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The Holidays and Your Job Search: Bah Humbug or Be Merry

The holidays bring stress. If you are in a job search you may be plagued with unanswered applications. Or you may be trying to schedule interviews around busy holiday activities. If you are a hiring manager you have year-end reports and difficult requisitions to fill for the beginning of the year. And all of us are charged with doing more with less at work and at home. It is easier to be a Scrooge rather than Tiny Tim.

With all this stress it is hard to think about giving back to those in your community who may need a little help. But there is something very interesting about giving to others; the gifts are shared by both the giver and the recipient.

Countless studies have shown that reaching out and helping someone else gives positive rewards in health and confidence to both the giver and the recipient. In one study, researchers found that doing good was the prerequisite for happiness, not the other way around. In another study, those that reached out to help others received much more in the way of health and happiness results than those they helped. And it doesn’t matter if the act is a small act of random kindness or helping out at a soup kitchen.

Many of us think that our giving needs to be grand, but it is truly the smaller gifts that are most powerful. For instance, on that next trip rather than complain about the family or single parent with a crying child, offer a little assistance; compliment a colleague on their work, or offer a home-cooked meal to an elderly neighbor. We all believe we don’t have enough time to do a few extra things, but giving is one of those things that benefits us all.

Job Search During the Holidays

How to Help Someone in their Job Search

And if you do receive a gift – a compliment or helping hand this season, remember to accept the gift gracefully.