8 smart job-hunting tips

I'm telling you, the job market ain't what it used to be. You got ancient practices in use in most places, that most 2009'ers could never contort into. It's true!

I wanted to know about number 4? Most people I know haven't clue who their companies recruiters are. These 'recruiters' are not posted for the general public to find. Also people that I talk to in major companies only know their immediate management and have no contact with other mangers.

The type of work I do does not lend itself to small companies where everyone knows each other. So tell me how to not reply on the internet? When large corporations reply exclusively on their websites to receive resumes.

I've signed up with 4 or 5 different headhunter companies to get the inside track on jobs. This is a joke also. They claim to have inside tracks to recruiters but in reality they don't have anymore influence than your average Joe.

#8 That's the worst advice I've ever heard, it's the worst thing that you can do to yourself. I'm living proof. I did that a couple of times and it has never worked out. You always end up in a rut, end up staying much longer than you should have, and your finances suffer greatly for it. You become comfortable and complacent with the job. The last time I took a lower paying job was just under two years ago. I got stuck in that rut, and I'm still there. I went from a full time supervisors job, to a full time sales job based on commission, to a part-time clerk job without benefits.

You always say, "oh, it can't get any worse", "I'll get a promotion eventually". But it can and it does get worse. The promotion will not and does not always happen. You can lose everything by taking the lower paid path. I'm in the worst case scenario of that scene. I filed bankruptcy a year ago and I'm still awaiting approval (i.e. discharge) for it. My checking and savings acounts went adios, and my truck got repo'd. Now I drive a low quality 49cc scooter to my part-time job, which is 3 miles from my parents house (my current place of residence).

The moment I decided to go to college for a degree so that I can get out of the poverty line, my parents said they're moving out of state in two years and it threw those plans right out the window. Now I have to wait two to three years to go to college and I have to move with the folks because I have no other alternative right now with this economy.

Avoid #8 at all costs. It will destroy your life.

how can get work?

Yeah, I'm with Dan. I took a job way below my skill level and pay needs. Yes, it's more than unemployment and I'm paying the bills but I'm barely scrapping by, bored out of my mind and beyond frustrated. I'm miserable. I'm making the people around me miserable. It's just miserable. And it's also put a serious crimp in my ability to look for another job. I can't job search while working, it's difficult to get time off a job I basically just started to go interview somewhere else. Plus, I feel so guilty about it. I know it's a dog eat dog world and they can let me go in a minute but I guess my parents instilled in me some loyal work ethic. Leaving an employeer in the lurch just doesn't sit well with me.

Be sure that you have practiced your interview answers out loud! Some things that sound great in your head don't sound so great out loud.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4553899_job-after-being-laid-off.html

??? What the @#$%!! The attitude you have is the attitude you project. You are making yourself miserable and only you can stop it. Careerbuilder.com, monster.com and other sites such as those do help. They get you out there and let you know whats going on in your neighborhood. The very first day I was on Monster I got offered a job. I didn't take it because they wanted me to relocate 3 states away but it was nice to be wanted. If you really want it bad enough you can go out and find something that suits you. Just don't quit your first job 'till you have a 2nd. Otherwise you're just a whiney drain on the taxpayers i.e. ME!!

#8 is not that great of advice, my father took a pay cut for a job and thank god my husband and I are living with them and pay them rent, because what he gets paid now, doesnt make the mortgage payment. He is in the process of the modifcation loan and boy that sure does help. He is consistantly looking for a new job with better pay because its just not happening. I agree with #8 in the sense that yea, take the job and set a goal to get outta there, but with someone like my father who has 30+ years of experience in his field and a degree, it seems like, he has TOO much experience. Its always a young gun interviewing him and the young guy who doesnt have the experience or even the degree in the field feels threatend on someone who could probably do his job better. it just sucks overall

me personally, i still have yet to find a job, even if its a burger joint. first being pregnant, now having the baby, i want to work nights but i could work days, and its never good enough for employers

#8 is GREAT advice! If you don't have a budgeted buffer system worked out (ex: 8 months) by the time you lose your job, that's your fault. You are living above your means. Then, when you get laid off, you have the time to lower your budget before your buffer runs out. Yes, that even means getting rid of cable, not buying that candybar at the gas station every day, not going out every weekend, and getting rid of that new car for a used one.

Bankruptcy is for people who fail to plan ahead, and fail at many things. It shows your true colors, and discredits your comment here all together. (I also have opinions about people who consider unemployment pay to working pay.)

I've been there. In fact I'm still there, and I'm working through it. I quit crying about it long ago.