Diary of a Job Search: One Man's Journey from Unemployment to a New Career [Paperback]

Tim Johnston (Author), Laura Lorber (Author), Perri Capell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 24, 2003

On January 8 at 3:35 P.M., I lost my job. After three weeks of sending hastily updated résumés into the electronic void, I realize I'm one of eight thousand candidates for almost any job.…Like many Americans struggling through the recession, Tim Johnston was recently laid off. For eight long months, Tim navigated a job market that had changed significantly since his last job search, chronicling his highs and frequent lows in a monthly column on The Wall Street Journal's executive career website, CareerJournal.com.As Tim grappled with such difficult issues as absorbing the shock of losing a job, defining new career goals, and writing an eye-catching résumé, more than 300,000 people logged on to share in his frustrations and achievements, posting their own job-hunting tales on a dedicated discussion board. In DIARY OF A JOB SEARCH, Tim unites with the editors at CareerJournal.com and America's seasoned job hunters to offer creative solutions to today's job market challenges.Whether you're currently unemployed, facing a company layoff, or trying to make a career change, DIARY OF A JOB SEARCH is a sympathetic, humorous, and practical guide to weathering the emotional storms of joblessness and turning economic downturn into new career opportunities.Unique insider's perspective from CareerJournal.com—The Executive Career Site of The Wall Street Journal, based on eight months of job search stories from regular guy Tim Johnston.Features additional advice and stories culled from more than 3,000 CareerJournal.com readers who posted messages on the “Diary of a Job Search” discussion board.More than 300,000 unique visitors read at least one chapter of the “Diary of a Job Search” online column series.Reviews:“DIARY OF A JOB SEARCH is both inspiring and practical. It provides chapter after chapter of proven strategies on résumé writing, interviewing, salary negotiation, and much more. I recommend it wholeheartedly.” —Joyce Lain Kennedy, syndicated careers columnist

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Johnston, who got his M.B.A. from Boston University in May 2000, says that when he graduated, "anyone who could breathe could get a job." But with the dot-com collapse, terrorist attacks, and corporate scandals, the bottom quickly fell out of the U.S. job market. After losing his position at a Boston nonprofit and relocating his family to New Jersey, he spent eight months discovering how much the world had changed since his last job search. The unique aspect of his odyssey is that his ups and downs were chronicled in a monthly column on The Wall Street Journal's executive career site, CareerJournal.com. Reader response was phenomenal; more than 300,000 people logged on to share their own frustrations and insights. Many of these anonymous contributions are included here, and the result is an extremely cutting-edge guide to job hunting, which takes traditional advice (such as tips on updating your resume, networking, and accepting alternatives such as contract work) and pushes it to the next level by designing more flexible and creative approaches. David Siegfried
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

TIM JOHNSTON began writing his monthly column when he found himself unemployed in the post–dot-com recession. After eight months of searching, Tim was offered a highly visible executive position with a dynamic and growing nonprofit organization. He and his family live outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
PERRI CAPELL is a senior correspondent for CareerJournal.com. She telecommutes from her home in Boise, Idaho.
LAURA LORBER is managing editor of CareerJournal.com. She lives in Highland Park, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (September 24, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580085458
• ISBN-13: 978-1580085458
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #755,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Job Search: Reality TV Style, November 21, 2008

By 

Barbara Safani "Owner, Career Solvers" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diary of a Job Search: One Man's Journey from Unemployment to a New Career (Paperback)

Diary of a Job Search chronicles one job seeker's career transition while providing a comprehensive snapshot of the job search process. Readers will immediately connect with Tim Johnston, a downsized not-for-profit professional who exposes the real life roller coaster ride that accompanies career transition. Tim realizes that his true search is one of self-discovery, transformation, and reinvention and his story is peppered with moments of truth, disappointment, humor, and hope that keep the reader absorbed in the drama and rooting for Tim all the way. Diary entries are presented in tandem with practical campaign tips for resume development, interview and negotiation strategy, and networking. It's like having your own personal career coach and cheerleader with you every step of the way and each chapter contains useful suggestions for maximizing the efficiency of the job seeker's journey. The key to the book's success is its ability to validate search strategies by partnering guidance with actual search scenarios that Tim and other job seekers encounter.