Failure to find a job is a normal thing in life.
The inability to pass the interview rounds is typical.
With a global population of approximately 7.8 billion people, it is definitely hard to find your place in the crowd, in the world.
Finding a job is as challenging as it sounds.
Every day people look for a way to sustain themselves and contribute to their families.
This is some sort of reality we all live in.
In fact, statistical data from Statista presents a global unemployment rate of 6.57%.
We can also see that the unemployment rate increased from 5.36% in 2019 to 6.57% in 2020, a massive jump, and due to no small part to the “Covid-19” pandemic.
The chart also showed this is the highest rate for the past 10 years.
The unemployment rate can stem from various reasons, including the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, rejection from interviews, unavailable job settings, structural market problems, etc.
If you are one of those failing to find a job consistently, we offer the top 10 ways to deal with the failure to find a job here.
Top 10 ways to deal with failure to find a job
- Motivate yourself
- Take a break
- Reflect on the possibilities
- Change your mindset
- Search room for improvement
- Utilize your network
- Volunteer and intern
- Review best practices
- Discover your options
- Move forward
1. Motivate yourself
If you are failing to find a job, it is important to motivate yourself – give yourself some credit for all the hard work you have done to prepare for the job, which includes preparing your CV, going for the interview rounds, attempting the technical assessments, and even taking time to research on the job scopes and companies that you have applied for.
At this point, just a shoutout to our CV partner, UrbanCV. If you still feel your CV or resume is not up to standard and failing to catch the eyes of the recruiter, then perhaps you should use UrbanCV’s modern CV builder to help you surface above the rest of the applicants.
At times, motivating yourself may seem difficult.
Especially when you face rejection from recruiters and hiring managers, this may affect your self-esteem and eventually affect you mentally.
What you can do is use the experience to motivate yourself to continue job hunting.
This may be hard but you need to keep the drive and energy in you for you to find a job that will be suitable for you.
You can do this by rewarding yourself a little.
Such as treating yourself to a meal, going shopping, confiding with a friend, or simply patting yourself on the back and saying: “you did well today”.
According to Hollywood actor, Dwayne Johnson, he once said “Don’t cheat yourself, treat yourself”. This saying still rings true today.
Continuously going for job interviews and failing at them shows tremendous character, so you deserve to have a nice reward for the process.
A reward is usually a good incentive to continue and feel proud of your actions.
This might feel strange to some, but this is what pushes you to strive hard and do better in finding a job. Most importantly, motivating yourself through rewards will benefit your mental health.
According to research, “neurons that release dopamine are activated when we expect to receive a reward”. With the feel-good feeling in you, you feel more motivated and this puts you in a better position to attempt the next interview.
2. Take a break
Job hunting can be exhausting.
Encounters with several rejections would, of course, take a toll on your mental health.
So cry it out.
Take a day off and lay in your bed.
Let go of the things that bother your thoughts so that you can start a brand new day tomorrow.
Essentially taking a break can also be beneficial for you as this can help you process your feelings.
According to a study done at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, they found that “brief diversions from a task can dramatically improve one’s ability to focus on that task for prolonged periods”.
Of course, the experiment they did might not apply directly to your job application processes, but we think that taking a break from finding a job definitely helps your brain to think better and be rejuvenated for the next upcoming job-finding process.
You will need to attend to them and make meaning of the rejections and the reason for the failure to find a job.
Take those time to recollect and gather your energy again to be able to come back stronger the next day.
3. Reflect on the possibilities
With so many thoughts in your head, you might want to start thinking of which was the problem and what direction it should start from.
Perhaps there is something wrong with your approach in your hunting, or maybe you are in the wrong place.
There are countless reasons why.
Failure to find a job can also be the result of rejection.
Maybe you need to reflect on what went wrong in the job application process and try to learn from it.
The reason might be that there was someone that was more qualified for the position or it’s just not meant for you.
