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In today’s digital age with so much possibility and a lot of “fear of missing out,” it’s not difficult to imagine that the majority of the younger working population experiences a lot of career anxiety.
A lot of people think about whether or not they chose the right career path or if they’ve entered the right job. You may even wonder whether or not you are good enough. Whether it’s stress from your boss or you wish you chose a different path, there is a lot of anxiety spewing across industries among the younger portion of the workforce.
There is plenty of data that shows that millennials are experiencing a lot of anxiety in comparison with the older generations.
As someone who is a professional career coach for millennials, I’ve seen it firsthand. A lot of clients will come to me completely anxious to the point where they end up in tears explaining their situation. They’ve been having to deal with excessive anxiety and stress and even fear for too long. Many times, they don’t know what to do and they don’t even know why they are feeling the way they are.
The truth is, that everyone can properly address this type of anxiety. You have all of the necessary tools to fight it right now. Don’t allow workplace or career anxiety to take control over your life. Here are some of the steps you can actively take right now to conquer your career anxiety once and for all.
1. Analyze Your Fear
One of the first things you need to do is analyze where the fear is stemming from. You want to think about what your fear is rooted in and where it exists. Sit down and take some time to reflect on what’s going on. Maybe even get a journal and start writing things down. Ask yourself pertinent questions like what’s it that you are scared of and what is driving it? You will only be in a position to address these things once you know what’s causing them.
If you cannot figure out what’s at the root of the problem, there is no need to stress. The last thing you want to do is start getting anxious over what’s making you anxious. Rather, start to pay attention to things at work. Start to jot down notes about how you feel each day. Figure out when your negative thoughts are entering the picture and learn how to stop intrusive thoughts. That way, you can easily pinpoint what’s driving your anxiety.
2. Treat The Root Cause
When you are looking to tackle your career anxiety, you want to go for the root cause. Now that you have a crystal clear idea of what’s bothering you, it will give you something you can target head-on. You want to think about steps you can take to address the fear. What can you do to solve it?
Think about short-term fixes and then move to long-term fixes. Are you worried about being in the wrong career? Do you worry you aren’t making enough money? Are you worried you are in the wrong position for growth? These are the things you need to figure out. From there, you can put together a map that you can use to guide you to a new path in your career.
3. Self Care
When you are looking to put yourself in a better place, you’re going to want to focus more on self-care. You need to be taking care of yourself. You want to practice good self-care techniques every day. Unfortunately, anxiety and stress can take a toll on your health. It’s something you need to actively address to keep yourself healthy.
You can do things to help alleviate a lot of the stress you may be experiencing. These things include going for a brisk walk mid-day. Take short breaks during work. Reading a book at night. Going to sleep early. Doing some meditation after a long day. Eating a healthy and balanced diet. These are the things you need to do to prime your body to handle stress better.
4. Talk Things Out
Another great thing you can do is talk things out. If you cannot get rid of your anxious thoughts and your career anxiety on your own, it’s time to head to a professional. A professional will be well-positioned to help you deal with your issues. Talking to someone can be a great way to remedy the issues you’re having. They can give you advice on what you should be doing and how to go about fixing the problems. There is no shame in asking someone for help.
If you are currently someone that is experiencing career anxiety, there is plenty you can do to improve your situation. You don’t have to allow career anxiety to take control of your life. You are not alone. A lot of people are in the same situation as you. Anxiety is something that can creep into your life and cause you a lot of problems.
You don’t have to live with this crippling anxiety. Using the right tools and strategies, you can successfully overcome it.
Photo by Nicola Barts