\u201cI found the absolutely perfect job. It\u2019s me! I have to work there!\u201d These can be the most nerve-wracking, heart-breaking, and time-wasting sentiments a job seeker can have. Having a job crush means you found an attractive and exciting opportunity that stops you in your tracks. You fixate on it. Read the post over and over. Call your friends. Make a movie in your head about what your life will be like when your name is over that title on your crisp new business card.<\/p>\n
Loving what you do is a great way to not work a day in your life. At least, that is one way some career gurus have explained what it\u2019s like to find your passion and get paid to do it. The truth is, you will find it a joy to go to work every day, when you do something you love. And, it\u2019s inspiring to hear some people say, \u201cEven if I didn\u2019t get paid \u2013 and I could afford it \u2013 I would do what I do for a living because I love what I do.\u201d<\/p>\n
The reality is that a person who is working in a job they find deeply fulfilling has a position that meets all these criteria: satisfying, meaningful, productive, and lucrative. Being employed in an industry you find compelling with a job that leverages your strengths presents exciting challenges, provides opportunities for learning, and brings you respect plus good fellowship with your coworkers, and pays you well is not just possible \u2013 it\u2019s a reasonable and attainable goal.<\/p>\n
There are many reasons why you take internships, part-time jobs, and entry level positions. In those settings, you find out what you really love doing (which may be surprising) and oftentimes, what you don\u2019t (which also may be surprising). Discovering your strengths as an employee and what really happens on-the-job (versus what the job posting led you to believe) means you have to be on-the-job. That real world experience builds discernment and sets you up for sustainable success throughout your career.<\/p>\n
However, if you develop a job crush based on a job posting, then you really aren\u2019t in love. You\u2019re just falling for a profile, which if you\u2019ve done any online dating, you know isn\u2019t what you really get when you have the first encounter (virtual or IRL), much less during a long-term relationship.<\/p>\n
So, how does a job crush happen? It\u2019s common under a couple of scenarios and it can happen to anyone.<\/p>\n
For instance, you love a certain show and you\u2019re totally fulfilled watching, reading, and commenting on social media about it. You know every episode. You know what all the characters wear and you could dress them if you were the show\u2019s stylist. Then, voila! You see the job posting for a junior stylist on that show. O.M.G. You. Are. In. Love. With. A. Job. Posting.<\/p>\n
Or, you\u2019ve taken a LinkedIn Learning course on project management and discover this is your thing. You\u2019ve always been a manager type, running the show on group projects in your courses and coordinating everyone working on an event. You are meticulous about meeting deadlines. You have a knack for the gentle nudge that gets people to do their part. Your personal brand is logical, trustworthy, and congenial. Then, you put in \u201cproject manager\u201d and \u201centry level\u201d into the LinkedIn job search engine. The \u201cabsolutely perfect\u201d job pops up, right on top of all the listings! It\u2019s meant to be, you decide. Love. At. First. Sight.<\/p>\n
This would all be fine if the consequences of having a crush weren\u2019t so awful. It becomes impossible to write the perfect cover letter to capture your rapture, much less why you are the ideal candidate skill-wise. You get writer\u2019s block. You stall. You miss the deadline to apply. Or, you manage to apply and you get the interview. You freeze in front of the recruiter. Your fear about messing up this \u201conce-in-a-lifetime\u201d opportunity makes you mess up what really was an ordinary job interview for in reality, a slightly more than ordinary opportunity.<\/p>\n
Any time you idealize, romanticize, or otherwise inflate a job opportunity, you increase the pressure on yourself. A job-hunt is the time to lower your stress. The best approach to a job listing is optimistic, curious, and eyes-wide-open. Don\u2019t let a faux-soulmate feeling knock you off your feet.<\/p>\n
Avoid a crush and you\u2019ll avoid feeling crushed!<\/p>\n
Next Steps<\/strong><\/p>\n How to Avoid Job Search Soulmate Syndrome<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3256,"featured_media":3923,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"custom_author_name":"","chapman_pin_hero_slider":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[76,77,78,12,36],"class_list":["post-3918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career-advice","tag-careers","tag-job-search","tag-linkedin","tag-school-of-communication","tag-stress"],"yoast_head":"\n\n