Experiencing rejection from numerous job applications and interviews can negatively affect jobseekers’ mental health. Here are several resources that career professionals can use to support clients facing depression in their job search.
This article is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice or mental health supports. Career professionals should refer to other services as appropriate and necessary.
If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Visit the Government of Canada website for provincial and territorial mental health resources.
Coping With Depression During Your Job Search, with Ashley Watkins (Mac’s List) [Podcast]
Not having a job may cause personal embarrassment or negatively affect self-worth. Ashley Watkins is a certified resume writer, job search coach and former corporate recruiter. In this episode, she talks about the importance of being honest, lays out steps to overcome negative feelings and speaks to how to help jobseekers in their journey.
How To Manage Job Search Anxiety (J.T. O’Donnell) [Video]
Career strategist Jeanine Tanner “J.T.” O’Donnell is part of LinkedIn’s influencer program and has a syndicated advice column that reaches millions of Americans. In this YouTube video, she offers six steps to help jobseekers manage their mental well-being.
How To Overcome Job-Search Depression (Forbes) [Article]
This article covers symptoms of job search depression as well as steps that jobseekers can take to change their approach.
Job loss or setback left you feeling defeated? How to pull yourself up (TED) [Multimedia]
Fawn Germer is a keynote speaker on leadership and motivation, and a four-time Pulitzer Prize-nominated investigative journalist. She shares four key ideas excerpted from her book, Coming Back: How to Win the Job You Want When You’ve Lost the Job You Need. Her TEDTalk video on how she faced life-changing challenges is also included.
Job Search Depression | How to Cope and Keep the Faith (Idealist) [Article]
Learning some tactics for handling uncertainty can offer valuable skills like patience and flexibility. This piece discusses job search burnout and offers advice like structuring time and setting achievable goals.
Job search depression is real: here’s how to overcome it (Boston University) [Blog]
After exploring why job search depression could happen, tips for dealing with it are offered such as creating a plan for rejection, getting organized and keeping perspective.
Maintaining Mental Health During a Prolonged Job Search – with Chris Rudnicki (3, 2, 1 iRelaunch) [Podcast]
Signs of depression and anxiety in jobseekers can appear in their social media and the way they carry themselves. In this episode, Chris Rudnicki, Chief Operating Officer of Tyton Partners, discusses his father’s depression during a prolonged period of unemployment, and the risks of ignoring mental health issues during the job search.
Mental health resources for jobseekers (and everyone else) (Work for Good) [Article]
Resources listed are specific to helping jobseekers manage their mental health such as ways to deal with stressors and find relief.
Strengthening Mental Health Through Career Effective Development (CERIC) [Book]
This book makes the case that career development practice is a mental health intervention and provides skills and strategies to support career development practitioners in their work. Some chapters include:
- Chapter 5, A Framework for Connecting Career Development and Mental Health
- Chapter 7, The Role of the Career Development Practitioner with Respect to Mental Health: Ethical Implications
- Chapter 8, Practice Implications: Integrating Mental Health Outcomes Within the Career Development Process
What Is Job Search Depression? (Healthline) [Article]
Factors that can cause depression, symptoms of job search depression are explored. Strategies and support systems to help you navigate these challenges are shared.
