I’ll be honest.  I always thought that going to a temp agency was a waste of time.  This perception comes from the fact that when I was in college in the late 90s, I visited a few firms, filled out reams of paperwork, took a few computer tests, did several interviews, and never got a single job out of the ...

As many of you know, I am writing a new book on drastic career change to be published by Random House/Ballantine Books in 2009. I've been scouting out potential interviewees  for a few months now, and I've noticed a very interesting phenomenon.There is an astounding number of women out there who have taken their careers into their own hands ...

Here’s the second part of last week’s interview with happiness expert Gretchen Rubin, who has a terrific blog called The Happiness Project and is currently working on a memoir about her own quest for happiness. Alex:  Is happiness overrated?  If not, why is it so important? Gretchen:   I don’t think happiness is ...

Two new career-expert friends have terrific books out that are great companions to my latest effort, How’d You Score That Gig?  Starting out, my fellow Ballantine author Pamela Skillings has written Escape from Corporate America, an extremely detailed and thorough roadmap to assessing if leaving traditional business is the right move for you, ...

What’s the one time it’s okay to gossip?  When you’re looking for a job.   Discussion of your job search should not be reserved for close friends/family or headhunters or official networking events.  If you’re looking for work or thinking about looking for work, you shouldn’t hesitate to tell everyone you know the particulars, and ...

It’s finally here.  My new book, How’d You Score That Gig?: A Guide to the Coolest Careers and How to Get Them, has just been released!  The book starts with a quiz that tells you your job personality – be it an adventurer, creator, data-head, entrepreneur, investigator, networker, or nurturer – and then suggests several unusual and ...

Ben Casnocha brought back to life a very cool commencement speech given by David Mahoney at Rutgers University in 1996. Mahoney, then chairman of the Dana Foundation, a brain research organization, provided some compelling tips about why young people should adopt a ''Centenarian Strategy'' for life. The central premise is that if you're a young ...

This post continues the saga of my friend Phil, who just successfully transitioned from a career as an evening news producer to a sweet gig as the Director of Communications for the Ohio House Democratic Caucus.   As you guys know, talking to people about how to change careers, and how to find a job they’re truly passionate about, is pretty ...

Since everyone’s been bemoaning the sorry state of the economy lately, I thought Lifehack’s recent post on how to “back-up” your life was particularly insightful.  Author AJ West says that you should never assume that what you plan today will work for you tomorrow.  Some of her suggestions include:   Back-up your career. Layoffs ...

My good friend from college, Phil Saken, recently switched careers.  How he pulled this off actually makes a pretty remarkable story, which I’ll be sharing in more detail in the next week or so.  But anyway, he had decided that his job as an evening news producer for a top network in Columbus, OH, wasn’t floating his boat anymore. ...