My hints for a successful job search

I was out on the Craigslist world political forum sharing my latest good fortune (back to work in the morning!) and started throwing around my ideas for a successful job search. It's not about so much about the job search, I realized, but about being successful in your career and between jobs. So here are my hints, in no particular order.

1) Get on LinkedIn. Join groups. That's where job offers are let out, not that it's done me any immediate good, but you won't find them in your inbox.

2) If you go to a business party or pink slip party, whatever, don't get sloshed. The loser says "I'll never see these people again." The winner says "Every one of these people is a possible network contact and future friend."

3) Don't piss people off. Life is easier that way.

4) Nobody likes a smartass.

5) Know your values. If you're scrupulously honest like me, a job as a salesman is NOT in the cards. Salesmen don't lie, they just don't tell you the answer unless you ask the right questions.

6) Have a "brand". Mine is "I solve your unsolvable problems." I haven't met one yet I couldn't fix.

7) Don't diss the boss. Word gets around about who the good and difficult employees are. Bosses talk. Trust me on this. You gossip, so do they.

8) Don't be afraid to toot your own horn. Nobody else will.

9) Fellow unemployed people are not only possible contacts, they're also competition if they're in your field. People with your exact skills are competition. My view: your best bet is a guy who has similar skills, but you're different enough that you're not directly competing. A person with complementary skills is your best bet.

10) Above all, do NOTHING to lose your self-respect. No jobs is worth not being able to face yourself in the morning. If you have to, start searching. If you've already started, intensify your search.

11) Be modest. Nobody likes a guy who steals credit from other people. Pay compliments all around. If you scored the winning idea, pay credit to the guy who inspired your idea. Your co-workers will respect you for it (if they don't, see rule 11 [sic]). It shows you can work with others, give back, and be inspired by others.

12) Inspire success by actions, not by words.

13) Raise the bar. If you set your expectations of others too low, people will lower themselves to them. On the other hand, don't set them so high that they're unattainable. People won't work toward a goal that they see is unreachable.

My only commentary is on #13. My son's violin teacher has 3rd graders playing high school-level music in the orchestra. He doesn't tell them it's too advanced for them. He shows them the tricky spots and how to get over them. He expects a lot, and he usually gets it.

Other than that, a lot of this is just "be nice to people" in one flavor or another. People weren't nice to me from 6th through 12th grade, and I've never forgotten it. It takes 2 hours to win a customer, but 5 seconds to lose one. I guess a lot of this is variations on a theme, to use the musical term.