The Difference between an Optimistic and a Pessimistic Job Hunter

So you applied for a job, got interviewed and were turned down. There are only 2 things that you could either do: it’s either you wallow in your sadness and get traumatized by this experience or just shrug it off and move on with your life. That makes you either an optimist or a pessimist.

The optimist

An optimistic jobseeker has a positive outlook in life and treats every bump in the road as a challenge rather than an impediment. When employers turn down their application, they do not consider this as a setback and instead looks at it as a step to fulfilling their goal to find a job. That however doesn’t mean that they are happy-go-lucky people. Thinking confidently actually has its advantages especially in job interviews. In fact this could even give you more options for your career and better opportunities.

The pessimist

On the other hand, a pessimistic job-hunter takes every misfortune seriously and worries too much.  Even if they haven’t taken their job interview yet, they already expect to get a rejection and have this mindset that they don’t have the guts to pass the test. They easily get stressed and their state of happiness is always short-lived. This is because they always expect the worse that could happen and this can result to a lower self-esteem and too much negativity. And if in case they do get hired, there’s a chance that their pay is not that good.

The big difference

The difference between an optimistic and a pessimistic job-seeker lies on how they will react to a certain scenario that is related to their application especially when the results are not good. An optimistic job-hunter treats every rejection as a challenge while a pessimistic one will take it too seriously as if it’s a matter of life and death.

You can actually turn yourself from being a pessimist to being an optimist. This however takes a lot of practice and a strong determination. The first step into achieving this is to change the way you think. If you’re used to expecting failures, start thinking more positively and stop worrying too much about everything.

As they say, worrying takes won’t do you any good. Even if you have the skills, worrying can take away that much needed self-confidence that would have made you the most qualified candidate for the job position. And if in case you got turned down in your job interview, don’t let this affect you and view it in a different light. You need to take action into improving your job interview skills and have contingency plans.

Always look at the glass half-full

It is always better to think of success rather than expecting failure because the latter can bring you into a non-productive state of mind. Depending on how you view it, job-hunting can either be a joyful ride or a painful one and it all depends on you. And instead of looking at the glass half-empty, maybe it’s time for a change and see that it’s half-full.