Asking for Help Isn’t Giving Up. It’s Refusing to Give Up

No job search should be conducted alone. Asking for help isn’t such a big step.

Yet, going it alone is often the case. Somehow many job seekers feel that there is such a stigma attached to looking for a new job that they would prefer to take on much of the heavy lifting themselves. They might mention it to their partners and families, but they would prefer not to discuss it. They might give their friends updates but won’t share their fears. They’ll talk to recruiters on a superficial level, but they won’t reveal what they think.

The job search is on their shoulders, and they will get through it on their own. Somehow.

Job seekers only genuinely ask for help when things seem desperate and are on the verge of giving up hope. In this state of mind, not much good will come from even the best advice because the job seekers are not in the right mental state to implement it. Moving forward from a place of fear will not be a happy journey.

I would suggest that job seekers (and all of us) need to view asking for help as an act of refusing to give up rather than an act of surrender.

Very few job searches are straightforward, and most job seekers would benefit from the advice and assistance of various people along the way. Every job seeker desires an optimal result. Why not ask for help from everyone who might be in a position (and have an interest) in offering it? When you ask people to do something kind, very few will refuse, and most will feel that welcome warm glow afterwards. Kindness is rewarding.

Asking for help – others respond

So, refuse to give up on making the most of your opportunity.

People will flock to your request for help.

A plague of loneliness haunts our society, but when you allow other people to help and become invested in your job search, it somehow seems a little less lonely. Yes, you will have to share your shame at the rejections, but the positive energy from those around you will help you to keep moving in the right direction.

You will forge closer bonds, and next time you might be the one that they call upon to help them. There is nothing like adversity to bring people closer.

So, if you are reading this and contemplating a career change (or maybe you are in the middle of one), what are you waiting for? Think about whom you might ask for help, and don’t make assumptions about what they might or might not add to your situation. Just allow yourself to be vulnerable and ask. Don’t underestimate the difference that they could make.

Asking for help can only improve the potential outcomes in your job search.

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This blog is shared with Job Seeker Duetists. 

Written by former recruitment ghostwriter Paul Drury (not AI).