I’ve been in the job market for 4+ weeks now. It’s an odd market. I am both lucky to be in it, and — at the same time — very unfortunate because employers are tapped for resources, hiring cycles are longer and we’re coming to the end of the year.
Give it a chance. This really is a hope-inspiring post.
I have found that the job hunting week goes something like this:
MONDAY - it’s a brand new week. You’ve got some things lined up from the prior week’s work and you’re jazzed to tackle this new adventure. You remember how lucky you are. You are having excellent conversations with many very talented and smart people in your industry. Meetings about web marketing, communities, and the social medias are exciting and participatory discussions these days. It’s not every day that you get 4+ weeks carved out from your job to go learn. Good things await you.
TUESDAY - it’s a working day. Tuesday is one of those days for which you often schedule meetings, interviews, lunches, and networking events. Time flies and Tuesdays go by fast.
WEDNESDAY – it’s the second working day of the week. It flies by just as fast as Tuesday and for the same reasons.
THURSDAY – it just bites. You realize – Holy crabgrass, Batman! – another week has escaped you. You’re still unemployed and while you’ve learned a whole bunch – that doesn’t pay the mortgage. The conversations you’ve been having all week haven’t materialized in any booked meetings for next week and you’re not sure how this is going to play out. Thursday is the day it becomes all too real. You’re frustrated, scared and sad.
FRIDAY - It’s a new day. Yes the week is over, but now you have Saturday and Sunday to step away from job hunting – to take that much needed break. Some meeting or interview or conversation you had earlier in the week somehow pulls through to more work for Tuesday or Wednesday of the next week and you’re off and running again.
So what’s the best way to survive Thursdays, you ask?
Some people sleep through Thursdays. Some people take Thursday off – no job hunting. Some people drink on Thursday and start the weekend early. Some people get sucked in by the emotions and begin the downward spiral into depression.
I say — live Thursdays. I have come to understand that it’s the day that I won’t feel so great. That’s OK. The other days I don’t let myself get down. I keep my positive attitude. On Thursdays, I acknowledge where I am in the process and allow myself to work through all the emotions that go along with my new adventure. Don’t get me wrong, Thursdays bite, but even I know that if only 1 out of 6 days is cruddy, then those are pretty good odds.
Feel what you need to feel on Thursday, go to bed early and be ready for Friday. Friday is a new day.
Great post! And so true. Way to offer hope to those still working towards that dream job.
Thanks, Courtney. I’m still holdin’ out hope for my next dream, too, so I can relate. And hopefully I’m paying forward some of the wonderful help I’ve received from my friends, family and network.
Love your recent Tweet about firing up the fireplace for indoor marshmallow toasting. We do that often in the winter ~ although it’s a bit colder here than in TX.
[...] colleague of my husband’s, who was out of work in the past, concurred with me that Thursdays are the worst day of the week when job hunting. It’s the low of the low and she said, “I never thought about it but, now that you [...]
[...] (web, twitter). In the post, Marr gives the run-down of a weekly jobseeker’s biorhythm and stops cold on Thursday–too far from Monday to be optimistic, and too far from Saturday to give up until the next [...]