Working World

It’s easy to ponder the losses — the days when you get no response to a resume, no feedback on a recent job interview or when you are notified that someone else got a job you desperately wanted. Just like the Dodgers, you know you won’t win them all!  But you can learn from each and every experience, right? Now it is the time to set your sites on more focused targets called “small wins.” Read on for 20 reasons  to straighten up and smile during a long job search.

Creating momentum in a job search can be hard, so carving out a few small wins along the way is a big part of keeping your energy and enthusiasm up. Know what can be really hard? Recognizing these steps as progress. So remember — enough small wins can lead to a big dream job!

>> What are small wins?

10 examples:

1.    A phone call. Maybe it was a recruiter. Or an old high school classmate who works in an industry you’ve been targeting.

2.    Interview feedback. Good or bad is not the point. You learned how to be more productive with your approach.

3.    You helped someone. Have a friend who is a little shy? Bring her with you to your next networking event or one-on-one coffee meeting. It is a win to help others. You’ve nudged them along and given them a reason to help you next time.

4.    A new connection. Some days these can seem really small, but each additional connection is another person to engage and share your story.

5.    A phone interview. Maybe you got it via connections on LinkedIn. Perhaps a vendor friend from a prior job helped you get it. It’s a move forward.

6.    An assignment. A short-term consulting or contract assignment means some money in your wallet and a chance to keep your skills fresh. Consulting can be a great interim win.

7.    An informational interview with someone at a hot company. Information is power in the job search.

8.    An email response. You finally heard back from a company you contacted a month ago. No matter the answer, hopefully an issue was resolved or cleared up.

9.  A chance meeting with an influencer. A person in the line at Starbucks, on an elevator Downtown or at the Farmer’s Market.

10.      A few new ideas came along. Perhaps they were suggestions for a new job site to check out. A new recruiter in your industry. Or a networking group in Brentwood.

>> Why are small wins important?

5 reasons:

11. Small wins are tangible. They are the result of specific efforts on your part to create activity. A win you can hang your hat on during the week.

12. Small wins can be shared with others who will reinforce their value.  And who really need to hear them.  Especially when they feel badly stuck in one place.

13.     They are attitude improvers.  And a positive attitude in job search means a lot to the social networking crowd.  And to recruiters. Everyone wants to see you smiling and confident.

14.     They are momentum builders.  They build on the others and can snowball into something better.

15.     Small wins are empowering.  They provide specific evidence of success in your search effort.  And inspire you to do more of the same.

>> How can we maximize small wins?

5 savvy ways:

16. Keep your list of small wins in a public place in the house where you and important others can see it. Each time you open the refrigerator you are reminded about each small win and your resulting smile.

17.     Start a Yahoo group or another e-mail based sharing group and let everyone share their good news throughout the day.

18.     Start an accountability group.  Meet once a week to share small wins, brainstorm together on ways to generate more and hold each other to the objectives that members set for themselves.

19.     Find simple, low-cost ways to reward your focused effort.  Collect five small wins in a week and treat yourself to a movie. Guilt-free!

20.     Spend time with a partner exploring how it happened when it did. Then create more ways to engineer more of the same.


The key to all of these small victories is being engaged. You have to be proactively creating a situation in which others want to help you. Wins won’t come while you are sitting on the couch watching reality TV.  You have to take deliberate action. So get out of the house and interact with people. Tell them your story. You must have a social networking strategy that includes both online and in-person efforts.

Start looking for small wins. They will propel you forward. When you need it most.    

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Tim Tyrell-Smith is founder of Tim's Strategy a website that helps professionals succeed in job search, career and life strategies. Tim credits all his career success to small wins.