7 Career Tips During Covid-19: Advice from a Career Counsellor & Motivation Coach

By Guest Contributor, Sabrina Kuipers, CCDP

There is a lot going on right now especially in the career development space. Regardless of your specific situation, I'm certain the pandemic may be raising some questions about your career trajectory, the future of your job, or what your next job move should be.

Getting career development advice during the pandemic can help you find focus, direction, and meaning.

Here are 7 career tips to help you navigate your career development during the pandemic:

1) Re-Assess Your Current Job - It is very likely that you are thinking through your current job situation during this time. You may be realizing what’s really important to you during this pandemic and maybe the job you have right now isn’t keeping you fulfilled, your employer hasn’t been dealing with the pandemic the way you hoped they would, your job is more unstable than you thought it would be, or maybe you’re realizing that this hasn’t been right for quite some time now. Whatever your thoughts may be, the time to re-assess is now.

2) Detach Your Job from Your Identity - With job loss being rampant in our society, you may have already realized the importance of being able to separate yourself from your job and come to understand that your job is not your identity. This time may be eye-opening for you. If you have suffered job loss, you may be in a grieving process where you are coming to terms with more than just the loss of your job – it’s the loss of livelihood, loss of stability and security, and it even can feel like you have lost yourself. You are at work for a large chunk of your life. You may view your job or work as your vocation in life. Losing that suddenly can be a huge loss. It is incredibly important for you to engage in a deep reflective process right now with the focus on understanding what makes you you.

You will realize that jobs are transitional and that nothing is guaranteed to you.

When you understand that and understand what your identity is composed of and what is important to you in your life, you will begin to let go of concepts you held so firm and true and see that you are not your job. You are so much more.

3) Be Willing to Change your Previous Thoughts and Beliefs about Careers - Throughout this pandemic, your idea of career growth, career transition, and job stability and security is likely changing. The reality is educational programs are being run online, we have students who will be graduating into a recession and will have to focus on having a portfolio career, we are seeing catastrophic job loss, businesses are turning online, people are learning to work fully remotely, and so much more. Job seekers need to be willing to jump from job to job if needed, to prioritize job growth and advancement, to look for stable opportunities (but be willing to take those contracts that could lead to advancement or give you the flexibility to seek the next opportunity), and be willing to put that great job title or ideal company on hold.

4) See Your Career as a Journey - In career development, we analyze different career metaphors. For example, careers as roles, careers as relationships, careers as cycles, and more. I want you to focus on the careers as journeys metaphor because now, more than ever, it is imperative to view your career this way. Setting career goals and having a desired destination in mind is always beneficial, but that needs to be balanced with understanding that your career is a journey. Especially now. With Covid-19 disrupting so many lives and leading to an insurmountable number of jobs lost, you needto change your perspective on how you want to structure your career.

5) Be Open to New Opportunities and Be Patient - Job seekers today need to give themselves patience and grace like never before. With the labour market slowly re-opening, they should be on the lookout to upcoming opportunities but keep in mind that opportunities in their field may be few and far between – if they even come up at all. With a rise in positions deemed essential along with positions skilled trades, IT/computer science, e-learning development, law, and healthcare, job seekers should be open minded to different opportunities. Additionally, while some things are starting to re-open, there are many companies and organizations that are still in hiring freezes or have delayed hiring processes right now. Accepting that these circumstances are beyond your control can do wonders (but that is easier said than done).

6) Be Prepared for Questions about Covid-19 - We are also seeing changes in the types of interview questions being asked of candidates. You can expect questions directly related to the pandemic – how it has changed you, how you have adapted, strategies that can help companies overcome their threats that have arose due to the pandemic, how you can manage your tasks if working remotely, and more. Interview questions may also be assessing a candidate’s ability to navigate change, adapt to new circumstances, be resourceful and problem solve, their creativity, and their ability to communicate effectively. 

7) Honour the Space Between No Longer and Not Yet - The pandemic is forcing many people into uncomfortable situations and fast. You need to realize what is in your control and out of your control. You may need to put your long-term goals on hold. With us having no control over what will happen with the pandemic, when a new normal will come to be, and how long this will last, we need to honour the space we are in between no longer and not yet. It may be a space we are in for a while.

—

This post was originally written for the Sand to Pearl Coaching blog.

Sabrina Kuipers, CCDP is a passionate, creative, and dedicated Career Counsellor & Motivation Coach. She is the Founder of Sand to Pearl Coaching and provides individualized career coaching, career and life skills workshops, and food safety training to interested organizations in the community. Sabrina works from a strengths-based wellness approach and utilizes care, compassion, support, and motivation in her work with each client. She has extensive experience supporting diverse populations with career exploration, job coaching, job acquisition, and job maintenance. To learn about how Sabrina can help you on your career journey, check out her services here: sandtopearlcoaching.com/services

Find Sabrina on IG and FB: @sandtopearlcoaching