What Is Holding You Back From Landing The Job You Want?

So, what is it that entices us to stay put in a career that we’re miserable in? Or stops us from applying for a job at all? Is it that the pay-packet is more attractive than the job prospects? Is it because we get comfortable and we’re too frightened of change? Or, is it that we simply haven’t got the necessary experience or skills to land the job we really want? Regardless of what the reason is, you can’t allow for a bad case of ‘career fear’ to hold you back for a minute longer.

It may be said that ‘live to work and work to live’ is the mantra of life, but the philosophy of work doesn’t have to be as bland as this.

Work should be a place that you're raring to get to each morning you wake up. Considering we spend half of our lives at the daily grind, we should ensure that it’s something we enjoy and can take a bit of pride in – whether that’s a hot shot IT job in a swanky office, a retail assistant who serves customers, or a graduate working as an intern towards a higher goal.

If it's a fear of failure you get when applying for a job; you need to do whatever it takes to snap out of the anxiety of being rejected. The reality is, in a great deal of jobs, you don’t even need particular experience within the field. Hirers are much more likely to be attracted to who you are as a person and how you can make the role your own. In interviews and applications, it’s essential to discuss your previous downfalls and obstacles, because it’s how you overcame them that matters to an employer.

Far too many job-searchers are under the impression that experience is the be-all-and-end-all of getting that all-important job offer. This can be a bit of a mind game used by managers who intend on weakening your self-worth so that they can obtain your employment for less than market value. Don’t fall into the trap of de-valuing yourself. If you’ve read the job description and you meet the qualifications, then you’re qualified. Keep your head held high and go for what’s yours. Even if your skill-set and experience doesn’t quite meet the job description; what have you got to lose by sending in an application?

Perhaps the reason you haven’t made it to the dream job yet, is because you’re so comfortable in the one you’re already in. We have all been tempted to just stick with the devil we know; but comfort isn’t necessarily happiness. If you know there is a job out there better suited to your needs, you should be working every day to get closer to achieving it. You shouldn’t get content in a job that you’ve already gotten everything out of. Your work life is all about development and progression – so standing still should never be an option.

After all, most of us don't shy away from our dream jobs because they're easy. Fear is really a driver of energy and it helps you know whether you're on the right track. It’s common knowledge that anything good in life, any success in life, requires fear in the first place. The goal is to feel the fear and do it anyway. Nothing worth having is easy; as they say. So don’t stand still any longer.