By Robert Shindell

Seven Strategies for improving your chances.

Job-seeking at any time is a pretty stressful experience. However, in the past, it was usually rewarded with success for the job-seeker with a new and better job with a better salary with a better company. But today, with our economy mired in a downturn with what seems like little hope for short-term recovery, the stress level for job-seekers is at an all-time high.

Every day we are bombarded with news stories about rising unemployment or increasing number of foreclosures or the collapse of yet another company that just a few years ago seemed to be at the top of their market. It is almost impossible not to be anxious, depressed and downright scared when we hear these stories. Let’s face it…there is simply not a lot of “good news” coming from the business world today.

One of my favorite books, “Good to Great” by Jim Collins teaches us that we must “face the brutal facts of our own reality”. Unlike many in Washington DC, we know that our country is in a recession. Even if some economic data may not yet confirm what we have known for months, history shows that anytime in the last century when the economy has had at least six consecutive months of job losses (as we have had, starting back in January 2008), the economy has ultimately been declared in recession.

With all of the “doom and gloom” media about our countries economic woes and the debate raging in Washington about how we are going to recover, combined with the stress that we already have as job-seekers, how are we supposed to remain up-beat and positive about our job searches? This is the new dilemma of our times. I assure you that it can be done if you follow the seven strategies in this article. If you do, you will be on your way to overcoming the stress and anxiety and landing that next great career opportunity – or at least a job that will help you pay your bills.