How do I keep momentum up during a job hunt?

Previously published in Experience Points , a newsletter dedicated to supporting professionals like you in the job hunt, wellness, and developing business acumen. Click here to learn more.

The truth is, you don't.

Now, I wrote that with love. And I know some of y'all aren't gonna like reading it. But before you smash the unsubscribe button, hear me out.

We aren't machines.

This Truth can be hard to accept with capitalism threatening your very survival. Especially if you're laid off.

You might think, I don't have anything keeping me from looking for work all day, so why haven't I found a job yet? I don't have anything distracting me.

But that, dear reader, is not how we're made. We are nature. And nature has seasons and cycles.

Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall all have their own needs and timing. Do the wrong thing during the wrong season, and there can be disastrous consequences. And neglecting the needs of larger seasons might be obvious.

But the neglect that can creep into our smaller cycles are harder to spot.

How well do you honor the cycle of energy flow throughout the day? What about your hunger, rest (not just sleep), or hormones?

Inherent to capitalism is the requirement to neglect needs (and then pay to meet them). Push yourself to the limit and then some to meet expectations. Then you can take your vacation and rest.

What if you just rested and paced your work with your energy levels?

Your daily cycle of energy may only leave room for 4 hours of solid thought-work. But capitalism is gonna insist that you tack another 4 on so you're pushed to ignore your nature.

As many of y'all know, I have PMDD. So for one week out of the month, my only goal is to function: eat, sleep, hydrate, and don't say anything I'll regret at work. It used to be that I saw this part of my cycle (no pun intended) as "What's wrong with me? I have so much brain fog. How do I fix this?" and I'd deny myself rest trying to keep up with the energy level I had before my hormones shifted.

It wasn't until I had a significant shift in my self-awareness that I realized what I was doing.

So now, the PMDD days show up, and I get to rest. I get to slow down. And trust that the momentum will pick back up soon enough.

When you can design with your nature in mind, you can start to embrace a self-kindness that means momentum isn't the goal... building the life you want to live is.

Some things to consider implementing to embrace your own seasons and cycles:

Schedule emails to remind your future self of your choices.

There's at least a two week delay for job hunting. Anything you do now, you won't see the impact of until some time has passed.

So let's say that you have a week in with lots of doctor appointments and decide not to apply for any jobs that week. It's a valid choice! You have another priority that week.

Two weeks later, future-you could be stewing in self-doubt about why no one is contacting you for jobs. By scheduling an email to yourself, you can remind future-you so you can accept that the impact of that week without internalizing the self-doubt.

Pace yourself and set limits.

I know the desire to apply to every job every day all day long is strong. But you can't say "yes" to everything and everyone without saying "no" to yourself.

Saying "no" is just as importance to an abundance mindset as saying "yes." You do not have to take advantage of every opportunity in order for the right one to arrive.

Set limits on how much time you'll spend each day on the job hunt, including limiting how many jobs you apply to.

Let small steps matter.

We tend to want to make lofty all-or-nothing goals for ourselves. But remember, we're nature. And nature builds slowly over time. Small steps over time are better than big steps all at once. So honor the small steps you make.

(I know some of y'all like to look at me like I have it all figured out. I promise I don't. But also, it's taken me years and small daily steps to get where I am today. If you're comparing yourself to me, you better be comparing me with future you. Because present you was likely Mandy #X years ago.)

Front-load what you can.

One of the reasons I feel okay resting during PMDD weeks is that the other weeks, I tend to be ahead in my projects. If you didn't already know this, often this newsletter is written in advance. I might tweak my intros and add to the Loot List, but I tend to be about a month ahead in the actual articles. That's because I know that there are gonna be weeks where I can't write and will miss the deadline.

I also set up automation to support myself, emails scheduled ahead, groceries pre-ordered, hair appointments automatically made 7 weeks out... all these things that I no longer have to worry about because I've created a system.

You might consider how to do this in your job hunt. This might be as simple as writing some of your communication ahead of time or writing a follow-up message right after the conversation but scheduling it out later.

Practice presence.

When we've been in survival mode for so long, it's easy to hyperfixate on what ifs. What if they make the offer before I hear back from this other job? How will I counter? What happens if they both want me? What happens if I have to move? How will I interview at this job I just applied for when school is starting back up? What happens if I need to break contract mid-school year?

It's your brain's attempt to keep you safe. (There is also an element of fantasy that feels good, especially if the imagined paycheck is more money.)

But consider that none of this has happened yet.

You don't have to figure out what you'd do if both companies made an offer until that's happened. You don't have to figure out how to interview for the job until they've invited you. All you can do is respond to real events actually happening.

And nothing is real until it's real.

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It's only by embracing your nature and planning for it that you can create momentum for yourself. But I don't know that I'd call it "keeping up momentum" so much as relearning your personal seasons and cycles.

I hope this article gives you a little more room to embrace the seasons and cycles that come.

Do you spend a lot of bandwidth writing job hunting emails? Join me for From Inbox to Offer's July Cohort!

If you're like past Mandy, writing emails takes a long time. You pour over every word until your eyes are tired. Click "Send" and then immediately reread the email from the "Sent" folder to see how it looks.

Doing this for a job search is taxing. Your time is better spent.

So let me help!

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I have over 10 years of experience teaching writing, an Executive MBA in Corporate Strategy & Leadership, and BA in Technical Writing. I also have 15 years of professional writing experience.

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Read what one of my mentees has to say:

Go for it! Especially if you struggle or perseverate over writing during your job hunt. I learned a lot and now have templates ready to go that will help me accomplish my goals! If you can afford the cost, it's a great value! - Andrea, April '24 Cohort

Enrollment ends June 24th, 8 pm EST

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