Career

Great people are always hard to find. Some of the most successful employers will snatch-up a good person even when they don't necessarily have a position carved out for them. They realize intelligent people who will spend the time to do something well, figure something out, or go out of their way to work weird hours are not the average worker. It seems there's a lot of talk in the media these days about a U.S. recession, unemployment, and jobless rates. Even in a recession, things need to get done, and companies require great people to do them. There will always be a greater number of jobs than there are great workers, so there is not and never will be a recession for good workers.

A while ago I found a great article that summarized this idea on Yahoo! by Ben Stein. He illustrates a story about young workers who almost seem unwilling to help the clients and customers of the business they work at in a time where everyone complains of recessions and finding jobs. He's right, I've visited a restaurant or a store where I felt like I wasn't welcome, and sometimes have left just because the service was so poor. Employers don't want to hire people that don't want to do their job, and these bad workers will experience a recession.

I have friends who have had trouble finding work sometimes or people I know who have had to search a long time for the right job. Sometimes this is just a result of being picky about what job they get or caused by their trouble finding the right person or connection to the right job or company. In the end, though, they find jobs and the fact they are great workers means they'll probably excel and keep that job. Great workers will always be able to find a job.

For those of you young professionals trying to network, check-out LinkedIn. It's a great place to find associates from old jobs, and perhaps new associates in new jobs. Think of it like a myspace or facebook for the professional world.

I joined LinkedIn a couple years ago, but didn't start building my network until last year. It's a good way to find people from high school, college, and old jobs who are skilled and are great connections. Perhaps you work somewhere who needs people, or you're a skilled professional looking for a new position. LinkedIn has places to search for jobs being offered by people in your extended network and also gives people a way to give and receive personal recommendations. This is a great way to keep building your personal and professional network.

An article on Yahoo! Finance discusses the best cities for Young Professionals...

Head to the Big Apple, and your chances of getting the corner office might not be as far off as you think.

That's because New York City tops our list as the No. 1 city for young professionals.

That likely comes as a shock to, well, no one. Many of America's best companies, as determined by Forbes rankings of the best 400 big businesses and best 200 small businesses, including financial giant Goldman Sachs and media conglomerate News Corp. are in New York. Throw in New York's bars, clubs and world-class dining, and you get a city teaming with young professionals.

San Francisco clocked in at No. 2 and Atlanta at No. 3. Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Boston and Seattle filled spots four through seven, and Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Denver closed out the top 10.

Read more on Yahoo! Finance from Best Cities For Young Professionals

Six Tips for Success Right Out of College by Jim Citrin provides some points on how to start a good career once you finish school:

1. Maintain a positive attitude

2. Work hard

3. Deliver on your commitments

4. Perform completed staff work

5. Focus on the success of others

6. Be a technology mentor

Read the article for a more in depth discussion and review on these points as well as advice from Christie Hefner, CEO of Playboy Enterprises.

Yahoo! Finance has an article today entitled Be A Voice Of Authority that talks about what to do at work so you are heard and your opinion respected.

Remember, your boss is busy like everyone else usually and unless you really make an effort to let him or her know what you're doing, your successes, and your struggles, it's likely they will go unnoticed many times.