Erin Suess's blog

Have you ever left an interview and caught yourself saying “I wish I had a chance to redo that interview” or “if I only would have done this or said that”? Either way you do not want to leave an interview wishing you had an opportunity to do it again. Chances are you will not get that opportunity so you have to nail it on the first try.

Have you ever made a decision using your “gut” and it turned out to be the right choice? Have you ever contemplated over a decision using a more systematic approach only to find it probably was not the best choice? I know I certainly have. I think back to my days of when I use to hire people and it never failed. Every time I went with my gut I always made the right hiring choice.

Do you ever wonder why things turn out the way they do? Have you ever been so disappointed that your emotions got the best of you? We have all experienced some form of disappointment in our lives. Whether it was being passed over for that promotion, not getting the job we had hoped for, failing to see results quick enough or circumstances in our personal/professional lives just not turning out the way we imagined. There are going to be disappointments in our lives but it is how we deal with them that will make all the difference.

Today more than ever we are faced with so many choices and as a result we are fearful of making the wrong choice. For some of us we become paralyzed with indecision. If in the past you changed jobs or made a career move that did not serve you well you may be fearful of making another poor decision even if it means a better opportunity. On the other hand, you may have been so scared of making a move that you chose to stay in your job even when it was no longer satisfying or challenging.

When you step into your work space do you get overwhelmed by the mounds of paperwork on your desk or unorganized files on your desktop? When you look around your work environment do you see clutter? Do you start your day with LONG to-do lists and mental chit-chat? If you answered yes to any of these questions you are most likely experiencing energy drains.

We all approach our job search in different ways. Some of us make it a point to continuously network so we are attending events whenever possible and talking to a number of people. Others approach their job search in a more systematic way and apply to a certain number of jobs weekly to count on a certain number of callbacks-they play the number’s game. Still other people approach their search differently spending most of their time using social media sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

As a Career Coach I often use career and personality assessments to dive deeper into understanding personality and best fit career environments. With today’s tough job market and changing of jobs/careers many people are looking for meaningful work that aligns with their interests, values, and skill sets. Do you know if you are in the right line of work? If you are not sure below are a few clues that may indicate you are in the right job:

Do you feel like you are only going through the motions at work and are stuck in a rut? We are so busy doing our day to day mundane tasks that it almost feels automatic; we are neglecting to give our routine too much thought. We file our paperwork, attend all of our required meetings, continue working on our uninteresting project and respond to all the emails that are waiting for us in our inbox. With each passing day we feel like we are becoming more like robots than creative human beings.

Are you tired of not having enough time for family, fun or other activities such as exercising? Do you feel like all you do is work, work and more work? If you answered YES to these questions you are not alone. There are many people who have difficulty balancing their work and other activities outside of work. Especially in today’s work environments which are requiring us to work longer hours it is challenging to squeeze in time addressing other life areas.

After reading, Too Many Jobs Seekers, Not Enough Jobs, I was yet again reminded about the importance of making yourself STAND OUT from the crowd. Even in “good” times we try to make ourselves stand out when interviewing or in other aspects of our job search. However, with the fierce competition in today’s job market employers can afford to be much more selective which makes it challenging for job seekers.