10 Tips for Social Networking Your Way to a Job

It’s not just a load of Web 2.0 hype—you can find a job using social networks, according to Brad and Debra Schepp.

“ We’ve spoken to many people who use LinkedIn, Twitter and even MySpace to find jobs—regular 9-to-5 jobs or consulting gigs or freelance work,” says Brad, who with his wife authored How to Find a Job on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Other Social Networks.

I get pitched a lot of job-hunting books. Most of them should have been made into pamphlets instead. But after my first glance through the Schepps’ book, I quickly made a few adjustments to my LinkedIn profile—and I’m not even looking for a job. Here are ten of their tips for getting the most out of social networks.

Get on LinkedIn

The site has become so widely used, that if you don’t have a profile…

How I Imagine My Hypothetical Average Workday, by Decade(s)

My parents always say things like “back in my day…the world was a better place” or “back in my day…we didn’t need e-mail to have a good time.” Here’s how I see it:

The Fifties
I get out of bed and put my slippers on. Everything is in grayscale. My wife has prepared a beautiful smorgasbord of scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and cereal flakes. My blond son, Timmy, and my blonde daughter, Diane, both tell me how they are so proud of their father. I smile and one of my front teeth literally sparkles. We all giggle. The golden retriever giggles too. I tell Timmy he had better eat his cereal flakes if he wants to get big and mighty like Hank Aaron. We all pray to family values and thank God we don’t live in Russia.

When I get into work, my secretary compliments me on my clean and neat haircut. She gives me many reports I won’t read. I drink three glasses of scotch, smoke a pack of cigarettes, have conversations that might seem racially insensitive with today’s standards and eventually end up at a meeting in which we are told the company is growing at an outstanding rate…

5 Ways to Stay Focused at Work

Forget the days of limitless overtime compensation and relaxing hours spent chit chatting with coworkers at the office.

Whereas in the pre-recession years, it may have been commonplace for employees to take extended lunches and bill their companies for the overtime hours it took to complete the day’s assignments, more and more cost-conscious companies are now shutting down requests for overtime compensation and laying off staff—effectively telling the employees who remain to get the same amount of work done with less help and in less time.

What’s an overworked office dweller to do? You could work more hours, even though you’re not getting paid. Refuse to do the extra work that’s been piling up, and risk getting fired. Or simply become more productive with the eight hours a day you’re in the office…

Stop Reading and Start Sleeping

Want to get back on your feet in 2010? Forget a better (or simply a) job, salary or place to live. The key to success lies in sleep, according to the Huffington Post, which is going crazy over shut-eye time. In a series of posts, the website notes that sleep improves memory, keeps you healthy, lowers your stress levels, and increases performance on the job. Arianna Huffington has even set up a “sleep challenge” for a month. But our favorite idea is an on-the-job nap program proposed by Ellen Galinsky, president of the Families and Work Institute. Who wouldn’t want that? Those out of work are in an even better spot to take up the challenge!…

Screwed: 678 at Virginia Dept. of Transportation

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s total: 825

Nearly 700 workers at the Virginia Department of Transportation will be laid off this week. … The Longaberger Company in Newark, Ohio has plans to cut 125 of its staff. …

Screwed: Up to 126 in Lynchburg

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 226

Up to 126 positions may be cut in the city of Lynchburg, Va. … Plymouth, Mass. schools are looking at eliminating eight to 10 positions. …

Your Be-Happy-about-Your-Friend’s-New-Job Guide

The good news: the unemployment rate finally appears to be falling and people you know are getting jobs. The less great news: you aren’t one of them, and even if you’re enjoying your funemployment, this shift is creating a bit of a rift.

Whereas it was easy to find camaraderie amongst recently laid off friends and colleagues at the beginning of the recession, that unity is becoming strained for some now that more people are finding jobs and leaving their unemployed buddies behind. Without anyone to commiserate with or take part in events like the Unemployment Olympics, the prospect of funemployment becomes a lot less, well, fun…

Screwed: 4,900 at British Airways

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s total: 5,310

First, the (relatively) good news: Few employers announcing layoffs today.

The rest: At British Airways, about 4,900 employees will lose their jobs. …Creekside Mushrooms in Penn. plans to lay off 260 workers. … In Grand Rapids, Mich., 150 people may be let go. …

Ditch the Downturn, Go to… Zurich

From the picturesque buildings to the awe inspiring landscapes, there is a reason people like Zurich so much. Designer boutiques and culinary treasures lie behind every corner, while world-class ski resorts are just a short ride away. Meanwhile, with the unemployment rate in the U.S. rising to 9.8. percent last month, abandoning the States for a better life overseas may have never sounded like a more rational decision. Of course, picking up and leaving isn’t quite that simple.

Job prospects in many exotic locales are even bleaker than they are in the States, while the benefit from a low cost of living could easily be offset by high taxes or low wages in other cities across Europe…

Love in the Time of Layoff: Back to Work

Last month, my husband Marco subbed for me here, since I was too busy throwing up to write a post. This month, the nausea has at last subsided and I’ve got lots to say.

The start-up I’ve helped launch has taken off, and Marco has freelance work again. His new gig starts this week. (Let’s hear it for the latest news about the economy!) While you’d think I’d be ecstatic about my partner going back to work, relieving me of sole breadwinner duties, I’m mixed. It’s been a blessing having him at home cooking meals, unpacking boxes, helping me get through the day. He set up my desk and I’ve been happily working from home, feet up on the radiator to relieve the constant swelling, but I’ve become something I never thought I, a woman who prides herself on her independence, would become in this particular relationship: clingy. When we’re home together, I don’t even like to be in separate rooms…