Finding a satisfying career, achieving success in that career, and continuing to enjoy what you do over the long term can be a challenge. The path to career success is rarely a straight line. Setbacks are inevitable.

Setbacks come in many forms:

 

-       Losing your job,

-       Not getting the promotion you were banking on

-       Missing out on a new job you were interviewed for

-       Project setback or failure

-       a bad annual appraisal

 

Dealing with these setbacks is one of the best kept secrets of career success, so …

 

Here are 5 things you can do to bounce back from a career setback.

1.  Work out what happened and what you can learn

To help you to move past any setback it’s essential to be objective and evaluate what happened. Was the setback a reflection of how you performed? Could you have done things differently to achieve a different outcome?

In many cases, setbacks are not due to performance issues – if you lost your job, for example this could be due to a company restructure, and if you didn’t get offered that new job following an interview, it could be due to the competition, not your performance.

That said, it’s important to look objectively at your own contribution to the setback – are there things that you could have done differently? What can you learn from the setback that will put you in good stead for dealing with a similar situation in the future?

2. Don’t let what’s happened on the outside get inside

Being objective about what’s happened in the first instance is a good way to avoid self-recrimination and letting what’s happened on the outside get inside. Instead, it's helpful to think about a setback as being made up of three parts:

- A - The actual setback situation (e.g., not getting a promotion, job loss etc)

- B – Your objective thinking about the situation (Focused thinking about the event, using your cognitive skills to learn from the event)

- C – Your Action Planning (Focused on what you are going to do next)

- D - Rumination about the situation (Worrying and overthinking about what has happened, what went wrong, performance anxiety thinking)

When you have a setback at work (A), set aside time to objectively think and review the situation (B) and think through your ideal responses and next action (C).

Notice when you are ruminating (D) and make a mental note to disengage from such thinking and instead focus on evaluation and action planning (B & C).

If you find it very difficult not to ruminate about the situation and internalise the event, set aside 20 minutes for some 'worry time'.

If you follow this formula, you will be well prepared for the situation or event, and by drastically reducing the amount of overthinking, you will experience the situation in a much less anxious way.

3. Lean into the Growth Mindset

Much of our understanding about Fixed and Growth Mindsets comes from Carol Dweck, and her book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Dweck showed how changing to a Growth Mindset can profoundly impact nearly every aspect of your life.

 

Here is a very helpful summary of the Growth Mindset which I recommend that you watch. 

 

 

Those with a growth Mindset recognise that challenges can be overcome with persistence, strategy and learning from mistakes. Setbacks, therefore, become opportunities for growth and increasing wisdom about yourself and your career.

 

With this mindset you embrace challenges and persist in the face of setbacks. Effort is seen as a path to excellence and to mastery.

 

For your career, this results in higher levels of achievement, satisfaction and a greater sense of free will.

 

 

Once you have completed your evaluation of the setback and devised an action plan it’s important to move forward with confidence. You can’t move forward in your career when you are standing still. 

Move forward in your career despite your setback by:

·      Connecting with people that can help you

·      Getting your CV and LinkedIn profile up to date

·      Applying for other jobs that closely match what you are looking for

·      Preparing like a pro for your interview

·      Showing up again and impress at interviews using your newly found knowledge gained from any self reflection you did

 

Instead of feeling dejected, remember setbacks are normal and are steps on the way to a rewarding and fulfilling career. That’s why you need to keep going.

5. Get Support if you need it

Sometimes you can't do it all yourself. In which case, seek help from those around you or get professional support. 

 

If you need help from a professional coach, reach out to me and let's have a FREE 45-minute chat. I can support you to make the leap into a more enjoyable role.

 

 

So, there you have it, the 5 ways you can bounce back from a career setback. I hope you have found these words helpful. To recap, to find your next job:

 

-       Work out what happened and what you can learn

-       Don’t let what’s happened on the outside get inside

-       Lean into the Growth Mindset

-       Move forward with confidence

-       Get support if you need it

And, that just leaves the Career Take Away.

Career CTA – your call to action

Review these 5 ideas and plan to bounce back from setback with confidence.