Motivation Monday Learning

Motivation Monday Learning Here I am at the start of another week!   I dont know about you, but I have a bunch of stuff to follow up on.   I have thank yous to write, I have people to follow up with, I have outreach to do.   Does this sound familiar? Being with out a job can be discouraging to say the least.   The longer you are at it, the more discouraging it can become.   I am writing these Motivation Monday posts to help you get out of a rut and move you up the mountain! Use a Time Management System How do you manage your time?   I wrote Structure Your Week which addresses part of the problem.   But dont take my word for it.   You can see a short video by Tom Peters who says The calendar never lies! in this post. Read and Learn Something New Every Day Carve time into your day to read and learn something new.   It may be that you are lacking some skills to be considered a top candidate.   What are you doing to develop those skills?   Where can you get the information? Obviously it depends on the complexity of the missing skill, yet there are community colleges offering courses all the time.   You could find someone to tutor you.   You may even be able to do some self study. Here are some resources you may not know about: Business, Leadership, Etc: Personal MBA Tom Peters Online MBA MITs Open Courseware Intelligent YouTube Channels from Open Culture Learnable (thanks to post by @ducttape) MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) Industry News SmartBrief Listing of Professional Associations from Job-Hunt.org Another Source of Professional Associations from Weddles And heres on post on resource for news. I have listed professional associations because many times they have free newsletters, offer webinars, and other opportunities to learn from others in your occupation. Breathe In other words, dont overdo it.   Consider your job search a full time job, but avoid at all costs spending more than 40 hours a week.   Youve heard of burn-out, youve most likely experienced it.   Take time out of your week to breathe!   Enjoy life and this opportunity to be there for people who need you. BONUS:   Get Your Finances In Order If you typically file your own taxes, you may want to get some expert advice this year to learn what costs associated with your job search might be tax deductible.   In NY State, perhaps others, they do not withhold taxes from your Unemployment checks.   This can mean youll end up owing the state money.   By no means am I an accountant, so you most definitely will want to check with a pro!