Many of you reading this have gone through this struggle. You’re job searching. The one thing that no one likes; at any point in life. You send countless resumes, cover letters, and references to potential employers only to get denial emails thanking you for your time and letting you know the position you applied for has been filled. It never gets easier to accept the fact that someone else was chosen for a position that you were qualified for and didn’t even get a chance to interview for. In the midst of all of the denials, you will get some interviews, probably with some nice people, but you never get that warm and fuzzy feeling like "this is it; this is exactly what I’ve been looking for." My advice is keep plugging. It’s going to suck, it’s going to be hard, but keep going.
I recently left my position at one of the best school districts in the state for numerous reasons, and with leaving one position means that it’s time to search for another. As a special education graduate student, working in a school seemed like the best option for me. I sent in application after application to every school district within a 30-minute driving distance of where I was currently living. All of these applications led to nothing but denial letters and interviews that led to learning the job wasn’t going to offer enough money to pay the bills. The stress level rose with every denial letter and interview that ended with "thanks but no thanks." Working a seasonal summer job that is inching closer and closer to coming to end, finding something to do once this position is terminated is becoming ever more important. My stress level is starting to make me sick as it feels like nothing is available, and all of the positions that are available are not the right fit for me for one reason or another. All of the stress from not finding any job leads to many rough nights of sleep and overall negative days. After months of searching, the job I’ve been looking for opens up...but serious questions still arise and it doesn’t immediately relieve any stress.
After interviewing for this position, it ends up being a perfect position. The one thing that I’ve learned from this process is that you have to keep plugging. If you don’t, you’re going to drive yourself insane and nothing is going to get easier. The stress will make you go crazy. You have to find ways to remove yourself from your stress and relieve as much stress as you can. After months of searching, everything has fallen into place and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The biggest thing while job searching for the “The Job” is to don’t give up on your dreams.
In the words of Jim Valvano, Former North Carolina State Basketball Coach who passed of cancer “Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.” It will all work out in the end.
