Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about analyzing why you didn’t get hired, identity vs. image, big job change mistakes, ethics and your job search, and good habits for life (and investing).

From Alison Greet writing at US News & World Report: Why You Didn’t Get Hired
“The job looked perfect for you. The description matched your experience and skills so perfectly, you could almost visualize yourself at your new desk. But now you’re staring at a rejection E-mail and can’t figure out what happened. No matter how qualified you think you are for a job, there are all kinds of reasons that you might not have been chosen.”

Wally’s Comment: You can’t get better if you’re not realistic about your situation. That includes understanding the reasons why you weren’t hired when you were sure deal was slam dunk. Alison walks you through some common reasons and misperceptions.

From MyFutureMyself: When your identity doesn’t equal your image
“To be a great personal brand you first operate from strengths, the real you, your true identity.  You develop those strengths.  You select a career and an organization that values them.   This positions you to make your greatest contributions and have the greatest satisfaction. But being positioned to succeed is not the same as succeeding.”

Wally’s Comment: This is another “realism” post. This time you want to make sure that the “you” you think you’re projecting is the “you” that others perceive.

From the Rat, the Race, and the Cage: Top-3 Job Change Mistakes – How to Avoid Them
“People who are unhappy or dissatisfied with a new job likely made one of three easily-avoidable mistakes en route to their new job. Additionally, people who have been forced by the economy to make job changes can also fall into the same traps.”

Wally’s Comment: Thomas Ellsworth analyzes common mistakes that lead to that awful sinking feeling when you realize you’re in the wrong job. The bad news is that lots of people make these mistakes. The good news is that if you read this post, you don’t have to be one of them.

From Brad Smart writing at Great Leadership: Americans Are Unethical in Getting Jobs
“Our society is in need of an ethical transplant. Why? Because it’s widely considered acceptable for job candidates to lie on their resumes and in hiring interviews. Employers, job seekers, and our economy suffer. Topgrading seeks to eliminate the BS.”

Wally’s Comment: Brad Smart is the CEO of Topgrading, and, to some extent, this is a commercial for his company. I wish he had just let his expertise show without the blaring sales pitch. But I included the post because between the sales pitches he makes important points about doing the right thing if you’re looking for a job.

From Leading Blog: Three Good Habits for Life and Investing From Jim Rogers
“Investor Jim Rogers has collected his advice for success in life in A Gift to My Children: A Fathers’ Lesson for Life and Investing. Using examples from his life, this inspiring book makes a good quick read for anyone. Here is a good example from a chapter that offers three good habits for life and investing.”

Wally’s Comment: You may not want to invest right now. You may not want to read Jim Rogers’ book. But you should read this post because there’s real wisdom here.

Sunday’s New York Times carried an installment of the “Personal Best” column by Gina Kolata. The title was: “Want to go faster? You need a trainer?”

Ms Kolata describes how athletes do better when they’re guided by a good coach. The same is true for you and your career. Earlier this year, Lisa Rosendahl, a prominent blogger, described how coaching worked for her.

“Leadership coaching is one of the best professional decisions I made for myself. I started working with a leadership coach while a member of an executive team strategically preparing for company growth. I continued the coaching relationship after changing employers and focused on my leadership. For me, coaching has been invaluable.”

That matches research that was reported in the Ivey Business Journal in 2006. Here’s what the executives surveyed listed as the benefits of coaching.

Continuous one-on-one attention
Expanded thinking through dialogue with a curious outsider
Self-awareness, including blind spots
Personal accountability for development
Just-in-time learning.

Coaching is a good idea for most people. Here’s some advice for you based on thirty years of coaching and using coaches myself.

No law limits you to one coach. Many top athletes have different coaches for different aspects of their game.

Coaches specialize. Choose a coach who has the skills and experience that you need.

Chemistry counts. It doesn’t matter if your coach knows more than anyone else if the two of you don’t get along.

You have to ready to be coached. If you can’t handle criticism and suggestions for change, don’t waste your money hiring a coach.

You have to do the work. At the end of the day, a coach can help you learn and develop skills. A coach can push you gently to the edge, but you’re the one who has to fly.

Coaching can give a big boost to your career, but only if you choose the right coach and commit to doing your part.

Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about not finding your passion, not specifying salary, personal branding using social media, being overqualified, and a bad example.

