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How to maintain your mental health while searching for a job?

Some of the most discussed topics today are about mental health, depression and loneliness. In this day and age, it has become a crucial area of challenge, both individually as well as at work. The workplace itself is filled with many unexpected challenges and often, to stay competitive, strife becomes prevalent at the workplace. Constant demands from the higher-ups cause many fractures in the workforce. This is the main ingredient that causes a happy and productive team to devolve and become part of the rat race, an endless pursuit of deliverables that in the long run, become meaningless achievements.

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Everyone is always on the lookout for something better in the pursuit of happiness. You still need a job, but what you also need is people you can work with. You also need a sound mind and emotional stability. So while you are on your way to looking for something better, we’d like to share some ways of how you could take care of your mental well being as well. The very first on our list is:

1. Have friends and family.

Family is that great anchor that sets your feet on firm ground. Personal friends and family are important to anyone’s mental health. A mother usually cooks dinner on the weekends and calls her grown or married children over. It’s her way of keeping her family together. Knowing that her family is safe gives her the mental comfort that she needs. The same applies to anyone as no person is an island. The point is to avoid that loneliness. According to recent statistics, loneliness is the number one cause of suicide and depression in a country like the UK and Japan, where people tend to live alone. The absence of human companionship is more dangerous than we care to realise, so this is why friends and family are number one on our list.

2. Watch that anxiety level.

Anxiety is that dreaded by-product of not having achieved enough. Still, there are different kinds of anxiety but ask yourself a few questions

  • Why are you looking for a job in the first place?

For the fresh grad, you need a job. That’s true. But what if you are a very driven entrepreneur at heart? Perhaps self-employment is what would keep that type of anxiety off. 

  • Are you ready for a new job?

Are you really ready? For instance, are you going to bring your old habits to your new workplace and let the same old problems start again? A battle could be raging inside you, and this can cause anxiety that later leads to dissatisfaction.

  • What is the driving force in your life?

Do you know what you want at this stage in your life? Are money and status the only driving force in your life? People like this tend to be loners. Some can work with people, but in reality, they don’t really care about having friends or a team.

A CEO once shared with me that success in life is very often done with partners and never alone. So, knowing that someone cares about us as much as we care about them in life and at work will definitely help in managing our mental health. Having a group working together, working towards goals and living to celebrate the successes along the way is that remedy.

3. Consider getting a pet.

It’s been proven that having a pet is like having a family member who loves you unconditionally. A loving pet can easily melt all that stress away and even help to deal with your temper.

4. Paint your room or living area in brighter colours.

Paint companies have done much research in this area. Dark, sombre colours do bring one’s mood down but brighter ones can really lift the mood of everyone in the room.

5. Regulate your sleeping hours and exercise.

Try to set a routine to reset your circadian clock. If anxiety has kept you up at night, try to change your habits, such as skipping that screen time before bed and having dinner early. One important point. Having an earlier dinner helps keep those pounds off. Fix your daily routine and your mental health will improve greatly.

6. Consider a job search partner like us.

We said it before. You need help in your job search, and going it alone can be very stressful, except when an agency can give you personal feedback on areas where you can improve and secure employment much faster. 

7. Make a to-do list.

Make a to-do list so that you won’t get anxious over undone tasks or start to forget things. This will sharpen your focus and help you get things done in an organised manner. Keep your list short with the most urgent and smallest task to be done first and work your way down.

8. Stop dwelling on past mistakes.

This is one thing you really don’t have to worry about as everyone is on this journey, and it’s not just about you. Be patient with yourself, give it some time and stop judging yourself as though you’ve made mistakes in your life that can’t be corrected.

Speaking of which, I’m reminded of a powerful quote made by a Star Trek character, Captain Janeway.

“Am I a failure if I make a mistake? Am I unworthy if I choose what turns out to be the wrong option? Some will try to hold that power over you – the power of dwelling on your mistakes so they can make their own disappear. I make mistakes. I can only learn and go on. To have others try to hold them over me or second guess me for evil purposes will not be tolerated. I’m better than that.”

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