3 Ways To Find A Job By ... Not Looking
By Hank Stringer
Want or need to increase your position or move to a new company? Stop looking!
Here are three ways to find your next challenge by NOT LOOKING!
1. Stop fretting, calm down.
When we need work, when we want that position or raise, many times we start fretting wondering when IT will happen, questioning if we are doing or saying the right thing to the right person, etc. The world of jobs, finding and securing, can be like a jungle full of wild animals and those animals all have unique predatory and safety instincts. When people "sense" you have a need and are anywhere close to desperate, they react by hiding, evading or by taking advantage.
You know what I am talking about because most of us have been there either as a worker/candidate in need, or as one who has sensed the same in a co-worker or friend. Take a deep breath. List all your positive attributes and the goal you wish to achieve ... whatever it takes, stop fretting and calm down.
2. Stop using I.
When we have a need, we have a tendency to focus on ourselves, and why not? It is a jungle out there and this is survival. But know that when we open our mouths and start describing situations or experiences with "I" or "me," we stop listening to others -- and guess what? -- many times they stop listening too. Think about people you know who talk about themselves, as soon as you hear "I," that little voice in your head goes off -- "Oh no, here we go again" -- and you stop listening.
We want people to listen to engage, and we accomplish this by listening to them first, by asking questions and by showing sincere interest.
The Good Book says, "Do unto others as you would have them do to you' -- fantastic advice. Get rid of "I," stop talking about yourself and start asking questions -- start learning. You will be amazed at how many people will end the conversation -- after being listened to -- with, "Is there anything I can do for you?" This gives you the opportunity to answer with, "Well, as a matter of fact."
3. Just stop looking.
Well, at least all the time. Give yourself the time and opportunity to explore your world. Admit it, serendipity is a driving force in opportunity. Call it luck, divine intervention, whatever you want, but too many people will tell you that their career move came down to being in the right place at the right time, and not always in a work environment.
Should we do the work to find work, or increase our position? Absolutely. Should we give ourselves time to stop looking, experience our world and take what comes our way? Absolutely.
If you hear a conversation of interest at the coffee shop, enter in, question and listen. If you see something of interest like, maybe, an art show, the architecture of a building, a not-for-profit doing good work -- stop looking and go see or get involved. You never know what you will learn, who you will meet or what opportunity may be waiting around the corner as a result.
Finding, sometimes, requires that we stop looking.
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