DE-CLUTTER Your Job Search this Spring!

Time to go back to basics?

As I’m smack bang in the middle of a mammoth de-cluttering session in my house (just the 11 bin bags out this morning, no big deal…), it’s got me thinking.

The whole ‘out with the old and in with the new’ feeling is just SO flipping amazing, isn’t it?

It’s like, by me deciding enough was enough and certain things had to change – I can see everything so much clearer.

Chucking all this stuff out has not only made room in my house – it’s made more room in my brain.

It IS a big deal!

You can apply this to your job search you know…

I know that it might feel like you’ve tried everything and I KNOW you’ve spent time, blood, sweat and tears working on your CV, signing up to ALL the job boards and I know that your new CV has already gone here, there and everywhere.

But to this point, you’ve not had any / the right results.

If you’re feeling stuck in a crappy place, with nothing happening and nothing to get excited about then it’s worth thinking about making some changes.

Here’s a crazy suggestion:

Why don’t you forget EVERYTHING you’ve done to this point and make TODAY the FIRST day of your job search?

I won’t tell if you don’t…

Here’s FIVE things to think about that will help you to kick things off in a brand new way.

You’ll be SPRINGING into that new job before you know it.

1.     FORGET THE CV

For now, anyway. The CV is everything and nothing. What you need to do at this point, when you’re starting afresh, is put the CV to one side and concentrate on what is important to you. Go back over everything you’ve done in your career that has made you the person you are today. Make real life notes. Think about the best days you’ve had in the roles you’ve had. Why were they so good? Think of how you’ve helped people in each role you’ve held and the impact you’ve had on each employer and their business. Once you’ve done this, you’ll be bringing old memories to the forefront of your mind, just where you need them. Don’t even go near your CV again until you’ve found either a specific job you want to apply for, or you have a clear route you want to take, going forward. Working on a CV without focus is like trying to solve a problem without knowing what the problem is. A waste of time and precious energy that is better put to use by doing the groundwork and re-familiarising yourself with the path you’ve taken.

2.     HAVE NEW CONVERSATIONS

‘They’ say that you are the sum of the company you keep and I 100% believe this. This isn’t to say that you need to bin off your current circle of people, more to take a step back and think about WHO you spend most of your time with. Are they people that believe in you and encourage you to be the BEST you? Are they doing good things themselves? Are they leading happy, fulfilled lives? I mean, everyone is if you look at Instagram, but in real life – are you in the company of people that inspire you and who you aspire to? Have NEW conversations. Whether online or offline. Find your people. This will in turn help you to find yourself, which will make a massive shift for you in your search for a job that’s truly in line with you and your values.

3.     TAKE CONTROL

Feeling out of control and that your destiny is in the hands of others can bring feelings of frustration and resentment. Especially when the people you’re relying on AREN’T coming up with the goods. Again, this isn’t about binning anyone off, it’s more about taking things into your own hands. What can YOU do, yourself? Think less about who you think you could possibly maybe work for… and MORE about who you WANT to work for. Remember, your next employer has as big a need for you, as you do for them! Take control, believe in yourself; you know you more than anyone does. If someone offers to help you with your search, whether a recruiter or otherwise, then great. Just make sure that person is supportive and understanding of what’s important to YOU. Choose wisely and always remember – you’re in the driving seat. Leading me nicely on to…

4.     GET CREATIVE!

A great way to get clear on WHO you WANT to work for and what you WANT to do, is to create a ‘DREAM BOSS’. Bring them to life, give them a name. Think about what they are currently struggling with - What’s keeping them up at night? The more you can go ‘there’ with regards to their real pain points, the more you can work out where you come in to solve them. Get specific on their problems, list them out, get specific. Maybe they are working into the evenings and weekends to try to catch up – what kind of things would that be? Returning emails? Doing data entry? Managing their own social media? Think about YOUR THING and create your dream boss around this. Once you’ve created this stressed out, worried imaginary person, write out all the ways that you could swoop into their lives to help them.

5.     DAYDREAM

Imagine you’ve randomly got chatting to someone at a party, in a pub, in a café, whatever… The conversation turns to work. They tell you that they are mega stressed out because they > enter pain point here < and guess what? Their pain point is your ‘thing’! What do you say? Do you launch into a load of irrelevant stuff just on the off chance it might strike lucky and ‘impress’ them? Do you heck. In your head you’re having a party but on the surface you know you need to seize the moment and get your points across quickly and clearly. They have a problem, you know you can solve it. You would reassure them that help is at hand and you would help them to visualise YOU doing just that. Forget about job titles, forget about job specs. Strip things back to the surface and remember that every job, once you’ve peeled away all the layers comes down to one person that has a problem to solve.

It really is all about going back to basics. Wiping the slate clean and giving yourself the gift of a fresh NEW start.

De-clutter all your previous baggage, bin (bag) off anything that doesn't serve you and LET GO of bad memories, grudges and crap from the past. It's in the past for a reason.

I know it might go against years of doing certain things a certain way, but just power through the resistance and just give it a go.

You’re LOOKING for work, you’re not WAITING around. Time to take action.

You’ve got nothing to lose but SO much to gain.

Danielle x

PS: Need more help on how to get noticed in your job search? Head over to www.hotseatrecruitment.co.uk/millsskills to grab my FREEBIE Guide to applying for a job, then come and find me in my free Facebook group over at www.facebook.com/groups/killercv and make TODAY the start of all the good things to come.