From Jason Seiden: The trick is to “find what you’re passionate about” and do that, right? Wrong.
“The reality is, while some of us are made for a specific life, most of us are generalists. For generalists, our passion finds us, often in drips and drops, sourced across many different activities, until we finally see how to pull our world together in a way that makes us smile. ”

Wally’s Comment: We’ve all heard that advice to “follow your bliss” as a surefire road to success. Jason Seiden suggests that most of us might do better with another course of action.

From Business Week: The ‘Never Specify a Salary’ Myth
“Don’t believe the adage about not disclosing your salary requirements in a job interview. But it’s best to speak up in the second interview”

Wally’s Comment: Discussing salary is probably the part of the interview/hiring process that is the most uncomfortable and the one that generates the most conflicting advice. Here is some.

From Knowledge at Wharton: Advertising Yourself: Building a Personal Brand through Social Networks
“According to Jonah Berger, Wharton marketing professor, using social networking sites or a new media endeavor such as blogging can be especially useful for workers looking to reshape their career into a new kind of profile.”

Wally’s Comment: Personal branding is one of today’s hot topics. Social media are another hot topic. Together they just might make a hot, hot topic.

From the Washington Post: Landing a Job When Your Résumé’s Too Good for It
“You’ve lost your job. But you don’t immediately panic. After all, you have an undergraduate degree and perhaps an advanced degree. You either saved or more likely borrowed heavily to earn this get-out-of-unemployment-free card. So with your beefy résumé, you begin applying for jobs confident that you will land something soon paying the high five- or six-figure salary you’ve been accustomed to earning. But then you hear those dreadful words: ‘I’m sorry; you’re overqualified.’”

Wally’s Comment: There is surely no “thanks but no thanks” reason more galling than “you’re overqualified.”

From What Would Dad Say: Job Hunter
“I can work. I like to work. Maybe I didn’t work hard enough at my last job but I have learned. I skated and shouldn’t of. I know that now. My rent is due.”

Wally’s Comment: My father used to say that everyone was put here by God for a purpose. Some are to serve as horrible examples. If you’re not getting the jobs you think you should, read this wonderful post and decide if you see yourself anywhere in it. If you do, it’s time to change.

My wife has an amazing group of friends. There are five of them and they grew up together in a small town in the South.

They’ve literally known each other since before elementary school. Two of them had cribs next to each other in the maternity ward of the local hospital.

Every year they get together. When they do, as one of them said, “It’s about us.” Mostly they talk and bask in their friendship.

You may not have friends like that in your life. I don’t. My family moved too often for me to have connections that extend that far back. But if you have friends you have one of the most wonderful resources we know of.

Friends support you. When you’re sick or going through tough times, your friends can provide support of all kinds.

Friends celebrate with you. They multiply your joy when good things happen.

Friends help you stay healthy. People with a strong network of friends are more likely to stay physically and mentally healthy.

Friends reach out for you. When you’re looking for a new job or another kind of opportunity or help, friends connect you to the larger world that is the sum of their networks.

Friends are more important than ever today. For centuries, the tribe or the village or the family was the primary source of all the things that friends can do.

But today those groups aren’t as strong, especially in America. For many people the tribes and villages that supported earlier generations were left behind in the move across the ocean. For others, our highly mobile society has spread their family across the nation and the world.

The best friendships, like the best marriages, are the ones that have lasted long enough to be tested and strengthened by it. But don’t neglect the making of new friends.

Friendships are like trees. The best time to plant one was yesterday. The second best time is today.

Personal Development

Nina Capelouto presents Unlock The Chains That Bind You To Your Fears posted at Metaphysical Teachers, saying, “Overcoming the fear of the unknown is a challenging endeavor, but it can be done. If you suffer from a fear of uncertainty, understanding what fear is, and how it affects you, can start you on the road to conquering it.”

Kaushik Chokshi presents The Power of Intention – how to stop the cycle of madness posted at Beyond Karma, saying, “The power of intention–how to stop the cycle of madness”

Vincent presents How To Get Things Done Even When You Do Not Feel Like Doing Anything posted at Hit Your Goals, saying, “Learn from the famous 7 failures that turn out to be successful.”

Victoria Jennings presents Using Social Media To Find A Job | Job Search FAQ posted at Job Search, saying, “Facebook, Myspace, and other social media can be useful in finding a job.”

