Are you tired of how you look? Do you look like how you feel?  If so, your job search might be as lethargic as you are. It’s one thing to know it; it’s another to do something about it. If you need a wake-up call to get yourself in gear, consider today’s post just that.  Wake up. It’s time to get your attitude, your resume, and your interviewing techniques in shape for the Spring job hunting season.

Let’s start with attitude since that drives behavior, and behavior affects everything else you do.

My attitude would be fine if I could catch a break. I’m doing all the right things and getting nowhere fast, so don’t talk to me about attitude.

Oh my. You do have an attitude, don’t you?  So, I’m just curious…who is telling you that you’re doing all the right things?

It should be obvious.  I’m on LinkedIn and Facebook, and I’m always asking around for work. Nobody knows about anything and they’re tired of me asking.

How do you know?

I know because I’m tired of me asking; because it’s boring, because they change the subject. I know because they’ve stopped asking me to do things with them. It’s not like any of them are so great but they’re about all I have right now.

It’s true that without intending, we push family and friends away when we need them to stay close. We vent to them. We share our darkest thoughts and deepest fears. We ask ‘where are the jobs?’ and ‘do you know who’s hiring? And ‘I need you to get me a job’ without realizing that they take all this personally, and believe that you believe they are letting you down. So rather than continually disappoint you when they have no news that will help you, they begin to pull away.

So how about this: tell your friends and family how much you care about them. That despite your frustration, you are fine. That getting a job is a full time job and you intend to spend that kind of time getting one.  Then, and this is the bell ringer, tell them what you do best and how you add value to the places where you work.

Despite your thinking that they know you as an employee, they don’t. They don’t have a clue about what it is to work with you or for you or to manage or supervise you. They don’t know the complexities of your work, the subtleties of your work style; they don’t know about your accomplishments, your breakthroughs, and your creativity. They don’t realize how good you are at solving problems, expediting outcomes, or maximizing the strengths and abilities of others.

So if you want to involve friends and family in your job search, and I hope you will, give them what they need to know about you .That way, if they do hear of a job opportunity they’re in a better position to know if it’s in your sweet spot and something you might want to pursue.