Kick-Start Your Feelings of Hardiness and Resilience

By Sandy Prock M.Ed., JCTC, and Co-Owner of www.ExpertResume.com

As a job seeker of any level or if you are an executive/manager, you may understand what resilience feels like. However, after losing a job, even you can temporarily forget your basic feeling of hardiness. My passion is digging up information from other fields that will help you, in your job search and in managing your feelings as you go through your career transition and manage your feelings after a job loss. First, remember feeling depressed is a normal feeling during times of loss.

Knowledge is power. Knowledge helps you frame your experience and implement recovery tools. In his book “The Personal MBA,” Josh Kaufman said that the old saying “it is not what you know but who you know” is incorrect. Knowledge does matter. It sometimes matters more than who you know. I want to share with you some basic knowledge to jumpstart your resilience and reinforce your hardiness as you work through your feelings after a job loss, or even if you feel depressed in your current job. In a book called “The Gift of Suffering” Polly Young Eisendrath said there are seven things a child needs in their childhood to learn resilience and to live a purposeful adult life. Even though this information is in regard to what a child needs - sometimes it’s the simple knowledge that is most helpful.

When you look at the seven characteristics listed below, think about these as tools to kick-start and remind you of your resilience. With your renewed hardiness you will not only make it through, you may learn some valuable lessons that may even help you get  rolling on a better path and possibly land an even better job. Here are the seven things you need to build resilience:

• Some kindness

• Enough food, housing and clothing

• Plenty of opportunity for self-determination

• Some fundamental self-respect

• Enough return for your efforts in helping yourself or others so you can feel good about giving more

• Love - whether given or received

• Opportunity to use the abundance of your gifts, creativity, or practical skills and  receiving respect in return.

I hope this list sparks your creative brainstorming and ignites your hardiness reserve as you move through your depression and move on to your next challenge.

You can begin by being kind to yourself. Acknowledge and accept all your thoughts and feelings. They are understandable considering this situation. You can show yourself respect by sharing your thoughts and feelings in a personal journal or with a trusted friend, trusted colleague, trusted family member, spouse, pastor or therapist. Begin by helping yourself, then reach out and help someone else in small or big ways. Start adding up your accomplishments and take note of your talents, skills and abilities. They are there, ready to use in a new, maybe even better more suitable situation.

Even if you are a seasoned professional, you no doubt understand that difficulties and obstacles build resilience and a hardy personality. With the correct knowledge, you have the power to recognize and move through your feelings of job loss depression. Use these tools as a gentle reminder and go for your gold.

Make sure your resume, cover letter and other job search documents are well written and professional. This is not the time to skimp on quality. Beware of well meaning friends or family members who want to help you write your resume. Beware of template resumes.

Wisdom - know when to seek help, whether it is a professional resume writer or if you need an extra boost find a professional counselor/therapist.

Your resume, cover letter and other documents represent you and they better be good.

Bob and I wish you the best in your job search. If you have any questions about your resume, cover letters, or other job search documents, feel free to call Bob or email him at expertresume@yahoo.com.

Sandy Prock M.Ed. (Master’s in Education-Vocational Guidance and Counseling), JCTC (Job and Career Transition Coach), Co-Owner of www.ExpertResume.com