Aliall presents Owning Yourself Part 1: Time Management posted at Motivated Mama.

Adam Pedley presents Changing With Family posted at Adam Pedley.

Pat Doyle presents How To Arrange Your Bedroom For Good Feng Shui posted at Feng Shui Crazy, saying, “The bedroom is one of the most important rooms for Feng Shui. You spend one third of your life in bed, and a restful sleep is important for your general energy level.”

Tyrone Solee presents Mind Power, Will Power posted at Millionaire Acts, saying, “Learn how mind and will empowers us to reach our goals.”

Nate Desmond presents 7 Free Resources for the SAT posted at Debt-free Scholar.

Jasmin Dalton presents Sponsor a Child, Be Happier posted at jasmin dalton.

Daylle Deanna Schwartz presents Is Your Life an Adventure? posted at Lessons from a Recovering DoorMat, saying, “Life is special every day when you allow it to be. Make your life an adventure and you’ll enjoy it a lot more!”

Marcus Smith presents The Law of Diminishing Returns in Public Speaking posted at MarcusASmith.com.

Kevin Ngo presents How To Ensure Your Success In Achieving Your Goal posted at Motivational Blog.

One Language presents Learn English Articles » Blog Archive » English Grammar for ESL Students ?Common Grammatical Troublemakers posted at Learn English Articles, saying, “English is one of the most difficult languages in the world to learn because it has so many exceptions to its own rules.”

Positive Present presents change your attitude, change the world posted at positively present.

English Subject presents Free Online Tools for Practicing English Grammar posted at English Tutorial, saying, “For many people, learning to correctly use English grammar is very difficult. This is especially true if you’re learning English as a second language.”

Spanish Kit presents Basic Conversation Skills ?Spanish to English Translations posted at Learn Spanish Blog, saying, “When you’re learning a new language, practicing conversations with other students – or better yet native speakers – is a great way to improve your fluency.”

Shannon presents Thankful Thursday – Who do you appreciate? Have you told them? | The Daily Balance posted at The Daily Balance, saying, “The importance of appreciation and recognition. Do you appreciate someone? Do you tell them.”

Consti presents Reminder for Those Still Wasting Their Time posted at Consti Reports, saying, “Never Waste Your Time!”

Tom Maurer presents The Nature Of The Universe And Why It Matters To You posted at Simple and Spiritual.

Joe Tichio presents Apr 9, Procrastination Tip – Eat the Frog! posted at Inspirational Quotes Blog.

Jamie Soon presents Why making changes is a good thing posted at JamieSoon.com, saying, “Making changes is a good thing. It’s a way to ‘warm up the brain’ and generate more creative ideas. This article is targeted towards web designers but the concept can also be applied in everyday life.”

GreatManagement presents Ten Steps To Getting A Cool Career posted at Job and Career Advice, saying, “If you are looking for an unconventional career, you need some unconventional strategies to help you find it.Here”

Keith Jones presents The Secrets To Becoming Highly Successful In Life posted at Take Control Of Your Life, saying, “The aim of this article is to provide an outline of the attributes you require to become incredibly successful, so you can decide how you need to improve to increase your levels of success.”

Dorian Wales presents Challenging Happiness – Exploring the Irony of Human Nature posted at The Personal Financier, saying, “The irony of human nature – anxiety for those that have everything and depression for those that have nothing”

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents Do You Need an MBA? posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “Do you need an MBA to progress in your career? You may not, depending on your goals.”

Jim Valicenti presents Innovated Solutions For Creative Problem Solving posted at Self Improvement Connection, saying, “Many of us at one time or another believe that there is no other solution to a problem. We feel that the problem before us just can’t be solved. We have no options, leads or solutions to find the answer. Maybe you exhausted all your possible options. It seems as though you can’t see the forest for the trees. We begin to believe there is no solution and the pressure is overwhelming. But take pleasure in knowing there may be hope yet!”

Lionel Ebrahim presents Finding Direction In Life – Career posted at lionel-ebrahim.com.

Jacob Duchaine presents Being a Man posted at Blogging Guy.

Joseph presents Inteview with Vicki St. Clair posted at Penny Pinching.

Jai presents Singer Jai posted at singerjai.

Feed me Cheesy presents Feed Me Cheesy » A Limb-less Man Teaches you to Stand Up posted at Feed me Cheesy, saying, “A truly touching speech. This made me tear up a bit, I felt so inspired to do something great! If a limbless man could stand that tall, so can I!”

