Are you ready to get serious about your job search?

I speak to job seekers every day who are miserable at work. Going into the office is a chore they dread. Sunday nights are anxiety filled. Just thinking about Monday morning can keep us up at night.

Does this sound familiar?

If so, it’s really time to stop and think about how much longer you’re comfortable feeling so very uncomfortable.

Finding a job is a process. And, in many cases, it’s not a quick one. If you wait until you can’t bear to go in to work one more day, you’ve waited too long.

Think about it. It can take six months to find a great job. If you wait until things are in a dire situation at work to start looking, you will lose many of your choices. This is especially true if you find yourself out of work.

Suddenly, finding a job FAST is the number one priority. Speed outweighs everything else. When this happens, it doesn’t matter as much how well the job pays. It doesn’t matter as much what the title is. It may not even matter where the job is located. These things all become true when you’re running away from a burning building.

But, if you start now — start proactively — if you plan for the future — you will retain your options. You hang on to your power.

You’ll have time to find the best paying job, with a better title, in a city that you and your family want to live in.

But, this approach requires something different. It requires you to take a proactive approach to your job search. It requires you to take the reins.

If you’re like most people, you have been offered jobs over the years that you weren’t even looking for. You have great skills and someone else picked up on them and tapped you for a job. But, at some point, you may decide that you want to take the wheel on this entire process. You may want to find a job that better aligns with YOUR goals and YOUR interests and YOUR priorities.

It can be scary. Finding a job can be like learning a new skill; like learning a new job. But, this is exactly why you need more time to look. You need the time to learn the new skills of job searching.

And speaking of time, the holidays are coming up. That’s when things begin to slow down in the job search world. Well, they aren’t coming up tomorrow, but they’re just a little over five months away. And, if it takes six months to find something, you’re already behind on finding a job this year.

That sounds crazy, right?

I hope this message doesn’t come across too harshly. My purpose is not to be negative, but to shine a light on the potential that is still available.

If you’re thinking of finding something this year, start now. Start before the holidays. Start before your job gets worse. Start while you still have control.

Having the control to make the choices about your job that you want will be the key to creating a happy and fulfilling future — and to much more relaxing Sunday evenings!

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts or Stitcher.

Happy hunting!