Monster. CareerBuilder. Yahoo Jobs. Hot Jobs. Indeed. America's Job Bank. These are just a few of the thousands and thousands of Job Search websites. Every day millions of jobseekers logon, job search, and apply to jobs listed on the sites. Yet any Career Counselor or Career Specialist worth his or her salt recommends that Internet Job Search should be only one method of job hunting. Why is that?

Richard Bolles, author of "What Color is Your Parachute", the best-selling job hunt book in the world for 3 decades (with over 8 million copies in print, translated into 12 languages), cites studies and surveys indicating that only 4-10% of those who use only Internet job search will find jobs that way. In other words, 90-96% of all online job hunters finally find their jobs in ways other than the internet. What this means is that jobseekers need to vary their job search. The optimal number of methods to use, according to Bolles, is four; however, using five or more job search methods is better than using just one.

Networking

The old adage, "It's not what you know, it's who you know", is more relevant than ever. Recent articles in the NY Times indicate that upwards of 60-70% of jobs in many fields are obtained by people-to-people networking, and Career Specialists consider Networking to be the best way to jobhunt. The keys to successful networking are: 1. Anybody and everybody should be considered a potential contact 2. Be a Giver, not just a Taker . offer other people information, assistance, resources, while you are asking them for the same things. 3. Have a 45-60 second "sales pitch" prepared about yourself. 4. Ask a lot of questions, listen, learn! 5. Follow-up and show appreciation. This topic merits a separate article . for now, read the terrific articles on Networking on www.monster.com

One Stop Career Centers

Many jobseekers are not even aware of these wonderful Dept. of Labor resource centers. One Stops have counselors, computers, job listings, workshops, etc. For more info and locations go to http://www.labor.state.ny.us/agencyinfo/local_offices.shtm

I work in two of them: White Plains and Mt. Vernon.

Employment Agencies

In 2006, 2.96 million people worked for temporary, temp-to-perm and contract agency jobs each day in the U.S. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that this sector of the economy will grow faster and add more jobs than any other sector. The source of this information is the American Staffing Association . logon to www.americanstaffing.net and learn all about the wonderful world of staffing agencies. Remember, you don't pay the fee, the company who hires you does; it's possible to have benefits; and there are more and more temp-to-perm jobs.

College Job/Career Centers and Alumni Associations

It doesn't matter where or when you went to college; sometimes it doesn't even matter if you finished your degree. Most colleges & universities offer job search assistance to former students and alumni. Call them, visit or check their website.

Professional Associations & Organizations

Part of Networking, actually, joining or attending Association events and programs is one of the best ways to connect with people in your field. For more info logon to www.asaenet.org, or consult the mammoth "Encyclopedia of Associations" at your library (not available online).

Volunteering

Thousands and thousands of people in many fields have transitioned back into a paid job opportunity through volunteering. Ideally, you will find an opportunity which allows you to keep your skills fresh and make new contacts, and possibly lead to other opportunities. It gets you out of the house, meeting new people, and adds great credentials to your resume. For more info, read the great articles about Volunteering on www.monster.com and search potential matches, as well as paid job listings in the non-profit sector, on www.idealist.org

Job Clubs/Job Groups

Job Clubs are growing by leaps and bounds. They offer a chance to network, meet new people, share ideas and resources, support each other, and much more. In Westchester, the main Job Club is COMSET in Larchmont; it's free, meets Monday evenings, and is wonderful. For more info, logon to www.members.tripod.com/comset_10553 For more job clubs/groups in Westchester, New York and other nearby locales, logon to http://www.wnjpin.net/jobseeker/jbhunt.htm

A Final Word

Keep looking for jobs on the internet; people do get hired! However, the number is relatively small; Bolles discusses this at length in his book. It's much more fruitful, generally, to search for jobs directly on company websites. Most companies and non-profits list job openings directly on their websites, and enable you to apply online or tell you how.

A varied job search is usually a much more successful and productive job search. This is not even a complete list, but is a good start for you to vary your job search!