Remember when you first got your job? You’d looked long and hard for it and you were proud when you snagged it. Has that feeling worn off? Are you feeling stuck, underutilized, unappreciated, and just plain bored?
Fear
So what’s keeping you there? Stuck, unhappy, unsatisfied. Uh-huh, go on, you can say it – you’re scared – terrified even. You’re overwhelmed with fear.
Things like getting your résumé up-to-date and up-to-speed, writing cover letters, figuring out LinkedIn. And, then, oh no, please no, there’s networking!! But those are just the manifestations of some bigger fears that are plaguing you.
Name those fears
Welll…you do have to do those things. But first, what if you do this?
Write down your fears about changing jobs. Every single one of them: fear of the unknown, fear of making a mistake, fear of failing, of success, of not being prepared, of being too old, of being too young, of not being good enough, of not knowing how to even get started finding a new job.
When you take the time to name your fears, you rob them of their power over you.
At first, tiptoe through them
Move through those fears one at a time. Shake them out and look at them in the light of day. Illustrate them – tell a story about them. Maybe one of them took you down before. Take your time and get up close and personal with them.
Then, pick 1. Not the biggest, scariest one. We’re taking little steps here! Let’s call it your starter fear. We’re learning the process. Write that starter fear down, draw it out, type it up, print it out. Write down the specifics of what you’re afraid of. Then write down the worst that could happen if the fear came to pass.
This happened
So here’s one of mine – that actually happened – suppose I put an offer on my website and it doesn’t work right. Yep – it happened to me. So what happened to the people who didn’t receive their product? There’s no way for me to know. Maybe they think I’m a total flake; maybe they liked my other stuff so much, they contacted me anyway. I do know this. I survived it.
Like I said, not the biggest, scariest fear, just a starter one.
Share it
Here’s the powerful part. Share your fear with the person you trust the most. Ask them what they think about your fear. Listen silently to what they have to say. Then repeat what they said back to them so you can feel their words coming out of your mouth. How did that feel? Did you learn something? Did you gain an insight on dealing with that fear?
Hold on to the insight, write it down and figure out what your friend knows about you that you don’t!
Use that input to loosen up and get a little unstuck (yes, it is a thing). See what it feels like to tiptoe through that fear – or even smash it down. Write down how it feels. Tell your person. For sure own it.
Then do it again.
Watch. Read. Learn.
Read: Change the Way You See Fear and Change Your Life
Watch: The Real Reason We Fear Change
