Last night I came across a blog on YouTube of an unemployed man named Matt. He was laid off a couple months ago and everyday, every unemployed day, he would blog/vlog his journey. I do send my best wishes to him and his family. Matt's blog, Mattonfire, moved me to find more blogs like his and I found plenty.

A few weeks ago I linked to a report assessing the grim state of '09 grads and jobs. Less graduates than usual have secured jobs as of graduation, and can now look forward to a summer on the hunt, looking for that very first gig.

This morning, while listening to NPR (true story: Scientists have found that as you age, there is a direct negative correlation between time spent partying and time spent listening to NPR. I also think this relates the the distance of your pants' to your navel ... but that data is inconclusive) I heard the story of Emma Jacobs, a recent Columbia grad, and her struggles landing her first job. Emma relates the frustration of rejection, the fear of uncertainty and the self-doubt that come from consistent rejection (a low point was three rejections in one day!)

I highly recommend you take a listen if you have also struggled to find a job. Sometimes the job search isn't just about what you can do to find that next (or first) job. Sometimes it is about knowing that you are not alone in your rejection and frustration. We are in a very tough market - hopefully the toughest you will ever have to face - and there are a lot of very skilled, highly educated and highly qualified individuals who just cannot find work.

It is important to keep perspective in this situation. You are (most likely) not the problem. The problem is one of sheer economics and numbers ... not enough jobs, too many people. Finding a job will prove to take a certain amount of dedication, hard work and just plain luck. But it is important not to let the grind get you down and to realize that there are still jobs to be had.

For advice on finding these jobs, let's turn to The Links ...

Secrets of the Job Hunt Provides: Tips for non-traditional interview setups. This post talks about pre-interview computer screening as well as some hints for handling phone interviews, web interviews and even a bit on video resumes. Good resource to have in case such a situation should arise.

Christine Hassler Tackles: The question of the most important thing to learn in your twenties. Christine attended a Seminar over the weekend and posed this question to a number of successful speakers and got a wide range of answers. Head on over to the Huffington Post to read the answers.

Cheehead Reports: Monster.com is adding a background check. "The background screening services will be offered through an alliance with HireRight, a global employment screening provider. Monster said the partnership will help streamline the candidate background-check process for businesses, increase the quality of new hires and help reduce liability. The service will be integrated with the Monster.com desktop and candidate management tools."

Mashable Explains: How to personalize and brand your Twitter page. Dan Schawbel (one of the post's author Ben Parr's examples) has a very professional looking Twitter page and has made a very successful living at personal branding, so his is as good as any for a reference. This post gives some great examples of how customize your account without looking fake and foolish.

One of the strangest aspects of writing a daily roundup of career links around the web is that each day you are never quite sure the type, quality and quantity of links you are going to find. Some days are quite barren and some are quite bountiful. It's interesting reading my RSS Feed each day and relying almost exclusively on the mercy of what topics are being discussed to formulate that days topics.

This is has been one of the more challenging aspect for us all at ThinkTalk since starting the blog. None of us had blogged daily before, so a major concern was finding the motivation and the content available to come up with new topics each day. It certainly has been a learning process, and with the shear ubiquity of personal, professional, and corporate blogging that happens everyday, it may be something every student should try out, just to learn how to do it. One day this week, I promise to post all the helpful and relevant resources I have found to start blogging ...

But today is a bountiful day, and thus it is straight on to The Links ...

Keppie Careers Explains: The difficulties job seekers face in this market ... and how to overcome these hurdles. One interesting point briefly raised is the concept that we are now facing a "career jungle gym" as oppose to the traditional "career ladder." How have I never come across this idea? It makes perfect sense, with Gen Yers swinging from jobs in a more tangential (but upward) manner as oppose to simply moving directly upward withing the same company. This may be the best description yet of the new paradigm of a successful career path.

