I confess, I am what people refer to as a “Type A” personality. That means I:  

• Like to multitask (I get more done that way … or so I think) 
• Am competitive 
• Don’t like idle time 
• Struggle with patience 
• Am ambitious 
• Tend to work too much 

Yes, I like to be in control.  

On the positive side, Type A personalities know how to get things done. Others call on us when they want a high-value task accomplished. 

Our weakness, though, is our tendency to think we know best. We have a plan. We know what needs to be done. That causes us to ignore sound wisdom from others and charge forward without considering another viewpoint. 

When you take Type A characteristics into your job search, you’ll struggle emotionally when positive things aren’t happening for you, when you don’t have all the answers. 

So often, job searchers just want to do the same thing they were doing in their previous job, but with a new company. I know I did. Sometimes that strategy works, but not always.  

We need to be open to a different path than the one we’ve decided on. A question to ponder is are you following my plan or God’s plan. 

My plan – If the plan is mine and not in sync with God, even though it makes sense to me, I’ll struggle. Nothing will ever go entirely according to my plan. Unexpected issues and challenges will always pop up. 

God’s plan – If my direction is part of God’s plan, it goes much more smoothly. When there are challenges, the right people will show up to help. Doors will open and make things easier. 

I experienced this the first time I was unemployed. I searched for months and months to find a job like my previous one, only with a new organization. I was convinced that’s what I was meant to do. But it didn’t happen. 

After all that time with no success, I began listening to others. People with wisdom showed up in my life. I kept hearing, “Go into business for yourself as a consultant.”  

It wasn’t a completely foreign idea. I had always told friends I planned to do exactly that later in life. But now, people kept asking, “Why wait?”  

The answer was simply that it wasn’t part of “my plan.” 

So, after a lot of prayer and deliberation, I decided to take that big, slightly scary, step. I became a consultant — an entrepreneur.  

What happened? While it wasn’t an instant success, my consulting practice grew and grew. Doors started to open for me. I wasn’t making sales calls; I was just getting calls and referrals. I realized, for whatever reason, this was what I was to be doing at this time in my life.  

I experienced peace and joy. 

These days, I spend a lot of time meeting with the unemployed and underemployed. They ask me regularly, “What is God’s plan for me?”  

It’s the right question to ask, but I don’t have the answer. 

When seeking God’s plan, you need to spend time in conversation with Him through prayer and study.  

Sometimes He speaks directly to us, but sometimes He speaks through others. We just need to listen and be open to new things. 

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Romans 8:31