I recently met up with a group of new graduates, a group of young people who are probably facing one of the toughest job markets the world has seen in a very long time. The sentiment among the group was negative straight off the bat and remained that way in spite of my repeated suggestions on how they could improve their current situation. There is no doubt that things are tough, and that almost everyone has to adapt to the changes and alter strategies. However, it is much easier to blame everyone and everything around us rather than actually taking control of your life and making worthwhile and noteworthy changes.

If you are currently looking for a job and haven’t had success then:

1. Develop your interests and skills. For example do you excel at sports, painting, speaking publicly or cooking. Take courses, start a blog or start coaching others who share the same passion.

2. Use social media to connect to more people and open more doors for yourself. Take a look at this article and see how these two candidates were able to leverage Linkedin and Twitter to get noticed.

3. Volunteer at an organization which caters to a social cause you are passionate about. Become an active member and do your best to make a difference .

All this is while  still continuing to apply to organizations that you would like to work for. In the end, the people who get hired are the ones who can display that they are able to get work done. If we continue to complain and keep blaming the economy for not getting a job, life is not going to get any easier. Life is about standing out and being remarkable.

Please read this article by Seth Godin on How to be remarkable.