How to Encourage Someone Who is Looking for a New Job

If you know someone who is unemployed and needs a job, but is having difficulty taking action, either because the person is apprehensive about the difficulty of job hunting, or because he or she really doesn’t know how to get organized for it, or is just having trouble getting motivated, there are things you can do to help.

4 Steps For Encouraging Someone Looking for a Job

1. Getting started

The first action to take is to find out what he or she really wants to do. If he could have any job in the world, what would it be? Even though the dream job may be out of reach, it can still generate ideas about other similar kinds of jobs that the person might enjoy doing.

2. Talking about goals

This can also encourage the person to get started. Talking about goals will get the person thinking about the future. Where does the person see himself at the end of the year, after five years? This may also begin the process of thinking about how he or she can achieve those goals.
You can also talk about what kinds of things motivate the person. This too can help in the job search process. For example, does the person value money, or social causes, or learning new things, or being innovative? These can further help to narrow down the types of jobs best suited for him or her.

3. If the person is not looking, try to find out why

Talk to the person to see if you can discover the underlying reason for his or her reluctance to search for a job. There is usually something blocking progress. The process itself is daunting and fear may be holding the person back, so it is that fear you will have to confront.
Talk about it calmly and openly, without judgment, to try and help the person move past it. One way is to encourage the person to take small actions, one step at a time, to help him gain some early success and build his confidence.
Another problem may be that the person just doesn’t know how to go about implementing a job search. In that case, you can help him or her to put together a plan of action.

4. Don’t micromanage and provide support

Give the person room to do what they need to. Avoid constantly looking over the person’s shoulder or monitoring every move he makes. As the person makes progress, provide praise for the efforts and encourage him

Know someone looking for work?

If you are looking for work, Opti Staffing is here for you — ready, willing and able to put you into a new career. We know what it takes to put people to work. We take the time to learn all about you, so we can help you find success finding new opportunities or new employees. Give your local branch a call today. You can also explore these current job opportunities and apply – easily – online.

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