Don’t Quit!

By Lisa Manyoky

Consider this commonly shared phrase: “If it doesn’t open, then it’s not your door.”

Sure, sure, it’s a metaphor. But it’s a striking one, isn’t it?

Sometimes, someone else shuts a door and locks you out—whether through layoffs, firing, or business closure. Even if you knew the end of employment was coming, it’s uncomfortable and often scary when it finally arrives.

Other times, you keep knocking on the door of opportunity, but no one answers. The sting of rejection is painful. In fact, studies show that the experience of rejection activates the same areas of the brain that light up when you break a bone.

Feeling rattled is understandable if you’ve been let go for any reason or if your employment search delivers nothing but silence and refusals. Logic tells you to keep moving, but the rest of you doesn’t always comply. So here’s what you can do:

1)   Get quiet. Look inward. Ask yourself what career would deliver you the ultimate satisfaction. Do not censor. Dream.

2)   List your most enjoyable talents.

3)   Identify career paths that would put them to good use.

4)   Enlist the support of a recruiter or hire a career coach. They have insights and connections you might not.

5)   Keep in mind that “possibility thinking” is a real thing. Unemployment is an ending that is also a beginning.

Look ahead. There are more doors. 

About the Author:

Lisa Manyoky is a career entrepreneur, founder of Presence Intelligence®, and a licensed, specialty-certified coach with a neuroscience focus. She blends deep knowledge about brainpower, behavior, aesthetics and communication with business smarts to support professionals along their career paths. She has over 30 years of expertise in personal and business branding, marketing and entrepreneurship — all marked by an
insightful understanding of people, interpersonal dynamics, motivation, expression and words.