Are you caught in your loop...?

This morning I did what I've done a thousand times before – and that my friends is the problem!

I got in my car and drove to a destination I know well, to meet a new executive career coaching client. We'd arranged to meet at Hilton East Midlands Airport, a favourite choice for morning meetings, and a spot being located at junction 24 of the M1, within easy reach across the Midlands.

Expecting traffic, I left in plenty of time. Today though, it wasn't traffic that proved to be the problem...

...junction 24 has been chopped, changed and messed about with for quite a while now. It seems Highways England is determined to make things more complex and confusing, but let's leave that moan for another day.

This morning, I exited 21's roundabout and expected to find the entrance to the hotel where it's always been. But today, while I could see the hotel (thankfully the building hadn't moved) the access road was gone.

I was immediately thrown into a state of confusion. I routed round and approached again, but still no entrance.

Thoughts raced through my head...

...is the hotel closed for refurbishment?

...what am I missing?

...where is the #amn#d entrance?

As human beings, while performing tasks we know well and do often, we often switch to automatic mode. Psychologists call this open loop control, a situation where we're pretty much on autopilot, relying on our subconscious mind with very little or no conscious intervention. If you've ever arrived at a destination with little recollection of the journey you just made, then you've succumbed to open loop control.

I was caught in this loop this morning, and it was only on my third try to locate the hotel that I saw the entrance right in front of me. Accessible off the roundabout and clearly signed, I'd failed to notice it on my first and second attempts.

The human brain is clever, and the majority of the time this automation helps us go about our daily business without brain overload. Imagine if we had to process every task in our conscious mind in real-time.

Without the support of our subconscious mind we'd be a thousand times less productive. What's more we'd never sleep! We'd have to stay awake 24/7 to focus on the conscious act of breathing.

In the job market this automation loop is not helpful. For executive jobseekers this means doing what they've always done, which 9 times out of 10 fails to lead to a successful outcome.

We're all a product of our past (if we let ourselves be), and the automation aspect of our being can unintentionally serve unhelpful and disempowering beliefs. It can mean missing out on opportunities (or exits in my case) that are right in front of us. Opportunities that we never see, not because they're not there, but because we simply don't expect to see them or are focused in the wrong place.

The psychology aspect is a big part of my 'Executive Edge' Programme, because it's the only thing any of us can control. You can understand the job market and how the game of executive job search is played, but that doesn't mean you can control it. Proactive job search means knowing and controlling what you do and how you do it. It's about being open, conscious in the moment, and positioned to capitalise on the multitude of opportunities that always exist in the place I call the 'hidden' market.

Mindfulness has become a popular term in recent times. It involves bringing your attention to things occurring in the present moment. It's a powerful practice with a whole host of practical applications and benefits.

Despite what we may believe, there is no past or future. All we have is a series of 'nows', which continually and seamlessly weave themselves together to give the illusion of time. Indeed, time is a man-made construct – all we really have is now!

When it comes to successful executive job search my advice is to detach from the past and forget the future. Success means overriding your loops to change your beliefs, thoughts and actions. It takes time, energy and effort, but it's well worth it.

Resources:

For support, training and coaching, please visit: https://careercodex.com

More on open (and closed) loop – Pearson's Inside Track.