We all like to plan and plan and well, plan what our lives will be like in the future. The romantic sounds of your thoughts as they sweep past all of the scenarios your active mind chooses to paint, is a great way to dream up your career the way you’d like it to be whether the fantasy is real or not. What you don’t want to lose is your imagination no matter how far-fetched your career dreams carry you. What you need to remember when you come down to earth is applying those dreams in the here and now. You can get there from here but you can’t if you don’t apply your vision to your reality. by Lisa Kaye

It’s what you tell yourself when things are not going your way and when every job interview turns into a form of rejection.  It’s what you want to believe because it’s easier sometimes to feel sorry for yourself instead of maybe doing something about it.  It’s how you feel when you hear over and again how others are getting the coveted job offers and you are still wondering why you can’t lock down an interview.

These are three sentiments we have all felt at one time or another when it comes to how we may feel about our careers. Recently an executive stated these words upon leaving her high profile job that was not by choice. She was listening to her gut when she knew the job held a dream, a challenge and a headache.  You have undoubtedly been in a similar situation at some point in your own career, but what do you do to talk yourself down from the ledge when all you want to do is jump?  Are you resigned to working in a less than perfect work environment?  Have you given up on your ideals and principles in order to get a paycheck or placate the boss?  Do you know who are you anymore and does it matter so long as you still have a job?

For all of you out there dreading the seemingly inevitable, your own unemployment, your fears are not the answer. What you need to keep in mind is that your fear, like everyone else’s, is real and you can control how you think and how you react in any given situation.  Keeping your thoughts focused on the here and now and not what lies ahead or what comes next, will keep the fear of rejection at bay, at least until you come up with a strategy to find your next opportunity.  Remember, when all is said and done, if you have your health, your family and a good support system, all you need to keep telling yourself is that, “It’s just a job, isn’t it?”

Deciding whether to quit the job you have in search of a new one can be a daunting task when faced with the unknown.  Do you leave the devil you know for what may appear to be greener pastures?  Do you take the proverbial leap of faith in search of your dream job?  What may appear to be an easy answer may actually put you between a rock and a hard place when it comes to making a choice and finally a move.

Wonder why recruiters are not returning your calls?  How many resumes have you sent with little or no response?  Ever wonder why a recruiter is reluctant to provide “feedback” in the hopes it will help you figure out what you are doing wrong in an interview?  Next time you get the cold shoulder or a blank stare from a recruiter you might just stop and reflect, “Am I committing “recruitercide?”

When all of your search efforts have gone by the way side, do you ever feel like holding up a sign across your chest with the words emblazoned in big red letters, “Try Me!”  When all else fails there is nothing like bold advertising.  But when you think about it, what harm would there really be if you let them try you for free?

“Our fears are like dragons guarding our deepest treasures”

                                                                        ~Elizabeth Glaser

There are special people who come and go in your life, who leave a lasting impression.  Christine Kent, our beloved Career Coach, Mentor, Executive Recruiter, Counselor and Confidante, passed away on Saturday, September 8^th at 46 years of age from a brief but terminal illness. Christine’s last blog on greenlightjobs’ in July addressed the fears we face when challenged with insurmountable obstacles in our path towards finding what we truly want in life.  Christine quoted from Elizabeth Glaser in that blog, and it seems a very fitting tribute in part to the fear we all must conquer in our lives regardless of the situation we face.

When it comes to finding ways to sabotage your career efforts think of how a poor Thanksgiving turkey wound up a sacrifice for the joys of your holiday meal.  It’s not so much that you have to be plucked, sucked and tucked to fit into your turkey suit, but what have you done to help escape your fate?  Here are five sure fire ways to slaughter your career in any season.

When we become so consumed in looking for work, applying for everything we can get our hands on, taking every meeting and networking until it feels like a full time job, we don’t often stop to think about what we are doing?  It’s not just enough to follow our dreams, toss caution to the wind and pray for a miracle when we look for the next best thing.  Finding out what we really want from what we think we want is the first step in finding our perfect job.