MORE WAYS TO GET HIRED IN THIS ECONOMY:

In What You Might Call, Errr... Brain Gas, last month, in linking the continuation of Pt. 2 of last month's column to our website, I reconnected to the conclusion of Pt. 1. But wait, in yet another demonstration of web wizardry, while attempting to an html file, I apparently pasted a blank file and hit 'enter. What interested readers got was one of those "This link was prepared by an idiot, please advise." Well, that's not actually what it stated, but it should have.

Fortunately, some testy emails from readers quickly pointed out this "oversight," but rather than rewrite, I thought it would be better to post an extended Pt. 2 this month. Let's see, where did we leave off?

>>Be More Flexible: In today's economy and job market, there's a growing attribute that could lend itself well to you in getting hired over someone else: Flexibility. Not just in salary, but other associated costs as well. For instance, moving expense. Your insistence on them footing the bill for moving 4 cars, a horse and boat may well put the kiboshes on an otherwise good deal. This may not have been a problem in the 90's, but it's a growing issue today. Other modern-day nuances includes interim living expenses, paid air travel to-and-from a former residence, rental cars, etc. With less barter and tighter inventory, showing some flexibility when needed might give you the edge over your closest rival.

>>Feel Good About Yourself - It's tough to be optimistic when you've been coming up empty on opportunities over a long stretch. This same lack of confidence or depression are also by-products of having a job you hate or a career that seems stuck in quick sand. Before you can get others to feel good about you, you have to feel good about yourself. Here are some tips that can help:

--Get in shape: Lose weight, eat better, exercise; make the person you see in the mirror each day become more pleasant to look at. Changing your looks for the better almost always changes your outlook accordingly.

--Read More: Especially motivational or inspirational books. Get your mind off what's wrong with everything, but how to go about making things right. I like biographies from successful people as well. Tony Dungy & Lee Iacocca are a couple of my favorites.

--Network With The Best: There's a propensity of people in bad situations to hang out or network with those in similar situations. You could call it group therapy, I call it licking each other's wounds. Instead, work the phone or email with people who are on the move. Don't dwell on your lack of success, but focus on where you want to go. Also, always make it a call or email someone would want to read, not avoid.

--Dress Well, Stay Fresh (code for take a shower often)Even You Don't Have Anywhere To Go: Looking good and freshly showered is one of life"s easiest ways to make you feel better about yourself. It makes you more pleasant to be around as well.

>>Let Your Content Define You, Not Format: If you've been a rock morning host for most of your career, the conventional wisdom is that most of your offers will come from those type stations. But these aren't conventional times. From progressive country to talkers, operators are more open than ever to looking beyond someone's format to find the right act. Don't let it. So long as you can adapt your content to other formats, you'll likely open more doors to opportunities than ever.

Of course, having an aircheck that showcases such versatility is essential. If not, you may have to do live auditions. If the later isn't possible, I'd suggest going back through several weeks of airchecks and pulling out various celebrity interviews, comments on certain evergreen topics, or simply interaction between show members. Choose those which have the broadest appeal and create an aircheck from them. In the process, eliminate those clips or imaging which narrow-cast your appeal. Personally, I like laughter, or phone calls with listeners. Things to avoid would be bits, parodies or subject-matter which marry a certain attitude or demo specific to your current format.

I've proved doubters wrong. If you think your CHR or Rock aircheck would never appeal to other formats, take another look. What you find may surprise you.

>>Reach Out To The Newly Employed: The person who just landed that job you wanted, or even one you didn't know about, may have some leads of which you weren't aware. Send them an email. Congratulate them! Let them know you've been on the hunt as well and would appreciate if they could share any other jobs they were pursuing, being courted for or passed on. More than anyone, they'll understand what you're going through and will likely be more than happy to help.

>>Give Them A Reason To Call You Back: In the job hunt, you'll likely leave a bazillion phone messages. Unfortunately, most will include nothing more than your name and that you're calling about their morning opening, or words to that effect. There's a couple of ways deal with this:

1) If you've never spoken with them before, I would strongly suggest you finding an associate, consultant or someone else in the business whose name you can use in reference to this job, "__________ strongly recommend I call you.". This almost immediately separates you from the other bazillion phone calls received from the rest of interested job candidates.

2) If you've already communicated with this persons, leave a message connected to your last call as the reason for your call, i.e., "Wanted to follow-up on our last call. Have something new to tell you." Oh yeah, be sure and have something new to tell them.

3) If you have previously communicated with a prospective employer, another good message is "Would very much like your opinion on something." Or, for that matter, "Question that came up about "Frisbe Broadcasting." In you have a moment, would greatly appreciate your feedback. And again, have a question!

As you can see, these all give stronger reasons to return a call than just a name & number. And just for fun, the next time you want a friend or associate to call you back, try this: "Something interesting to share with you. You're not going to believe this." See how quick they'll call back.

>>Stay On The Offensive - Watching presidential hopeful Barack Obama navigate through his ex-Pastor's controversy was a great example of relying on positives rather than negatives. You'll notice when faced with questions on this subject, he responded with Reverend Wright's service in the military, the various good deeds of the church, etc. He took the offensive and in spite of relentless media attacks, his poll numbers remained unscathed.

As radio people, explaining why we changed jobs so often, were fired, or even why we've been on the beach so long are all touchy points and often make for awkward encounters. But rather than boxing yourself into a corner, take the positive approach: Why were you fired? 'It wasn't a good fit." "We both agreed to go in different directions." "Im very proud of my work there." "Sorry things didn"t work out, but I"m looking forward to my next challenge."

Whenever questioned about something of a negative nature, respond with a brief explanation that's reasonable, focuses on the positive and doesn't go on the defensive. Throw in what you've learned from the experience, friends-made along the way and what you'll take to your next opportunity. Chances are, they'll move with you to the next topic as well.