On The Job Offers: 10 tips for college students, from the professionals that will be hiring them. If you are graduating in the next few weeks, you want every advantage you can for finding a job. Well who better to offer you this advice than the very people who will be hiring you.

Bulls Eye Resumes Career Blog discusses: How the recession is changing the way companies hire. These are some very interesting out-of-the-box ways company hiring has been affected, beyond "they are, uhhh, hiring less." For example, more companies are hiring more contract and freelance positions. Companies don't have to fork over benefits for these positions, but freelancing and short term employment could be a good way for new grads to get a variety of different experiences in a relatively short time that can help give them a well-rounded resume for when this recession does end and hiring picks up (whenever that may be ...).

Alexandra Levit Reviews: Path 101, a service that is "all about helping candidates figure out where they want to go and how to get there. There are plenty of places to just find open jobs, but it's not as easy to figure out what you're looking for in the first place. Via personality tests, resume analysis, and industry profiles, Path 101 provides direction and career insight before you start the application process."

The New York Times Relays: The message of reading the fine print in a student loan. "The range of interest rates on fixed-rate loans was wide — 7 percent to 12 percent — and the larger lenders charged the highest rates. In the fine print of the promissory notes, he discovered that some lenders — Chase, PNC Financial and SunTrust Bank — can raise interest rates by two to three percentage points if a borrower is late with a single payment."

The New York Times Analyzes: Job-Search Networking. "While people have flocked to social networking Web sites like LinkedIn and Facebook, growing numbers of job seekers are building grass-roots offline communities, too, and sometimes use the Internet to arrange to meet people face-to-face." This is a great article, with some great ideas on how you can build up your off-line network to share contacts and leads.

Gradspot Details: How to get the most out of your summer internship. This is a very comprehensive list of maximizing this important career-shaping experience. Tips include arriving 15 minutes early, asking a lot of questions and eliminating the word "No" from your vocabulary.

"In the jungle gym at a park" courtesy of heiwa4126 via Flickr Creative Commons

Technology blog Mashable has located an excellent opportunity to score your dream job. How do they know it's your dream job? Well, let's just say it involves Drinking Wine, Twittering and making $10K a month.  Interested? Head over to Mashable to find out the score.

Murphy-Goode Winery in Sonoma County is offering just that — a $10,000 p/mo for six months, rent-free job updating Twitter and Facebook with your winery lifestream. Sounds too good to be true right?

According to a San Francisco Citizen blog post, this dream job is a reality — just one you’ll have to compete to win.

Eager applicants had the chance to go to 120 Market Street, San Francisco, between 11:30 am and 12:30 pm today to get an inside scoop. But, the real job contest begins tomorrow via AReallyGoodeJob.com, when dream job seekers can fill out an application and submit a one-minute video demonstrating their special skills.

If you don't win the gig, have no fear. We'll help you find your dream job with The Links ...

The Wall Street Journal Has: A way to explain your career setbacks to potential employers. "When you're in an interview, don't wait to be asked about the time you were disabled. "Assuming your health is no longer an issue, be proactive and tell your interviewer exactly what happened before he or she asks," says Douglas Matthews, president and chief executive officer of outplacement firm Right Management."

College Recruiter Offers: Career advice directly from recruiters. "Consider this: Candidate A and B are top students, leaders within their university, involved in extracurricular activities, great experience and both have a 4.0 GPA. The difference is, Candidate A is willing to start anywhere including a Front Desk Agent because he understands that within 6 months he will have proven himself and will be promoted. Candidate B only wants an Asst. Manager position upon graduation and will only reside in Virginia. Due to Candidate A's willingness to be flexible this candidate will most likely be chosen."

Forbes Lists: 10 things to do if you can't score a job. The market is tight right now, and if you are just getting out of school you may not have immediate luck finding a job. Don't freak out. Just keep your cool and look over this list by Forbes.

Grad Spot Explores: Graduate School options. Ok, you didn't find a job and you want to consider the option of heading back to school. Lot's of people do it. It's great. Just make sure you are prepared. Grad spot profiles Peterson's, a website that can help you research different schools and manage all of the information you are processing during this process.