Paula Kawal presents Four Levels of Consciousness | Journey Inward Productions posted at Journey Inward Productions, saying, “While in NLP Practitioner Training this weekend I was fortunate once again to be re-united with Master Coach and trainer Helen Attridge Green as we studied Success Strategies. Helen is an extraordinarily successful coach, so it was a lot of fun taking apart her process to see what her goals are and how it is that she assesses who she wants to work with.”

Daryl Furuyama presents How to Hack Behaviors posted at WhiteHatBlackBox.com, saying, “An unconventional look at how to become more effective”

Brain Blogger presents Free Will and the Philosophy of Science posted at Brain Blogger, saying, “For many years the discussion over the existence of free will was limited to philosophers and theologians. Scientists started talking about free will once science started separating as a discipline from philosophy. However, it wasn’t until the rise of functional neuroimaging that some neuroscientists started studying if the brain and deterministic brain processes could explain away free will. In short, some scientists want to discover whether or not free will is merely an illusion, an idea humans create out of an innate desire to feel in control.”

Personal Finance

The Dough Roller presents Get Your Green On–13 Energy (and Money) Saving Gadgets posted at The Dough Roller, saying, “The technology that is available today is quite remarkable, and many green gadgets can not only lessen our impact on the environment, but also save money.”

Tallahassee Real Estate presents How To Make An Offer In Today’s Real Estate Market posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, saying, “I was talking with a Tallahassee REALTOR® yesterday and we were discussing an offer he had just made on a foreclosure offering in Tallahassee. We discussed strategy for making an offer to a bank (the home had been foreclosed upon and was for sale by the bank that held the financing on the home) and how the strategy had to be different than when making an offer to a typical homeowner.”

Summer Munyon presents How To Construct A Well-Written Real Estate Offer posted at Really Better Real Estate, saying, “This weekend I received a text from a friend whose Tallahassee home I recently sold. She plans to place an offer on a home in TX this weekend and wanted to know the binder amount that she should place on the home. Literally, the text states that the list price is $350,000. She plans to make an offer of $300,000, and how much binder should she offer? Unfortunately, it’s far more complicated than a numeric reply with the “send” button.”

Brian McKay presents Home Equity Loan posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “A home equity loan is a fixed-rate loan with a fixed payment schedule based on the available equity in your home. You receive your loan money all at once and then pay it back in predictable, fixed monthly payments”

Writers Coin presents The Credit Crisis: What Happened? posted at The Writer’s Coin, saying, “Easy video explanations of how we ended up in this mess…”

Writers Coin presents Free Week: Free Music posted at The Writer’s Coin, saying, “Yup, you can get free music without breaking the law. Here’s how.”

Karin Le Blanc presents Creative Ways To Get People Interested In Your Product ~7~ posted at Dutch Wahm! Work At Home Mom From Holland.

KCLau presents Learning to be Happy with Less posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “How u can be happy with less material things”

Jim DeSantis presents 3 Reasons That Can Cause Your Family Budget To Fail posted at Free Family Budgeting eBook from On Line Tribune, saying, “Money is the only tool you have to secure your future and the future of your family and to live a good life today. Unless you get spending under control and start treating your household like the goldmine it really is, you are destined to struggle financially for the rest of your life.”

Beno Varghese presents An Average Person?s Tax Dollars posted at Beno Varghese dot-com.

Khan presents Making a Living Refurbishing, Recycling or Reselling Old Things posted at Higher Education and Career Blog, saying, “When Jim, a former engineer, decided to start his own business he wanted it to center around his passion for automobiles.”

Radim presents How To Achieve Financial Independence posted at LivingNewAge.com, saying, “The article gives some tips on how you can achieve financial independence.”

Jim presents Understanding FICO Credit Scores posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Brian McKay presents First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “With the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, first time home buyers can qualify for up to an $8,000 tax credit.”

The Investor presents Compound interest turbo-charges your salary, too posted at Monevator.com, saying, “Compound interest is normally applied to savings, but it’s a useful way to think about the potential of your annual salary raise to make you wealthier, too.”

Mr Credit Card presents Company Credit Card Questions | Ask Mr Credit Card’s Blog posted at Ask Mr Credit Card.

