Several things to report for those of you interested in keeping up.
I’m moving to Dallas at the beginning of January. I procrastinated enough, but actually found a great job pretty quickly once I started looking. Sent off several applications and cover letters to various places from craigslist, et al. Got a few bites then met with a company for an interview a couple weeks ago up in Addison, which is one of Dallas’ many satellite burbs. As is the case with every other job I’ve ever gotten, the rapport with the interviewing group was strong and instant. A decision was made on the spot to offer me the job pending approval of the CEO.
I can tell you a few things that I think made a big difference. For one, I was completely calm and confident. I didn’t need the job. I had a commitment from my current employer to allow telecommuting from Dallas if that’s what I wanted to do. I also have my freelance work including clients on retainer, and I have zero debt unless you count my recent Christmas shopping. So, I was not even thinking about not getting the job. It was obvious I was qualified and experienced, and I interviewed very well. For another thing, I was a perfect fit for the position, and this makes a big difference. It’s better to be a perfect fit than to try to alter your self-description to fit a particular job you may not be ideally suited for. Another thing that helped is that I’ve gotten a lot more comfortable speaking to people since going to Toastmasters. It’s forced me to stay out of my comfort zone. It also helps that it’s a good economy. If you can’t find a job in this economy, you may need to tweak your strategy. For example here’s a job that’s open now… mine!
If you know a web designer / web developer my current employer now has an opening. Basically, technical skills will take precedence over design skills as we have an on-site person who actually comes up with all of our designs for both print and the web. Send your resume to my email address if you’re interested. I’ll be involved in making the selection, so the main things I look for are responsibility, competence, and evidence of skill. Send a resume and a few examples of some of the projects you have been involved in to my email address and I will set you up for an interview if you meet the requirements. It’s a great place to work with tons of freedom and responsibility. I’ll probably post the job to craigslist shortly, so I will send a link if that happens. Update: here you go.