"Dream Job" courtesy of steve heath via Flickr Creative Commons.

I have a friend who is a very good lawyer for a very good law firm. One of the well circulated thoughts on Law School is that if you don't go to a top tier university (think top 20 or 15) you won't be able to score a gig with a big bling firm.  That may be even more true given our current economic and job market situation (for more on grad schools and recession, read Penelope Trunk's thoughts). But my friend, he didn't go to a top tier law school. His school was barely in the top 50.

So how did my buddy beat the odds and pull off this prime gig? Well, the short answer is, he busted his ass. But that's a bit simplistic. The truth is there were a lot of factors, not the least of which is that he is fluent in Spanish. Many companies look for special skills to set applicants apart from the pack, and in many cases fluency in a second language can do just that.

I found an excellent post at Techcrunch today on Learn10, a web start up that teaches you a foreign language 10 words at a time.  I instantly thought this was a very cool idea.

Learn10 allows you to quickly pick up the basic vocabulary of a language by teaching you 10 words a day, wherever you are. English speakers and learners can choose to learn frequently used vocabulary of a language for free using Learn10’s content (coming from one of 22 language pairs) or opt to input their own content (subscription-based). It comes with a widget you can share on any website or blog, as well as a variety of social networks like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.

I would view this as more supplemental to your study of a foreign language than as a way to become fluent or a specialist in any language. However, it certainly doesn't hurt to learn what little bit you can ... or to use as a jumping off point to studying the language more in-depth (or, you know, to learn how to order some cervezas on Spring Break).

I'm heading to China for a few weeks this summer and have already registered an account to learn some words. Learn10 sent me an email with my 10 words and I am well on my way. The website navigation could use a little work, but the concept is certainly intriguing and, as a way to set yourself apart, certainly worth a look around.

And now, something that is always worth a look around, The Links ...

Jobacle Reviews: The Adversity Paradox, a new book subtitled: The phenomenon of building outstanding success upon the lessons learned in overcoming serious difficulty or misfortune. Jobacle Proprietor Andrew G.R. gives a solid review and discusses some lessons he learned from the book and the concept.

The Wall Street Journal Offers: Tactics for pulling off a successful job interview. More importantly, how not to blow it: "At an interview, you want to stand out for the right reasons. To do so, you'll need to leave your baggage and anxiety at the door. For starters, wait until 10 minutes before your scheduled interview time to announce yourself. Arriving any sooner 'shows that you're not respectful of the time the hiring manager put aside for you,' says Ms. Loubaton, adding that a candidate who arrived an hour early made workers uncomfortable."

The Chronicle of Higher Ed's Wired Campus Expounds: On yesterday's news of the study that says Facebook time kills grades."Other researchers were quick to question [the] findings — including Eszter Hargittai, an associate professor of communication studies at Northwestern University, in a post to the blog Crooked Timber. She warned against jumping to conclusions in survey research — the classic reminder that correlation does not imply causation. And she said that in her own study in 2007 of more than 1,000 first-year students at the University of Illinois at Chicago, she found no correlation between Facebook use and student grades."

"Mind Your Language" photo courtesy of kiwanja via Flickr Creative Commons.

A week ago I posted a few stories about which industries are still hiring despite the recession. Among these were Air Traffic Control, Accounting and Nursing. Well, as Freddy Mercury once said, another one bites the dust. Today's Wall Street Journal reports that the Nursing field is seeing a decline in available positions.

As of last summer, the nation had a shortage of roughly 125,000 nurses, based on vacancies at hospitals and in long-term care. That is still expected to balloon to 300,000 to more than one million nursing vacancies by 2020. But thanks to the recession, the nursing shortage appears to be waning, at least temporarily

.A recent survey of 658 hospitals by the American Hospital Association found more than half had negative profit margins in the fourth quarter, raising concerns that more layoffs are on the way. SMDC Health System in Duluth, Minn., a large health-care provider in the region, for instance, has laid off 55 workers this year, including about a dozen nurses last month, from its staff of 7,000.

