The Nervous Job Seeker Do It Anyway!

The Nervous Job Seeker Do It Anyway! I need to tie up my post from Wednesday (The Job Search Interview Process Is Full of Emotions!) and my post from Thursday (The Job Search Program Better Than Sliced Bread) into my message for today. So I have to reach out to people. Yesterday I emailed 33 JibberJobber users asking them if they wanted to take part in the Project HOPE alpha program. Then, I emailed 250 coaches and resume writers asking them if they want to learn more about the program, to offer to their clients, as affiliates. Each time I was about to hit the send button I got all the wrong feels. Not excitement or happiness, but the what ifs. What if they hate me. What if they think Im a charlatan. What if they are tired of hearing from me. What if they . what if, what if, what if. I was nervous. I was reminded of something similar I did thirteen years ago. Before I knew what I was doing, I wrote a press release. And without worrying about it, I pressed send. Because no one would see it, probably. I had nothing to lose not reputation, not nothing. I pressed send and that one piddly press release launched me into a whole new world. I got picked up by a podcast that was listened to by a lot of heavies in the job search space (from the outplacement and recruiting and talent acquisition end). That single podcast made JibberJobber legitimate. And within a week or two I was on a call with an outplacement company, starting to talk about a contract with them. If I knew what goodness was to come out of that press release, I would have been way more nervous. I would have over-thought it, and probably got stuck in analysis-paralysis. I would have revised and revised and revised the press release, and probably have put it off. But I was too naive to know what I was doing, and just did it anyway. About a year or so later, I was writing another press release. I thought about all the goodness from the first one and did go into analysis paralysis. Too much was on the line to mess it up! Im not sure if I even pushed that press release out. Heres my message: its okay to be nervous. It is not okay to NOT do what you need to do. If you need to make the call, make the call. Today. Right now. Just start. Youve been talking your whole life youll figure out what to say. If you stumble, then recover from it. If you dont recover on that call, then learn from it, maybe even script out your call or talking points for the next call. If you have an email to send, SEND IT. What are you waiting for, better weather?   Theres no time like the present. Send it. And if you need to, follow up later. We all have a chicken list. And its okay to not feel fully confident. Its normal to have the emotions, as I explained in Wednesdays post about emotions. stop feeling like you have to get your nerves in check, and just DO what you need to do. It will get easier, youll be less nervous, and youll start to get results (assuming you are doing the right things). The Nervous Job Seeker Do It Anyway! I need to tie up my post from Wednesday (The Job Search Interview Process Is Full of Emotions!) and my post from Thursday (The Job Search Program Better Than Sliced Bread) into my message for today. So I have to reach out to people. Yesterday I emailed 33 JibberJobber users asking them if they wanted to take part in the Project HOPE alpha program. Then, I emailed 250 coaches and resume writers asking them if they want to learn more about the program, to offer to their clients, as affiliates. Each time I was about to hit the send button I got all the wrong feels. Not excitement or happiness, but the what ifs. What if they hate me. What if they think Im a charlatan. What if they are tired of hearing from me. What if they . what if, what if, what if. I was nervous. I was reminded of something similar I did thirteen years ago. Before I knew what I was doing, I wrote a press release. And without worrying about it, I pressed send. Because no one would see it, probably. I had nothing to lose not reputation, not nothing. I pressed send and that one piddly press release launched me into a whole new world. I got picked up by a podcast that was listened to by a lot of heavies in the job search space (from the outplacement and recruiting and talent acquisition end). That single podcast made JibberJobber legitimate. And within a week or two I was on a call with an outplacement company, starting to talk about a contract with them. If I knew what goodness was to come out of that press release, I would have been way more nervous. I would have over-thought it, and probably got stuck in analysis-paralysis. I would have revised and revised and revised the press release, and probably have put it off. But I was too naive to know what I was doing, and just did it anyway. About a year or so later, I was writing another press release. I thought about all the goodness from the first one and did go into analysis paralysis. Too much was on the line to mess it up! Im not sure if I even pushed that press release out. Heres my message: its okay to be nervous. It is not okay to NOT do what you need to do. If you need to make the call, make the call. Today. Right now. Just start. Youve been talking your whole life youll figure out what to say. If you stumble, then recover from it. If you dont recover on that call, then learn from it, maybe even script out your call or talking points for the next call. If you have an email to send, SEND IT. What are you waiting for, better weather?   Theres no time like the present. Send it. And if you need to, follow up later. We all have a chicken list. And its okay to not feel fully confident. Its normal to have the emotions, as I explained in Wednesdays post about emotions. stop feeling like you have to get your nerves in check, and just DO what you need to do. It will get easier, youll be less nervous, and youll start to get results (assuming you are doing the right things).