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Gratitude – Book Excerpt

(Click HERE for my post about World Gratitude Day.)

“Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.” ~ Buddha

You may wonder, “How can I be thinking about gratitude when I’m in a cloud of career confusion or buried in rejections?” Gratitude is a coping tool during dark times, helping shift perspective. When we focus on lack, it creates negative energy that can paralyze our actions and repel people who may be able to help us.

Each day look for positive things: a beautiful sunset, a favorite food, an email from a friend, or a special moment with your child or pet. Maybe there are elements about your search process you can be grateful for, such as an email reply, a job prospect, or a networking meeting, even if only five minutes of it was helpful. Perhaps there is even something to be grateful for in the midst of the search itself, whether getting to spend more time with family due to a job loss or recognizing your courage to explore a new direction.

Consider starting a gratitude journal and writing down five short bullets about what you are grateful for each night before you go to bed. If you’re stuck, then write down that you have a bed to sleep in or a roof over your head. Think of one thing you are grateful for before getting out of bed, and that can change the course of your day.

Each day I notice things and people for whom I am grateful.

Copyright 2021, Karen Litzinger, Help Wanted: An A to Z Guide to Cope with the Ups and Downs of the Job Search. Permission is granted to share for non-commercial purposes with this entire notation, https://KarensCareerCoaching.com/help-wanted

For 10 complimentary excerpts of the book arriving daily: https://KarensCareerCoaching.com/help-wanted-free-excerpts

You can order the book through either link above.

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Persistence – Book Excerpt

The following is an excerpt from my multi-award winning book, Help Wanted: An A to Z Guide to Cope with the Ups and Downs of the Job Search. For more information and to order: https://karenscareercoaching.com/help-wanted/ For 10 complimentary excerpts that you are free to share: https://karenscareercoaching.com/help-wanted-free-excerpts/

“Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th.”

Julie Andrews

It can be hard to keep going when you’ve submitted endless applications and had dozens of networking meetings, with no final success. Sometimes we do need to regroup and evaluate what we can do differently.

To get to that one offer, you may simply need to send out one more application or make one more call. Remind yourself that people do get jobs, even those with barriers to employment. Seek out people and stories that give you hope and energy to persist. Grit is a trait attributed to success.

Many inventors, writers, and dreamers were rejected or failed dozens or hundreds of times before getting their “yes.” Among them are Walt Disney, Steven Spielberg, Dr. Suess, and J.K. Rowling. You are in good company. Keep at it. Try a new angle. Look for a good fit. Employers are looking to fill jobs. It only takes one. Then help someone else.

Affirmation: I persist with grit and rise to the occasion.

C 2022, Pittsburgh, PA. Karen Litzinger. Permission granted to share with this complete notation. For information about Help Wanted: An A to Z Guide to Cope with the Ups and Downs of the Job Search and about Karen’s career coaching and speaking: www.KarensCareerCoaching.com

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Joy Excerpt from Help Wanted Book

“Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”

Henri Nouwen

It may be hard to find joy in the job search or even see joy on the horizon in a new job. Yet each day we have a choice about how to see our life. We can be consumed by the negativity of job search fear or frustration, or we can allow some space to notice a sunset or a child’s laughter. Brief moments of joy can be a respite from the work of finding work. Perhaps we can even stretch to find some joy by answering yes to a networking request or a nugget of wisdom someone shares.

We can, and sometimes must, create our own joy for the sake of our emotional health and for the well-being of those around us whose support we want and need. Experiencing moments of joy can also help a person to be a more desirable job candidate since employers may sense positivity.

So turn on a comedy, gaze at the clouds, listen to music, and hug a child.

Affirmation: I find moments of joy in my life and am grateful.

To order Help Wanted book: https://karenscareercoaching.com/help-wanted/

For 10 free excerpts: https://karenscareercoaching.com/help-wanted-free-excerpts/

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A Gift of Daily Inspirational Readings to Share – Book Birthday Anniversary!

In celebration of my birthday today and the two-year anniversary of my book launch, I am giving away 10 brief, inspirational readings, one each day, delivered conveniently to your mailbox.  This is a gift that I invite you to share with others. The topics include Resilience, Gratitude, Kindness and more.  Many people have said that most of each reading deals with coping with the ups and downs of life, not just the job search.  So, feel free to share with anyone who could use some inspiration. Just click HERE for a super easy sign-up.  You will only get the readings and nothing else; you can rest assured the same if you gift the readings to someone else by entering their email.

If you would like a preview, click HERE for a couple sample readings (then scroll down).

The gift readings will be sent the day after initiating. I hope you will do so today, for yourself and a friend! This would be my best birthday present ever this year!

May this gift keep on giving!

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Letting Go

My speeding ticket message last month of slowing down continued when I smashed three toes into the base of my desk chair rushing to a Zoom appointment. My national morning meditation message two days later really resonated: She Let Go, a poem by Reverend Safire Rose. Whether letting go of pushing (as in my case), letting go of a lovely season like summer, or letting go of resentments at work or from job loss, it can be a challenge. Letting go is what can create space for the future, for better things to happen, for new attitudes and behaviors.

Naturally my book, Help Wanted: An A to Z Guide to Cope with the Ups and Downs of the Job Search, has a reading on Letting Go.  I invite you to share it (below) with a job seeker you may know, and also to take in the last two paragraphs for your personal life.  I was delighted to receive a note this week from a speaker colleague, Dave Jakielo, who wrote “I realized your advice just isn’t for folks searching for a job, it can be for numerous situations in life.”

May you find the inspiration you need for your challenges, and when needed….let go.

Letting Go Excerpt from Help Wanted

We can get stuck in negative emotions during the search. Letting go gives a path forward. Sometimes a job transition is not your choice. You may have been “let go.” Sometimes we’re currently employed but in a poor career fit or toxic environment. Sometimes we feel treated unfairly in the job search process. It is natural to feel a range of emotions, including anger, frustration, and bitterness.

Feeling and expressing emotions in a healthy way is helpful and possibly even necessary to moving forward. Punch a pillow, write in a journal, hammer nails, see a counselor. Do whatever works for you. Moving through and letting go of negative emotions can lead to more acceptance and make room for hope and opportunity. Forgiving someone is more about helping you than the perceived offender.

If we do not let go of past hurts, they can subtly seep out as negative energy in networking meetings and job interviews despite our thinking we are projecting our best self.

Affirmation: I let go of past hurts so I can move forward authentically.

“We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.”

Joseph Campbell

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