The Smarter Wallet presents A Stock Trading System For Shorting Stocks: How To Short Estee Lauder posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!”

Ryan Suenaga presents What’s the Dollar Amount on Time? posted at Uncommon Cents.

Stephen Martile presents How to Triple Your Income – 6 Pillars posted at FreedomEducation.ca by Stephen Martile, saying, “Hi Wally, Can you triple your income in 2009? Is this even possible with the American recession? It’s not totally out of the question. If you’re in a job then this is probably an unrealistic expectation, but ultimately it depends on your position in the industry. If you collect a performance based salary from a sales or marketing position then it’s possible to triple your income. But what if you’re not in sales and marketing. Can you still make the big money? You sure can, and here’s how. Become a consultant.”

John Russell presents 14 Auto Insurance Savings Secrets – Part-1 of 14 posted at The Low Cost Auto Insurance Guru, saying, “If you knew how this industry actually works, it would save you thousands of dollars each year on auto insurance. Want to know the secrets behind the premiums you pay? Exactly what is the “

Leave Debt Behind presents Are You Responsible for Your Deceased Parents Debt? posted at Leave Debt Behind.

Debt Free Destiny presents Why Repairing Your Credit Makes Sense and Saves You Money posted at Debt Free Destiny.

Debt Freedom Fighter presents Simple and Easy Methods to Reduce Your Debt Significantly posted at Discover Debt Freedom!.

Vicky presents How to Save Money on Your Wedding Rings posted at Affordable Wedding Planning, saying, “For most people, the words “Las Vegas Wedding” conjure up images of eloping couples speeding through the desert to get married without anyone knowing, or weddings that aren’t even remembered until a sobering realization the next morning.”

Rob presents Google PowerMeter posted at Energy Saving Gadgets, saying, “The Google PowerMeter underscores, why a company like Google is head and shoulders above a company like Yahoo! It’s called innovation. Google does it; Yahoo! doesn’t.”

Personal Health

Cody Butler presents Personal Development Videos posted at Dream Life Coaching Blog. Ask your questions., saying, “Personal development video on several topics, something a little different.”

Joshua Seth presents Reasons To Stop Smoking posted at Joshua Seth Blog, saying, “Want to motivate someone to stop smoking? Then take them to see the “Bodies Exhibition” that’s touring the country. It offers one of the most compelling reasons to stop smoking I’ve ever seen. I just went to it this past weekend in Puerto Rico and was really struck by the room that features the effects of smoking on the lungs.”

Nui Loa presents Boost Your Libido: 21 Foods to Increase Your Sex Drive Naturally posted at Love Hacks.

FIRE Getters presents FREE Health Care for the Unemployed – Take Care Clinic posted at FIRE Finance.

VikramKir presents What to eat to lose fat? Food for weight loss! posted at Thoughtfully Vikram….

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of carnival of personal development using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of personal development, blog carnival.

Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about standing out at job fairs, interviews from beginning to end, things recruiters won’t tell you, and ways to build your self-confidence.

From Forbes: How To Stand Out At A Job Fair
“It will be jammed with job-seekers–so follow these steps to set yourself apart as someone to hire.”

Wally’s Comment: I once got a job because the person in it decided to “stand out” when the CEO came to town by wearing a lime green leisure suit. Even back then it was a bad idea. You can pay attention to the tips here or you can leave the opportunities to others. 

From Fortify Your Oasis: When does a job interview begin?
“There has been much talk in the blogosphere about the rocket scientist who tweeted ‘Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.’ to the whole world and was spotted by a Cisco Channel Manager. Or the PR guy from NY who, with brain surgeon levels of forethought, tweeted about what an unpleasant place [I'm paraphrasing] he thought Memphis was just prior to giving a talk … in Memphis. You’ve got to be very careful in the online world and I have written about this issue before. But what about the offline world? True story.”

Wally’s Comment: OK, you’ve been to the fair and landed an interview. When does it start? Rowan Manahan has a story and some advice that will help you figure that out.

From the Wall Street Journal: The Interview That’ll Bag a Job
“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.”

Wally’s Comment: We’re back to standing out for the right reasons. In today’s job market, simply landing the interview is an achievement. Don’t blow it.