There are a lot of reasons to think about but always remember to focus on the possibilities rather than on your emotions.
Reflect and ponder on your next steps to accomplish the goal of finding a job. Try to map out a plan and follow it.
This will increase efficiency and gauge the emotional stress it may cause you.
Read more also on the things you can do if you are retrenched by our very own 9cv9 Research Team.
4. Change your mindset
Maybe you need to change your mindset about the course of things.
See it in a different light and try to open your perspectives.
Because what might seem okay to you might not align with the company’s values and might not be on their standard.
We all know that people’s opinions differ from one another.
And this applies in real life too.
You and the company might not see eye to eye in some cases, and that is okay.
Take a step back and try to see the positive in things.
When you do not accept the callback, do not be disappointed, rather take it with pride.
Learn to manage your expectation at times so that you will not be thoroughly affected when the worst comes.
Remember that applying for a job means keeping your perspectives wider.
According to Tony Robbins, a celebrated author, coach, speaker, and philanthropist, there are five ways we can change our mindsets:
Challenge your Beliefs
Remove any limiting beliefs such as telling yourself “I am not good enough for the job”, or “I won’t be able to pass the interview”.
Instead, tell yourself positive and empowering beliefs such as “I can definitely pass this round of interviews”, or “I will get hired, for sure.”
Face your Fears
Scared of going for an interview or writing your CV/Resume.
Let me offer a solution: Go for more interviews and keep writing more CVs/Resumes.
The best way to solve a fear problem is to face it, directly.
You will find out that the more you go for interviews (and fail), your body will adapt and learn and get better at them.
Eventually, you will find that that fear of going for interviews will gradually dissipate and along with it, the fear itself.
Shift your Perspective
This might be hard to accomplish as it needs a pivoting of your current thinking and mindset but try to force your mind to indulge in other angles of the thinking.
For example, instead of blaming yourself for failing at the job interview, be proud that you have gone to the interview and made a connection with the recruiter or hiring manager (and in some cases, the CEO himself/herself).
You might never know that these connections made during the interviews might return back to elevate your career shortly.
Wow. Now that you see the benefit of going for more interviews, you probably getting ready to send in more applications right?
Change your Self-Talk
Nothing beats the words coming out of your mouth for conviction and commitment.
Try talking to yourself daily about the positivity of the job-hunting process.
Making new connections through the interviews? Checked.
Learning about the skills requirements and going through courses to attain them? Checked.
Try telling all the positive benefits and results that have come along from the job application process to yourself and you will find yourself stronger mentally.
Get Support
“What are friends for?” This adage has never held truer at this point in time.
If changing your mindset is tough, then why not enlist your friends, family, and even your ex-colleagues to assist.
Your close connections will definitely be keen to lend a helping hand to help you get out of the spirally-downward mental chasm into a stronger mental podium.
5. Search rooms for improvement
Take a short course.
Learn a new skill.
This will be a technique that you can do to boost your skill sets and earn your assets.
Take note that employers do not necessarily want someone with just the basic skill, because anyone can do that.
So if they were presented with a strong candidate, they would definitely choose the one with the most proficient skills.
Using your skills as an asset and advantage can earn you a position in most jobs.
Take an example, a job for a supplement company. Who do you think they will hire?
You, who graduated from a business course or someone who had graduated from a double degree course in business and pharmacy?
The answer is pretty obvious.
So you should get going and earn yourself a certificate to gain more skills to be recognized as a talent by the company.
6. Utilize your network
Talk to your friends and family.
Utilize your network.
Put your skills out there and socialize with them so that they can understand your needs.
For instance, if a family member has a business that is related to your field of work, he/she might think of you if the time comes.
They might see your potential and eventually hire you into their teams.
Keep a set of people with which you can confidently share your skills to be able to showcase them and your personality casually.
This way words can also get out through the different conversations between networks.
This can generate leads that may benefit you and your career.
