not knowing what you really wanted in a job.?

If you don’t know what you really want in a job, you are denying yourself the possibility of being truly happy in your professional life.

And if you are wondering how to find out what you really want in a job, here are the questions you should ask yourself:

1- What did I like and dislike about the companies I’ve worked for? Consider:

• the company itself
• the culture
• your boss
• your coworkers
• your tasks
• your routine (for example, did you have to commute? How did you feel about it?)

Having a clear idea of what you didn’t like is very important, because it can help you see the red flags in jobs you may be interested in. For example, imagine that you hate commuting. The job you have your eye on has an office to die for, but it requires you to commute every day. Sure, the Google-style office may be tempting, but are you going to be happy in the long term if you have to commute every day? It is a red flag.?

2- What am I good at??

If your strengths don’t come easily:

• Ask others: your current coworkers, your boss, your friends, your family.
• Think of what is easy for you to do and if you enjoy doing it.
• Think of challenges you have successfully solved in the past.
• Think about what your colleagues and managers ask you to help them with, and how you help them.?

3- What is my personality like?

Are you introverted or extroverted? Do you prefer to work quietly by yourself or with others in a bubbly office environment? Consider taking a personality test like the Myers-Briggs one to better understand your personality and thus, define with more clarity the type of job you would thrive in.

However, keep in mind that your personality shouldn’t limit you. For example, I’m an introvert, but I get out of my comfort zone and make YouTube videos. Why? Because my purpose is stronger than my personality type. To me, it is more important to get out there and share content that adds value to people’s lives, than to stay in my comfort zone.?

4- Am I willing to spend time and money to get ready for this job??

Are you ready to spend time sending CVs, having interviews, getting rejections, and learning from them? Are you willing to invest that certain amount of money? The investment does not finish when you get the job, because you need to keep updated. So, after landing the job, are you ready to keep on investing time and money in learning new skills??

5- Am I willing to take networking seriously?

Once you have an idea of the possible career paths you are interested in, roll up your sleeves and do some networking. Find people whose jobs you’d like to have and ask them questions. Do you see yourself doing those jobs? Attend professional events like the ones organized by Pitcheers.?

Keep in mind that networking should not end when you get a job. It’s not about making an effort once and then forgetting about it. Career development is a job in itself, and networking is a key aspect of it. Are you ready to get out of your comfort zone and talk to people continuously as part of your career development?

6- What job would I do for free?

Imagine you have enough money to live well for the rest of your life, and you don’t need to work at all. What job would you do? What do you love so much doing that you would do it for free? Imagine getting paid for it. Wouldn’t that be the perfect job?

7- Am I willing to take action to experience this job before looking for it?

To make sure you will really like the day to day of this job, first, you need to experience it. How? By doing the following:

• Volunteering, doing internships and job shadowing.
• Creating your own project, finding mentors to help you go through the challenges, sharing it with people, learning more about it, fixing it, and trying again.?
• Or going a step further and building your own company by creating different projects.

Wasting time is awful. Disappointment is worse. Don’t let this happen to you, and do proper research before you embark on a job quest. Eradicate the Sunday blues from your life, and land a job you truly love.