Now, if you are currently in Nursing school or planning to attend, don't get too worried. There is, as the above quote points out, still a future in nursing. Those vacancies will come. But, for right now, it appears hospitals (like almost everything else) aren't doing so well. If you were looking to move into the field immediately, you may need to exercise some patience.

Never one to exercise patience myself, it's time we moved on to The Links ...

PC Mag Lists: The best iPhone Apps for the unemployed (via Cheezhead). Of course, if you can afford an iPhone, you probably already have a job. But just in case ... it's a good list.

Gradspot Offers: Social Skills you need to develop as a recent grad. Networking will become more and more important in your life once you are through with college. The post has some good insight on developing communications and relationship building skills.

Alison's Job Searching Blog Advises: Look at the job search from the employer's point of view. "It's important to know where companies are posting jobs and how they are recruiting on and off the job boards. If you're aware of where companies are seeking applicants, you can position yourself to increase your chances of getting found by hiring managers. It makes good sense to be sure you're focusing your efforts on the same job sites that companies are using."

George's Employment Blawg Provides: Tips on how to draw attention to your resume. As I've said a number of times, you face increased competition in this job market. One tip that caught my eye, is the advice to focus your search and apply to a limited number of jobs that you are qualified for. I'm not sure I agree with this, as the author's defense is simply that it is a waste of time. That phrase, in my opinion, shouldn't enter the discussion during your job search. If applying to 20 jobs a week lands you a gig, it wasn't a waste of time. Something to think about.

Inside Higher Ed Reports: Student credit card debt is rising. I don't get this. You are starting your career with (in most cases) a blank slate in terms of money, or already behind the 8-ball with student loan debt. Why would you possibly want to exacerbate the situation? I didn't get a credit card (or a cell phone for that matter) until after graduation, and recommend the same for any other student.

Inside Higher Ed Reports: On a new study that says Facebook is effecting students' grades. Apparently an Ohio State researcher found that the difference is about a letter grade between those who spend more time on Facebook than others.

"Nurse Joker cosplay" photo courtesy christyxcore via Flckr Creative Commons

Sometimes your plans just don't work out. In the event of untimely termination, cutbacks or if things just don't work out it can help to have a back up plan. For instance, when ThinkTalk fires me, I plan to live off my baseball card collection and my assortment of rare, used novelty toys.

But some people crave a more "stable" backup plan. The Wall Street Journal catches up with Andrea and Ben Guajardo, Hot Dog Vendors.

Ms. Guajardo is a grant administrator for a health-care system. Her husband, Ben, is a pipeline operator. Theirs is the first hot-dog stand in Bandera, pop. 957, that anybody here can remember.

"It's a backup plan," says Ms. Guajardo, a mother of four. "No one knows what's going to happen with the economy, and I don't want to have to scrounge for a minimum-wage job."

Apparently these things can be fairly lucrative (well, lucrative is relative. I guess what I mean is, it's lucrative compared to sitting at home playing Fallout 3.) A cart runs around $2,000 new and a good earner can make around $400 per day.

This reminds me of that scene from the Graduate. So, if anyone comes up to you after graduation and asks you what you're going to do for your future just say one word: Hot Dogs.

If Hot Dogs aren't your cup of tea, maybe The Links will be the icing on your cake ... (great. Now I'm hungry.)

Gradspot Profiles: Financial industry expats in Hong Kong. Times are tough in financial center all over the world, not just New York. This Gradspot post has a Q & A with some recent grads and how they are faring over seas.

College Finance Offers: Advice on how to nail an interview. This post reminds us that interviewing is a tough process, but if you are prepared and are yourself you should do fine. Also, wearing a nice suit helps.

