Looking for a Job? Make Sure You Take a Walk to Clear Your Head During the Process

When looking for a full-time job while unemployed, most people have a fairly hefty, but common, checklist. This list generally carries all the usual suspects and "to do's" on it, such as: make phone calls and send out emails to network contacts; begin posting resumes online; search the job listings for keyword searches, and job titles; peruse the want ads, both on and offline; prep the home office with all the necessities, like paper and ink for the printer, a clean, uncluttered office space, and so on. There are many more items on this list to be sure, and some will vary from person to person. However, I'll wager a day's pay (that's currently nothing, folks) that most people do not have a certain step anywhere near the top of the list, if at all: and that step would be walking.

No, I'm not pandering a new type of exercise program, or trying to formulate a new synergy plan that involves "the power of walk" in accordance to landing that special job offer. I am speaking of a Zen-like process however, that I feel is extremely vital for every job search, and will result in a renewed and invigorated self when the inevitable job slump and rejections get you down. This step is simply getting your butt up and out the door, everyday, to take a walk - and the benefits are astounding.

Let's start first with the pragmatic. Yes, plain and simple, it's healthy exercise. So many doctors, billboards, and buses these days are touting the well-established idea that, shocker of shockers, walking is good for you, and you should do it at least three times a week. But if you're like me, and you're currently unemployed, guess what? You have a whole lotta nothing on your hands, and friend, you have no excuse not to be walking every day. Your lungs will thank you, your heart will thank you, your doctor will thank you, and that waist will thank you. That's a lot of thanks to receive for little effort.

Yet the rewards from a walk go beyond the mere physiological and appeasement of doctors. Quite simply, this daily walk will remind you that there is a real, live, functioning world outside your door, and you are still a part of it. So often in a job search (which is itself a full-time job, albeit a very strange representation of one) it becomes habit to "plug in" to the computer all day, and surf away on any and all job sites. Soon, you'll be engrossed in online applications, the tweaking of a resume, re-writing that cover letter for the sixth time, researching company profiles, that after awhile you begin to realize just how long you've been sitting in the very same office chair. Perhaps you break it up by watching some TV, reading a book, eating some lunch. Soon again, however, you're back at that Inbox, refreshing every 30 seconds to see if you are the one out of two hundred applicants who will receive the coveted response, and be asked to come in for an interview.

Or perhaps you become entangled in the other mainstays of the full-time job search: depression, anxiety, and let-down. These inexorable monsters are inextricably entrenched within every job search, for inevitably, at some point, you will apply to a job that you're certain no one is more qualified than you are. You'll have written the perfect cover letter, have a primed and pertinent resume illustrating every high point and necessity of the job description - and you'll hear nothing. Or worse, you will hear something, and it's a rejection. Odds are that in every single job search, you'll receive far more rejections than interviews and offers, and this can take an unsurprising toll on the psyche. The resulting waiting game, and rejections, quite often lead to a dispirited candidate who no longer sends out as many resumes as before, isn't quite as sharp at following up with contacts, and doesn't quite attack the job hunt with as much tenacity as before.

This is where the walk comes into play. It is absolutely vital that you stop what you're doing, get outside, and walk - not just meander, mind you, but a very specific walk, that will let you clear your head, assuage your fears, and rejuvenate you something fierce. It is a walk to clear your mind - but how will you do it? Follow these clear-cut ideas to help you get out and refresh:

1. Choose a well known path, route, or area familiar to you, so you can walk slowly or casually, letting your mind drift without too much worry of getting yourself lost, or having an accident. This is not the time to choose that new park two suburbs over that you've never been to before.

2. Choose an area or route that is comforting to you, so that each step you take is like walking with an old friend. It doesn't matter if it the industrial complex at the edge of town, the downtown plaza, the idyllic bike path by the lake, or your very own city block. Just make sure that it's a place you are drawn to, for whatever reason, time and again.

3. Walk without a purpose. Do not add multi-tasking to this time, in the sense of walking to a store and picking up some groceries, returning that movie, or buying stamps. Those are all great tasks, and by all means, complete them before or after this walk. But this is a time for you to relax your mind, and quite frankly, take it off either the most recent rejection, anxiety of not having any feedback, or even excitement and nervousness over an upcoming interview. There is only one goal on this walk here: clear your mind, relax, and realize that there is still a ticking world out there, and you're a vital part of it.

5. Let new ideas come to you. Perhaps, during this walk, when you're not consciously attempting to think about new jobs, talks, skills, places to apply, etc. your unconscious mind will do it for you. Let it. As you walk and enjoy the area, you may find that something suddenly snaps into place, and you will have thought of a new way to approach a cover letter, or a new idea to try and drum up some contacts or job leads. Let them come, and file them away for when you return home. This is one of the benefits of a walk like this, and it is designed to get creative juices flowing.

6. Above all, enjoy it, plain and simple. You will have this to look forward to every day, so that even when you do or do not hear from a potential employer, you know that you will always have at least one thing to do every day, and that is taking the time to enjoy your pleasure walk, and experience the camaraderie and pleasure from being out in the world.

There isn't a guarantee for employment, sadly, and you never know when that final job offer will come through. But there is a way to boost your efforts, mind, and body everyday, and that is with a simple walk in a favorite place. The time and length can vary each day, but the most important part is simply doing it. Like attitude and effort, it's something you have control over, and you'll come to appreciate the effort and be happy with the results just as much as I am. And hey, don't forget about your waist - it's happy too.