How to overcome chaos and drive successful job search

As a job seeker, your goal is to drive successful job search. You may find yourself overwhelmed with chaos, it is extremely difficult to get past chaos to win the job.

The above photo is my kitchen. I’ve been thinking about you, job seeker, as we start this huge project. I understand how you feel when your “norm” is disrupted. You hate chaos too!

What if the change is good change?

I waited 25 years since the day we moved into this house to remodel my kitchen. I love to cook. Can you imagine how hard that wait was for me?

My youngest son, Dan, was 5 when we moved in. He is almost 30 now and my contractor on the job. It’s not his first kitchen. He has specialized residential building training and multiple years of on-the-job training.

This is a huge job because it is a total gut down to the studs with walls opening up.

The wall Dan is standing by in the photo to the right is going to open up so that the light that permeates the rest of my house will come into the kitchen.

You know what comes before new construction?

Destruction and chaos precedes the final product. I know this. I married a remodeling contractor, Dan’s dad, Bill. We bought this house and the house before it to remodel. I should be used to it. Bill remodeled many parts of this house.

I don’t do well with chaos!

In fact, I was downright ornery even though I really want this change.

I work from home but a patio door separates my office from the rest of the house. Since my business is thriving, I am busy most of the day with client appointments and don’t experience the direct effects of the construction.

But every time I went out into the rest of the house, I was ready to scream. So much clutter, the kitchen table was buried with odds and ends. I expected inconvenience but was still unprepared for the level of mess.

Find ways to eliminate chaos

• Dan got the building permit for me. He knows the building inspectors and they are confident in his skills since they have interacted with him on multiple projects.
• Bill built shelves in the living room for the dishes and the kitchen tools and supplies. We commandeered two cabinets to hold more of the dishes. The seldom used items are boxed in the back bedroom. It is a guessing game to find what you need but at least we have a system.
• Finding a spot for the coffee pot was hard. I could have brought it in my office and still may.
• The messy kitchen table was really bothering me. I finally cleared off all the odds and ends. Somehow this lessened the chaos.
• My old stove is disabled but the grill is right outside my office so I think I will get in a routine of planning meals with the grill.
• I figured out how to do dishes in the bathtub with Bill’s help. Innovation is key.
• The dumpster arrived late Thursday and it made the chaos decrease as we can now dump the debris.
• I called the plumber but handed off the call to Dan to go over the details.
• We use the same window supplier and he found a great window.
• The appliance center staff knows us and worked to help us find great new appliances.

We will survive the chaos and soon I will be in a wonderful new kitchen.

Job seekers don’t like chaos

People often think I mainly work with unemployed job seekers and I certainly do. But I also work with people who have put up with conditions at work that drive them crazy. Does it drive them crazy enough to make a change?

What about you?

Are you struggling to drive successful job search but feeling as though you can’t get out of chaos?

You need vision to succeed. As a job seeker, you must overcome the fear of change. With change comes disruption.

• Perhaps your normal routine is disrupted.
• Your resume is usually not ready when the dream job comes along.
• You have to use unfamiliar tools, like LinkedIn.
• Getting your job search tools organized takes time. Finding recommendations, old dates for your employment history, and your network can be hard.
• You aren’t even aware of what you don’t know.

How do you drive successful job search?

Start with the resume. A recent job-winning client said:

“Julie is a highly skilled and collaborative resume writer and social media expert. She is a great listener and is quick to translate your work experience into clear verbiage and a creative design to catch the discerning eye and mind of an executive recruiter or hiring manager.”

Just because the chaos is driving you crazy, don’t just hope it will go away. Get your resume ready so that when your dream job comes along you can respond quickly. Want to tell me more about you? Click here.