Quotes from Jay A. Block

Fear is normal—it can't be eliminated, nor should it be ignored. Fear must be conquered. It's been shown that experiencing success and landing a new, more rewarding job begins as soon as you learn how to conquer your fear. In fact, if you don't acknowledge your fear, you'll become more at risk psychologically.

Disarming and conquering your fear begins with recognizing its presence, accepting it, and taking action to manage it. And fear grips not just those who have lost their jobs, but all those who are part of their circle of influence—spouses, children, parents, and friends.

You can have superior skills, but if you don't show up to play emotionally, you'll lose! In most cases, underdogs win not by having superior skills, but by having a bigger heart, a stronger character, and a positive, unstoppable mindset.

So as you begin your journey to secure a new opportunity, you must embrace two critical components: Adopt a healthy and positive outlook about how best to cope with and work through your job loss, as well as any of life's other unexpected bumps in the road. Master the 10 principles of success and the four emotional channeling techniques I will introduce later in this chapter to help you maintain a positive, healthy state of mind.

The irony is that if you're like most people, you allow everything and everyone, except you, to determine what you are feeling. Said differently, you allow external influences to dictate your emotions.

The expression "I'll believe it when I see it" is actually not the success formula for landing a new position. The formula that will help you get a job in a troubled job market is the opposite: "I'll see it when I first believe it." You first have to believe you can secure your next job; then you will.

There are four categories of job-related skills: 1) working with people, 2) working with data and information, 3) working with things, and 4) working with ideas.

Destructive, negative, or fear-based emotions are emotions that hurt you and others. They are emotions that damage the job transition process and impede prospects of landing a job! Nothing good can come from something bad if negativity and fear drive the emotional process.

One of the best methods for developing a healthy character is to appreciate all that you presently have. Most people tend to focus on what they don't have rather than on the many gifts they actually possess. A healthy character comes from a sincere appreciation for all that you have today in pursuit of all that you want tomorrow.

The great Vince Lombardi said, "Discipline and mental toughness are many things and rather difficult to explain. Its qualities are sacrifice and self-denial, and most importantly, it's combined with a perfectly disciplined will that refuses to give in.

Principle #6: A Positive Sphere of Influence: Your Environment May Determine How Quickly You'll Land Your Next Job! Will Rogers may have said it best when he said that "the quality of life is often a result of the people in life you avoid.

So when you experience a so-called failure, don't view this as failure, but rather as a "character muscle-building" process. It's a process that will strengthen your resolve to transform your career much the same way a caterpillar transforms itself into an elegant butterfly. The job campaign necessitates that you embrace struggle and constructively address adversity. When you do so, new opportunities will present themselves sooner than you'd think possible.

Principle #8: Fitness and Energy: Be Kind to Your Body; It's the Only One You Have You are dealing with a high-stress challenge: getting a new job in a troubled economy requires massive amounts of energy. Both physical and emotional well-being are important to assure future success. Two strategies for intensifying your energy level and overall well-being are 1) proper nutrition and 2) consistent exercise.

Principle #10: Take Action: The Miracle Principle All the planning in the world, all the processes, models, and strategies for landing a job in a troubled job market, means absolutely nothing unless fueled by action. It is sometimes said that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, but the road to your next job is paved with activity and positive action.

COVER LETTERS Most people today, including hiring authorities, are living a high-stress life. They are being bombarded by e-mail, voice mail, U.S. mail, and junk mail. They take calls from cell phones, business phones, and home phones, not to mention the demands for attention from many other voices. Most HR managers, executive recruiters, and hiring managers are placing less and less importance on cover letters. Yes, they are still a part of the process, but they play a less significant role.

Emotional Channeling Technique #1: Ask Courageous Questions

Emotional Channeling Technique #2: Focus Management

Emotional Channeling Technique #3: Reference Validation Reference validation is a technique where you compare your situation to that of others who have successfully dealt with and overcome what you are currently experiencing. By doing so, you find strength and hope and learn specific strategies and concepts used by others so you too can effectively work through and resolve the issues you have.

Once you have identified and confirmed that four to six people agree to endorse you, I advise you to write the reference statements yourself! Athletes and celebrities do not write the advertisements for the products and services they endorse. And your "endorsers" should not write the advertisements for you, either! I suggest you write the testimonial and then send it to your references so they can review the statement and make whatever edits they may want to make.

The Law of Ignoring says that whatever you ignore will, most likely, get worse in time. If you want to live life on your terms and secure a job that provides the life you want, you have to make it happen.

Step #1: Identify Your Signature Life Values

How do you determine your values? You do so by asking yourself the following question: "What's most important to me in my life that will make me happy and that will significantly enhance the quality of my life?

Jim Cathcart, award-winning motivational speaker, said, "Most people aim at nothing in life and hit it with amazing accuracy.

Set the bar high. Resist the easy button. Choose "mastery" over "easy" and know that great accomplishments don't come from low expectations.