Forbes Finds: Government jobs that are hiring now. "The good news is that you don't have to be a policy wonk to be hired by the government. Many of these jobs are similar to those you'd find at any company. For instance, this week's jobs run the gamut from auditor to program analyst to safety and occupational health specialist." Check 'em out.

The Thin Pink Line Reminds Us: April is Financial Literacy Month. This makes sense, because every April, when my taxes are due, I am reminded of just how financially illiterate I am. Maybe this year will be different. Wait. What? Taxes are due in how many days? Uhhh, I gotta go ...

"NYC Hot Dog Cart" photo courtesy of rollingrck via Flickr Creative Commons.

We have a number of great, useful links today. So rather than continue to depress you with Today's sign-of-the-apocalypse report about how jobs or dropping or pay is dropping, I'm just going to go ahead and get to the links.

NACE Reports: Salary offers have dropped off for the class of 2009. The average salary offer for new grads, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers, dropped 2.2% from last year. The salaries are down from $49,624 to $48,515 for grads with a Bachelor's Degree. Good News? Engineering saw a rise of 2.3% to an average salary of $58,438 (OK, so I lied about the whole sign-of-the-apocalypse thing ... there's always tomorrow).

Forbes Reports: While Journalism Jobs are dropping, Journalism classes are filling up. While rough estimates put newspaper jobs lost this year at 7,500 (which is a lot, trust me), "Columbia, Stanford and NYU applications increased 38%, 20% and 6%, respectively, from the previous year. Same thing at state schools. The University of Colorado (up 11%), University of North Carolina (up 14%) and University of Maryland (up 25%) all saw gains." Confused? Me too. The indomitable spirit of the public sphere, perhaps?

Alison's Job Searching Blog Found: A LinkedIn guide for new graduates."If you're getting ready to graduate from college (or are a recent grad) and aren't quite sure how to transition from personal to professional networking, the LinkedIn '09 Grad Guide will help you get started on LinkedIn, and show you how create your profile, make connections, get recommendations, and build a network."

College Mogul Offers: 3 questions to ask before you pursue a full time job with a startup. Think less: "Do you guys have all that food and free stuff like Google?" And more: "Is this the right atmosphere for me?"

Jason Seiden Wonders: Should you cut your hair? Jason tackles the tough questions of the appropriate course of action for a guy with long hair. Ahh, to cut or not to cut?. If that's the question, this must be the rub.

Blue Sky Resumes Blog Provides: Tips on "spicing" up your resume. You have to make your resume stand out, especially given the job market and the increased competition you face. This post has some great advice on how you can do just that.

"The Tube" photo courtsey of Maltesen via Flickr Creative Commons.

Finding a job that is satisfying can be the most important aspect of the job hunt. If you are happy with your job there really is no limit to what you can accomplish in your work. Everyone has a different passion, and one of the keys to success is discovering what your passion is and how you can apply that to your career.

Today's Wall Street Journal features a good Q & A with Claire Bonilla, who coordinates Microsoft's relief efforts in the wake of natural disasters. Clair'e passion was helping people, and through philanthropy she was able to align her career with her passion.

From the time I was young, I've always been involved in volunteering, reaching out and helping communities. This position marries my passions outside of work with my experience in information technology. In my most recent position prior to joining Microsoft, I was the right-hand man to the vice president of global field sales. It was a 450-person organization and I worked with governments and nonprofits on how to mobilize our partners. I'm good at identifying and marshalling resources across cultures. And the networks I've built and my understanding of the company have helped me to know which resources to pull exactly when I need them.

The article features an inside look at how Claire got to this stage of her career and can serve as a useful guide for those of you who take interest in philanthropy or relief efforts as a career option. Here is some more information on Microsoft's Disaster Response and Human Relief Efforts.

For a little Human Relief of our own, here's a fresh batch of The Links ...

The Chronicle of Higher Ed Says : Lazy, Unprepared and addicted to Wikipedia is no way to go through life.