From CareerRealism: 10 Things Recruiters Won’t Tell You (But I Will)
“Recruiters have one job: Find the right person for the position. Their performance is evaluated on how efficiently and effectively they match top talent to job requirements. Ironically, in the current economy, recruiters are finding their jobs harder than ever. I’m serious. There’s too much talent for them to weed through. What used to be ‘finding a needle in a haystack’ has now become ‘finding a needle in ten haystacks.’

Wally’s Comment: It always helps to know something about the person on the other side of the desk. Here’s a post that will help.

From the Career Encourager: 10 Ways to Instantly Build Self Confidence
“Self confidence is the difference between feeling unstoppable and feeling scared out of your wits. Although many of the factors affecting self confidence are beyond your control, there are a number of things you can consciously do to build self confidence.”

Wally’s Comment: This is the perfect post to end with. In today’s world, self-confidence is important. And there are simple ways you can give yours a boost. Read this post and find out what they are.

The Associated Press just ran a story about mentoring that may show up in your local newspaper this week. The AP headline is “Mentoring changes course of three careers.” The headline in your paper might be different. Here’s the lead.

“One chief executive tutors another. A mother on flex time shows her younger counterpart how to mesh career and family. Working together on a short project leads an older man to push his younger self to follow in his footsteps. Young people flooding into the work world often need someone to advocate for them: guidance on how to navigate office politics; how to balance work and a personal life, and direction figuring out a career path.”

There are stories out there about mentors and what they can do for you. The important difference in this story is the description three different ways that mentor and protégé connected.

One pair was matched up by a formal mentoring program at their professional firm. Formal mentoring programs are a bit of a crap shoot. Most don’t weed out potential mentors who just don’t want the job. Very few allow you try again if a mentoring relationship isn’t all you want it to be. Just remember that formal programs do work for lots of people.

A second mentoring relationship grew out of a chance meeting while waiting for the elevator. That sounds like just good luck, but I’m betting that the protégé part of the team knew he wanted a mentor and had an idea of what he was looking for. As Pasteur put it: “Chance favors the prepared mind.”

Look down the path. The third story in this article is about an entrepreneur who was looking for someone who had already done what he wanted to do. The result was a mentor who also became a business advisor and investor.

If you have an idea of what you want to learn, you can find a mentor. The odds go way down if you don’t

And there are lots of ways to find a mentor. There’ll be a new and innovative way here at Momentor soon. Watch this space for details.

Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about career resources, job search success stories, using your age as an asset, bulletproofing your references, and remembering what the interviewing process is all about.

From GL Hoffman at US News and World Report: 4 Spots for Frustrated Job Seeker
“After my weekend rant about job boards and the entire job search process–including HR departments that are too overworked, understaffed or unwilling to even acknowledge job seekers today–it’s a good time to direct job seekers to four new and different career resources.”

Wally’s Comment: GL Hoffman is great at ferreting out the new and helpful and then writing about it. Take heart. Read this post.

From Fortune: Hired!
“5 successful job seekers share their secrets.”

Wally’s Comment: “Secrets” is Fortune’s “we need a subhead that will sell” choice of words. There are no secrets here. But there are five positive stories about finding a job which should be inspiring and that should spark an idea or maybe two.

From the Washington Post: Turning One’s Age Into a Job-Market Asset
“Richard Anton believes his age and experience are an advantage in looking for a job as a facilities manager. Yet he carefully cultivates an upbeat, energetic attitude — and he did update his hair style recently to prepare for interviews. ”

Wally’s Comment: Pick and age, any age, and it can be an asset in your job hunt. Vickie Elmer lays out the options.

From the Wall Street Journal: Bulletproofing Your References in the Hunt for a New Job
“As unemployment soars and hiring shrivels, you must carefully cultivate your endorsers. Businesses looking to hire are pickier than ever.”

Wally’s Comment: Absolutely nothing is dumber than using a boss who fired you and thinks you’re an incompetent malcontent as a reference. Here’s a primer from Joann Lublin on avoiding such dumbness and thereby increasing your odds of landing that job you interviewed for.

From 8 hours and a lunch: there’s more to you than there is to you (or how to approach an interview)
“you may have done your research. you may feel fairly confident that you want to work for a specific organization. but in the end, you’re there to check them out as much as they’re there to check you out. the interview process isn’t just the time to bring out the tap shoes and do the “hire-me” dance. it’s also the time to check out the company and see whether or not it’s really a good fit for you.”

