Whether you’re in employment or not, the act of job seeking can be very tedious, repetitive and demoralising.

A long period of rejections, general knock backs and worst of all, the deafening sound of silence is enough to put anyone in a serious slump and it’s hardly surprising – I don’t think anyone likes to be told that they’re either over qualified, under qualified or simply ‘not good enough’ for work on an almost daily basis!

If you are currently out of work and looking for a new job, there are different ways you can motivate yourself despite all the repetition and set-backs and get yourself into the right mind-set for success. Here are some tips that might just do the trick…

Get up at a specific time

 As creatures of habit, routine is one of life’s key ingredients. It’s certainly important not to be too rigid otherwise you run the risk of getting into a rut, however, when you’re job seeking, you must treat your time as if you were at work to remain productive and getting up at a set time every morning is the best way to do so.

You don’t have to get up at silly o’clock, but staggering your waking hours over time can lead to a massive loss of motivation.

Quality over quantity

When I was looking for work, I made the mistake of firing off my CV to as many companies/vacancies as I possibly could in the space of an hour without fully understanding what I was even applying for – this is does not help!

Even if you aren’t sure which particular career path to take and are seeking an entry level job to get back into the world of work, it is better to spend a good few hours thoroughly reading through two job advertisements, cherry-picking the right buzzwords, tailoring your CV and writing a concise and eye-catching covering letter. Your chances of being plucked from the pile will increase massively and it helps to avoid that empty feeling of mass rejection.

[Here is a random momentary distraction for your viewing and/or listening pleasure…]

Don’t over plan your days

When out of work and seeking that next big break, it is imperative to have some kind of structure to your life in order to get things done, however, over planning each and every day from start to finish leaves little room for manoeuvre.

While ensuring you get up and get going in the mornings, a strict agenda can make your job search rigid; you’ll end up visiting the same websites, approaching the same potential employers and making the same mistakes over and over again. Plans are a good thing, but make them loose – having the time to step back and take stock of a situation, or clear your head can lead to that all-important breakthrough. It is not possible to do this when you’re on autopilot!

Take time to learn

Trawling for jobs can get tiresome very quickly as many of us have a tendency to go on an ‘application offensive’.  As mentioned earlier, quality is better than quantity so it’s worth taking a good chunk of time to make your job application desirable to the person you’re trying to impress.

One way of making sure your time is used constructively is to study. Rather than just focusing on applying for everything under the sun, read articles, resources, statistics and guides relevant to your subject matter, or practice your computer literacy skills – this will improve confidence while giving you a huge sense of achievement. These are the essential ingredients to coping with constant job seeking.

Don’t isolate yourself

In many ways, this is perhaps the most vital thing of all. If you’re out of work, you’ll often find yourself completely on your own on most days of the week. It is easy to become a recluse and fall into the trap of self-isolation – not only is bad for the mind, it can serve to diminish one’s social skills.

Being able to converse with people is fundamental not only for breezing an interview, but remaining successful once you’ve landed the job. During the searching process, it is vital to keep human contact on a regular basis, not only for sanity but for support. Take some time out of your day to talk to your local shop keeper, meet your friend on their lunch break or even Skype someone you know overseas – you’ll be better off for it.

Life is full of variables and nothing’s completely straightforward, especially when it comes to work, but the above tips do help make life a little easier during that difficult job seeking period.

Best of luck!