Losing motivation | Fairygodboss

Mystery Woman

Tell us more for better jobs, advice
and connections

Don’t miss out on new opportunities.

Update your profile

YOUR TOPICS

Your feed isn’t personalized yet. Follow topics like career advice, lifestyle or health.

YOUR GROUPS

Discover and join groups with like-minded women who share your interests, profession, and lifestyle.

COMPANIES YOU FOLLOW

Get alerted when there are new employee reviews.

YOUR JOB ALERTS

Get notified when new jobs are posted.

Your post is published!

Shanthi Collooru

Graphic and Product Designer

01/15/21 at 12:12AM UTC

Consulting

Losing motivation

Hi. I have been working for the same company as a remote contractor teaching English as a second language to kids from China. I went from teaching 35 classes a week to only having 5 classes a week and it has been very sad. I work early morning and I try to stay motivated during the day. I am a Graphic Designer and I have a BFA in Visual Communications but I also have an Associate's in Web Development. This is from years ago. 2007 and 2013. Since then I had enrolled myself in a Wordpress course, a Skillcrush bootcamp and a Thinkful bootcamp. I have had jobs in retail, design and web development but now I want to become a product designer. I am applying to a lot of jobs and after I apply for these jobs I get responses back saying the job has closed, they have chosen someone else or I don't get any response at all. I feel like when I am working at one job I am still job searching. Now I feel so burned out and all I want to do is sit at home and watch tv, organize the house and clean, but I still want to be productive.

9 Comments

Eva Baaza

01/15/21 at 12:23AM UTC

Believe me, I do understand your predicament. It gets frustrating when you apply and do not get any response or the response is so negative that it keeps crushing your self esteem. This is the advice I am going to tell you to take: 1) Take a weeks break. Take those 7 days as a cleansing period from all the bad vibes. , indulge yourself, relax, meditate, identify all the positive things in your life, have fun, watch fun programs on Netflix, enjoy yourself. 2) When that week ends, identify where you want to see yourself in the next 5 years. Identify what you need to learn . Identify the companies you would like to work for . 3) Get projects that you think will be fun and eye catching in the product design field and start working on each . Share your progress on your social media channels as often as you can, once a week can work. Everyday is awesome but may not be achievable by everyone but if you can do it that will be awesome. 4) Start networking with those people in the industries or companies you would like to work for. Find them on LinkedIn , introduce yourself and just engage in informational interviews with them.... 5) Find slack channels with designers and join those...

1 Reply

Shanthi Collooru

Graphic and Product Designer

01/15/21 at 1:25AM UTC

Thank you so much for all of that advice. I really appreciate it. It is nice when someone reaches out to you with a game plan and spells everything out for you. This is something I can work with. Thank you so much for all of that. I will start my journey on Monday.

1 Reply

Eva Baaza

01/15/21 at 2:18AM UTC

I am in a similar boat and I just had to step back and evaluate a few things here and there... Resting it out, having positive vibes and mapping out a clear way will be very helpful

Elizabeth Stiles West

340

I teach in person or online, college or K-12

01/15/21 at 12:25AM UTC

Wow; I can't imagine teaching 35 classes a week. 5 classes sounds like a much more reasonable work load, but if you aren't making enough money and it isn't considered full time, it makes sense to look for something else. Since you are a teacher, there should be immediate openings as a substitute teacher when schools go back in person. If you're a sub, often you can make connections that lead to a full-time job. You could still start as a product designer as a side job and then switch to it full time once it takes off.

1 Reply

Shanthi Collooru

Graphic and Product Designer

01/15/21 at 1:24AM UTC

I have been working as an ESL teacher for the last 4 years and even though I like teaching my students online, the pay is not great. At the time I was looking for a job, VIPkid contacted me and I was just using this job as a filler on my resume. I became a teacher at a time when I just wanted a job. Al But now I am just looking for a steady job in design in a company where I can grow and prosper within.

Brittany

Passionate about food & sustainability

01/15/21 at 1:02AM UTC

Have you considered working with a recruiter? I work in staffing and my job is to share great candidates (like you!) with my clients. I provide feedback to my candidates if they don't get the job, so they can improve on their interview skills, or work on their resume more. Might be worth checking out... let someone else do the job searching for you at no cost to you.

1 Reply

Shanthi Collooru

Graphic and Product Designer

01/15/21 at 1:19AM UTC

In the past it was mostly recruiters calling me up but it never led anywhere after I applied to the jobs they recommended. I would follow up with them and they would tell me that the job went to someone else all the time. I am looking at coaching programs online but they are all so expensive.

Anonymous

01/15/21 at 4:50AM UTC

OMG you want to organize and clean too???? I thought I was the only one doing that! I feel i'm obsessed. I have never dealt with this compulsion before. I have spent the entire pandemic organizing and cleaning every inch of my home, car and office. Its so satisfying. I have bought hundreds of dollars on Marie Kondo books and supplies. I live at the container store and am the proud owner of an array of neatly curated cleaning products and equipment. It's nuts. Anyway I thought I'd share that you're not alone in your feelings. It's called burnout. Rest and distraction are the cures.

Lynnette Phillips

Coach to those developing their Inner CEO

01/15/21 at 8:54PM UTC

Yes burnout is a very real thing and the first thing it does is zap one's energy. Here are a few thoughts: 1. What opportunities to keep yourself moving such as the organization and cleaning you have started. It boosts that sense of confidence and completion and you have done something for yourself. 2. Explore freelance opportunities such as Fiverr to set up a profile and help with graphic design and website development. In the world of the Covid Pivot so many entrepreneurs need these services. 3. Reach out to existing network. Possibly update your LinkedIn profile, share your expertise with posts about what you are learning and updating skills. Try to reconnect with 3-5 colleagues or make new connections in a week. It is not about quantity it is about the quality of those relationships that could lead to new opportunities.