Wally’s Comment: This is Deb Owen at her pungent and helpful best. You have to remember that you’re not just at the interview or in the process to be done to. You must do some doing yourself.

An article in the Financial Post, titled, “Woman CEO’s View: No you can’t have it all,” got me thinking about how women are often the ones who take time out of their career to raise a family. That got me thinking about Brenda Barnes.

Brenda Barnes is the poster child for women who want to take time off. Back in 1997, she left a great job and the fast track at PepsiCo to spend more time with her family. Six years later she returned to a prominent role in the business world. She is now president, chairman, and CEO of Sara Lee.

But remember that Barnes’ accomplishment is the exception. That’s why it made news when she decided to take time off and more news when she took the Sara Lee job.

There are reasons besides “family” to take time off. And men also think about getting off the career treadmill for a while. If you’re thinking about taking extended time off for any reason, here are some things to think about.

Taking a long break is always a gamble. It’s more of a gamble if you’re on the Manager Career Path and sometimes it’s impossible if you’re an Entrepreneur.

You can improve your odds with some careful planning. Start by being honest with yourself. How will you feel if you’re not working? Will it feel like a loss of identity or will it be freeing?

Figure out how you’ll pay the bills while you’re not working. Figure that finding a job when you go back will take a while too.

Today companies are looking for ways to use talent that’s not on payroll to meet sudden surges in demand or for special projects. The Wall Street Journal reported on “mommy SWAT teams” pulled together for just such reasons. See if you have similar options.

Don’t lose touch. Brenda Barnes didn’t simply turn into “Susie Homemaker.” She stayed active through board memberships and other contacts.

The bottom line is this. You can take time off for a sabbatical. It won’t be easy and it won’t be safe. But it just might be the most rewarding thing you’ve ever done.

Every week I check dozens of “career” blogs and other online publications, looking for things that will help you find a job, get promoted, develop your skills, and keep everything in perspective and balance. Here’s the pick of the lot for this week. I’m pointing you to items about the hidden job market, dress and grooming, what to do if you’ve been laid off, tips for grads, and the only reference that matters.

From the Inside Job at US News & World Report: The Hidden Job Market
“The fact is that even in a recession, layoffs require restructuring (or the reverse) and new positions are created. Companies still fire people who need to be replaced. There is churn in the market. But there’s so much supply in the labor pool that companies often do not need to advertise their openings. Here are some tips for tackling those openings.”

Wally’s Comment: We’ve all heard about that “hidden job market.” Here’s a post that describes how it works.

From Fortify Your Oasis: Dress and Grooming
“When it comes to dress sense, I rarely see people get it wrong per se; what I see is people getting it the same. If I’m seeing a large group over a couple of days – let’s say men and women in their 20s – after a very short while, they tend to morph into one another. Almost all of the women will be wearing a black suit (whether that colour suits them or not) with either a t-shirt top or a large collared white shirt underneath. The men will mostly have navy suits with white shirts and red ties. This is so tricky; you want to fit in, to conform, but you also want to stand out.

Wally’s Comment: Rowan Manahan shares some novel but important insights on dressing for the interview.

From the Simplest Thing that Works: You’ve Been Laid Off – Now What?
“We all have deeply wired-in fear responses that are designed to kick in when we feel threatened – psychologists label them fight, flight and freeze.  And losing your job can catalyze any or all of them: fight – a panicky and over-zealous focus on finding a job – any job – as soon as possible; flight – a total and obsessive focus on anything BUT finding a job; and freeze – staying in your apartment with a pint of ice cream, in your jammys with the TV turned way up.”

Wally’s Comment: Erika Andersen describes how to fight back against your own nature.

From the Wall Street Journal: Graduating With a Major in Go-Getting
“With the right strategy, students may be able to turn the odds of landing a job in their favor.

Wally’s Comment: A fine article about the advantages new grads have and how you can have more of them.

From Great Leadership by Dan: The Only Reference that Really Matters
“Companies using Topgrading or similar hiring methods, ask candidates to provide the names of former managers, and actually have the candidate contact those managers to set up phone calls with the hiring manager. The method is called “TORC” threat of reference check. ”

Wally’s Comment: Dan McCarthy knows a thing or two about checking references. What he knows can help you make sure you’ve got the right kind.

Bonus: RiseSmart publishes a list of the Top 100 Career Blogs. You’ll probably find at least one you’ll want to read regularly.