by Now What?® Coaching Founder, Laura Berman Fortgang
In the United States, we have a ridiculous ritual on February 2nd where we wait for a groundhog, in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to see (or not) its shadow as an indication to how soon spring will come. This year, he did not see his shadow and the prediction that spring will come early was announced. Now, granted this is a large country, but in my part of it, the Northeast, we’ve had a blizzard, grey days and significant cold ever since the pronouncement was made.
It’s dark, gloomy and great fuel for a good case of SAD (seasonal affective disorder). What does that have to do with career
transition? It could be used as an excuse to not take any action during the last doldrums of winter. That would be a dreadful waste of time. So despite any tendency to hibernate, here are eight things you can do to be productive.
Organize—Straighten up, create systems, create a productive working environment, get things in working order. If you’ve been staring at a mess for months, it may be time to call in some help — professional or not.
Upgrade—Eliminate problems by upgrading equipment if possible. Upgrade your own behavior, if need be. Pick one thing or behavior to upgrade and do it.
Resume Work—This is a perfect time to work on your resume or your bio if you are a business owner or biz owner to be. Take quiet time, champion yourself and check in with someone who can advise or give you help.
Network—Work against the sluggish winter mood by connecting with people. Make coffee and lunch dates for business purposes and a little socializing wouldn’t hurt either. Take advantage of inexpensive networking events, too, if you have some in your area.
Take class—Wake up your brain by learning something new. Whether it’s related to your current or future career track isn’t a must. Just take anything that interests you and engages you.
Prune—Let go of things and people! Let go of clothes you’ll never wear again. Take people off your email list who you truly have no intention of connecting with. Throw out broken or useless things you keep around.
Focus—Take one aspect of your job search, research, business building or career exploration and focus on it. Try for a short period to not be concerned about multiple strategies. Just one angle to focus on will help stop any overwhelm and give you some momentum to launch into spring with.
Plan—Pull out a calendar and plot a plan for your success. Put it on your calendar when you’ll land that job. Yes, the exact date. Or put down the day you get your first paycheck in your new home based business. And then, from that date, work backwards and plan what has to happen in order to get the desired result.
So if you are feeling the snail-like effect of the winter hump, know that you can do less and honor your body’s pace but multiply your productivity moving forward with these few simple strategies.
Let me know when spring hits where you are. I’m ready!!
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