Lindsey Pollack Conducts: An interview with personal branding savant Dan Schawbel. Dan's new book Me 2.0 is out in bookstores now and is a must read for any aspiring careerist. Don't believe me? Check out Lindey's interview for Dan's spin on how you should be branding yourself (or read today's post on Mashable).

What Would Dad Say Figured Out: The qualities that lead entrepreneurs to start their own ventures. Hint: It involves daydreaming in the shower.

Diversity Inc. Compiled: A list of the top 10 companies hiring African Americans (via Cheezhead). "The companies on this specialty list have demonstrated a long-term commitment to hiring, retaining, compensating and promoting African Americans. They do this through building strong community relationships, establishing pipelines to schools and professional organizations, and maintaining deep relationships with Black-owned suppliers."

"purple passion FSOD" photo courtesy of PinkMoose via Flickr Creative Commons.

After last week's news on the continually shrinking job market, I thought we would start a new week off fresh looking at those industries that actually are hiring. This weekend's New York Times reports that the Federal Aviation Administration is looking to replace air traffic controllers. The industry is facing a retirement bubble as many workers are reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56.

Because of this retirement bubble, the F.A.A. is in the midst of a hiring surge that began in 2005; its Air Traffic Control Workforce plan has set a goal of hiring 17,000 controllers by 2017.

About 15,000 air traffic controllers are now employed in the United States, including about 6,000 who have been hired since 2005, said Hank Krakowski, chief operating officer for the F.A.A.’s air traffic organization. The agency’s workforce plan calls for 1,900 to be hired this year; 500 are now in training at the F.A.A. Academy.

The position requires a fairly extensive selection process, but those who make it through receive free training and a starting salary of $37,300. The salary reaches about $95,000 after 5 years of employment, and continues to rise from there.

In Forbes, over the weekend, we find that the Nursing industry is on a hiring spree as well. Forbes reports that an average of 30,000 new nurses enter the growing field each year as an "aging population will require more and more health care, and retiring baby boomers will leave thousands of vacancies in the field over the next 10 years."

Salaries range from $45,000/$50,000 up to $80,000 for new nurses, depending on the demands of the location.  There are also a number of flexible programs for schooling and training, some that allow students to work full time while enrolled.

The Wall Street Journal discusses what matters more, job security in a thriving industry or career satisfaction? Air Traffic Control, Nursing or even accounting may have a need for warm bodies, but should you sacrifice your long-term happiness for the security that comes with these careers? My answer would be, of course not.

But, this Journal article points out an important aspect to take into account. If you are still in college and just starting down a particular road, don't be so sure that you hate what you are pursuing. Take the time to learn about the topic. But, as you learn more and gain experience, if you find the field is not right for you, then it may be time to re-examine your situation and pursue the path of career satisfaction.

Find more helpful career advice with this batch of The Links ...

The Thin Pink Line Offers: Valuable resources for the job hunt. "The Job Search Intelligence site is absolutely the best site I’ve seen ─ the quality of the datasets, the specificity of the information required and the excellence of the report it generates ─ lead me to recommend it without hesitation." Tough to beat a rec like that.

Modite Thinks: It's OK to burn your bridges. "You shouldn’t just walk out. You should give notice and finish your projects and be polite (if for no other reason than your own sense of pride and accomplishment). But there’s no point in continuing a negative relationship once you’re out the door. The advice to not burn bridges is outdated."

The Creative Career Has: Some advice for you graduating seniors still looking for jobs. Graduation is just over a month away, but don't panic, there is still hope. You will need to be flexible though, maybe take an internship, or move back in with the parents.

Seth Godin Instructs: On the underrated art of the profile pic. Seth says the profile pic is one of the most important aspects of your social network profile and has 10 helpful hints on how to mazimize its effectiveness (you know, like make sure it's actually YOU in the picture).

"Air Traffic Control Tower" photo courtesy of kudumomo via Flickr Creative Commons.