Patience and persistence are two of life’s most valuable virtues, and they certainly play a key role in your job search. When tempered with a third “P” — pace — they can keep your job search moving forward and help you stay on track toward your career goals.

Here’s how all three should work together:

Patience

When you first lose a job or your search has been going on for a while, it’s easy to fall into a fourth, less helpful “P” — panic! Don’t give in. Instead, take a step back, complete your assessment exercises, brainstorm potential target areas, re-connect with contacts and practice patience. That doesn’t mean doing little or nothing. Rather, practicing patience means taking actions that are well-thought-out and strategic, and having faith that your planning will pay off.

Persistence

Here’s the virtue that will make your planning and patience pay! Stay on top of your plan, keep after your targets and realize that it often takes multiple contacts before you can land a meeting with someone. Keep following up, but remember to strike a balance between being persistent and being a pest.

Pace

The third “P,” pace, is more about consistent movement in the right direction than it is about speed. Of course there’s a “typical” length of time job searches are supposed to last, but the truth is each search is as individual as the person conducting it. Yours may be slightly longer or significantly shorter than average. That doesn’t matter. What’s important is to keep taking measured, informed actions that move you toward your goal.

Pace can also help you realize when it’s time to move on. If you repeatedly attempt contact with someone but get no results, turn your attention elsewhere. Go back to your list of targeted mailings and conduct another round of follow-up. If you contact 30 people and just four get back to you, that’s progress that could result in an informal meeting.

Finally, don’t become discouraged if you find the balance shifting between these three P’s from time to time. Some days (or weeks) you may need more patience. Others may call for greater persistence. It’s important to recognize the right balance for each situation that arises in your job search. Be persistent in strategizing your job search, patient in allowing yourself the time to do things properly, and maintain a pace that always moves you forward.