Why do you think celebrities are famous? That’s because they are constantly being talked about. So flaunt your skills and do not be afraid to talk about them.
7. Volunteer and Intern
Volunteering and internship both have many misconceptions about it.
Yes, it might not guarantee good pay. But remember we are not here for these material things but for the work experience we would need and eventually train ourselves to be used to.
You might want to look around for possible volunteer and internship work while you are unemployed because it not only serves as a good pastime but can also be a good experience that will be beneficial to your future resume.
You can mostly find these offered by start-up companies or even in your communities.
Start volunteering to discover more about yourselves and your skill sets.
Interning has many benefits as well.
According to our 9cv9 Research Team, there are 6 benefits to doing an internship:
- Providing Experience and Knowledge
- Opportunity to Find Yourself
- Hone Skills
- Delivering and Developing a Professional Network
- Increase the Value of your CV
- Transition to a Full-Time work
For more details under each of the points, we highly recommend you to have a read here.
8. Review best practices
Start by evaluating yourself from the company’s perspective.
Look at your reflection.
Are you groomed enough?
Did you wear the right clothes today?
Should you have worn perfume or a cologne today?
Little will you know, these simple details can play a huge role in striking an impression.
Impressions are most likely the first thing that people will look at.
This is crucial as it defines the image you want the company to perceive you as.
Review your resume and be sure to make it presentable and clean.
It’s always great to use the traditional technique of rereading and rechecking it multiple times before passing it on to the employer.
On the other hand, you should also study and make sure to do sufficient research for you to be able to answer the interview questions smoothly.
Lastly, show up with confidence and go to an interview prepared while showing professionalism throughout the course.
These little details are crucial for job hunting as these are some of the ways employers evaluate their potential candidates for hire.
Make sure to display your best self and put up a good fight.
Click here to learn about how you can ace your interviews to lessen the chances of failure in finding a job.
9. Discover your options
There are several choices of work everywhere.
It is not limited to only one field.
So move around and try to discover them.
You never know what you might end up with.
You can always decide to still take jobs related to your field or maybe consider switching to another kind of job.
So widen your perspective to see what is in the market for you.
Do not be afraid to grab the opportunities in trying for jobs you are truly interested in.
Maybe instead of being an employee, you were destined to be a business owner?
We never know.
So take that leap and look for opportunities through a wider lens.
Whatever job you end up with, remember that what is important is your love and satisfaction with the job.
Here is how we can help you learn more about starting a new business.
10. Move forward
Carry on with your job search.
You can find them through your peers, hiring ads and signs, or online.
One of the most popular job search methods is just in front of your screen.
Use and optimize technology to your advantage in this situation.
Websites like 9cv9 can be of help.
With a few clicks, you will be able to browse through the opportunities that have been open for you all along.
Don’t wait around for a job offer, instead start clicking and discovering.
You must remember that opportunities do not wait around.
So it is important to get going and not give up.
Failure to find a job should not keep you from trying to reach these opportunities.
Continue to strive and work hard for your own life goals.
Summary
Finding a job is hard.
In this volatile and unpredictable time and era, employers are more cautious about hiring and as a result, job seekers have found it even more difficult to find a job.
Failure to find a job is all but ubiquitous, and every one of us would have encountered that failure at some point in our life.
In this article, our team has shared the top 10 ways to deal with the failure of finding a job.
It is important to motivate yourself, take a break from the hustling and bustling of job search, reflect on the possibilities and change your mindset from negativity to positivity.
We further recommend searching for areas of improvement, and utilizing your network while at the same time volunteering and interning to increase your connections and network even more.
Lastly, we propose to review best practices, discover your options and move forward with hunger and optimism for the future.
If you find this article useful, why not share it among your recruitment and talent acquisition counterparts, and also leave a nice comment below?
We at 9cv9 Research Team strive to bring the latest and most meaningful data, guide, and statistics to your doorstep.
