When looking for a career transition, consider the warning signs.

Last time, we considered where job seekers or those looking to make a career transition might look for an industry with huge upside. But there are plenty of industries staring at a steep downside right now, as well, and it can be just as important to know where not to look for a job right now. It’s also worth considering if your own field is topping the not-hot job lists right now.

The Department of Labor has targeted 10 careers it expects to have the largest wage and employment declines through 2018. According to the government, department stores, topping the list, are likely to have lost 159,000 jobs between 2008 and 2018. That’s 10 percent of the industry! Right behind them are semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturers, with a staggering one-third of jobs projected to be lost in that same time period. Auto parts manufacturers, postal workers, printers, sewing-apparel providers, newspaper employees, miners, gas attendants and wired-telecom workers are all expected to take a huge hit.

Besides fair warning for anyone considering those fields, the news is bound to mean anxiety for anyone currently in those fields. Yahoo! Hotjobs’ Margaret Steen has some advice :

What should you do if your industry is on this list? First, don’t panic. The job declines in these industries are projected to take place over a decade. And many jobs—a majority in most of these industries—will remain even after 10 years.

Still, it’s good to start thinking about Plan B. Build your savings and start researching what other industries might be able to use your skills. If you’re nearing retirement and had been planning to move into a different field, you might want to make the move earlier. And if you have many years of work ahead of you, you should consider seriously whether it’s feasible for you to stay in your industry for the long term.

When thinking about careers to avoid,there’s also careercast.com’s list of 10 worst careers for 2010. Since most people probably aren’t even sure what a “roustabout” is (an oil rig or pipeline worker), there’s very little chance of accidentally winding up with the survey’s top worst job. Lumberjack, ironworker, dairy famer, welder, garbage collector, taxi driver, construction worker, meter reader and mail carrier rounded out the list.

One of those fields in particular has been making the news lately, and not in a good way. Just last week, Peter L. Mosca of realtytimes.com reported that:

For the first time since the start of the economic downturn, every state and the District of Columbia reported losing construction jobs over the past twelve months, according to a new analysis of state-by-state employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. The research found few signs of a construction industry recovery with only six states reporting construction job increases between November and December 2009.

The online ad research and consulting firm Borrell Associates made their projections for best and worst industries for job openings in 2010, and they had grim news for the retail industry, which they expected to grow a meager 1.3 percent. The outlook for federal government jobs and financial services was even worse, with projected losses of 3 percent of jobs and 12 percent of jobs, respectively.

Finally, if all this news about where not to work starts getting you down, check out the hilarious (and merciless) Avoid This Job site.  It’s not just funny, it’s good advice.

Could one of these growing industries be the road to a new career?

Job seekers often hear that despite the continuing rise in unemployment, the bleak hiring outlook, and the uncertainty of a drawn-out economic recovery, they shouldn’t worry because “there are still jobs out there!”

They’re meant as words of encouragement, of course, but at a certain point, an exasperated job hunter can’t be blamed for wanting to yell “Oh yeah? Where?”

Where, indeed. Since the mid-90s, there has been plenty of research to go around about the best careers for each new year, and the rise of the Internet has only increased the number of outlets putting the job market under a microscope. At a certain point, in fact, the problem becomes too much information. It can be difficult to get any practical job-search wisdom without looking at a cross-section of the most reliable sources and looking for trends.

The best place to start in any given year is U.S. News & World Report’s annual list of the 50 best careers. Among their top choices for 2010 are: computer software engineer, x-ray technician, firefighter and financial advisor. The magazine’s list is useful because it divides the careers into categories, and one of those categories in particular—health care—has been a fixture on most lists of rapidly expanding job opportunities for several years running now.

Some may consider many of the careers they cover simply too specialized to be useful. However, they do make an interesting point about the field of science and technology:

This category includes the fastest-growing occupation—with a 72 percent growth rate that far outstrips the 10 percent average across careers — of biomedical engineer. Biomedical engineers help develop the equipment and devices that improve or enable the preservation of health. They’re working to grow cardiac tissue or develop tomorrow’s MRI machines, asthma inhalers, and artificial hearts.

Of particular note are two careers that are popping up on a lot of these lists: physical therapist and actuary. The former was also the number two choice for Jessica Hanley in her Yahoo! Hotjobs look at the most “surprising paths to fortune and fulfillment.” One of the biggest selling points for a physical therapy career, besides the fact that many such businesses are expanding into idle commercial space while the overall job market shrinks, is that it generally takes only two years to get the associate’s degree in physical therapy necessary to become a physical therapist assistant. There is expected to be a 33 percent growth in the field over the next eight years. Elementary school teacher, graphic designer and registered nurse also topped Hanley’s list.

Payscale.com’s Carol Tice also discusses physical therapy assistants—along with occupational therapy, sales positions, green jobs, repair technicians and computer security specialists–in her list of growing jobs in the small-business sector for 2010. Tice writes:

If you’ve been focusing your job search on major corporations, you may be missing out on the hottest hiring spot in our slowly dawning economic recovery: small business. Small businesses employ just over half of all private-sector workers, according to the Small Business Administration, and they generated 64 percent of all net new jobs over the past 15 years. Historically, as businesses start to hire again coming out of a downturn, small businesses lead the way.

Then there’s careercast.com’s list of the 10 best jobs for 2010, led by the aforementioned actuary. Computer fields take the next two spots—software analyst and computer systems analyst, respectively—while the rankings of mathematician, statistician and accountant show math skills are always in demand. Incredibly, only one health care field made the top ten: dental hygienist. Perhaps the biggest surprise is historian, at number five, which earned points for a strong hiring outlook, low stress level and healthy income.

Of course, the flip side of these bright spots on the job landscape is that there are plenty of careers in freefall, which anyone looking to transition might want to avoid. We’ll take a look at those next.

For quite some time now, it’s seemed like you can’t turn around without finding someone tweeting, re-tweeting, or updating their Facebook status. The reality of social media has sunk into every corner of our culture.

Every corner, apparently, except one: HR. It’s hard to believe that the workplace could be so slow to deal with the social networking phenomenon, but a new study reveals that 75 percent of employers say their business has no formal policy instructing employees on the appropriate use of social networking sites on the job.

The study, “Employer Perspectives on Social Networking,” is being released along with the report “Social Networks vs. Management: Harness the Power of Social Media,” and compiles data from 34,000 businesses in 35 countries.

Beginning in October 2009, these employers were asked four key questions:

• Does your organization have a formal policy regarding employee use of external social network sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn?
• In which of these areas has your policy been effective?
• In what two areas do you believe external social networks can provide the biggest boost to your organization in the future?
• Has your organization’s reputation ever been negatively affected as a result of employees’ use of social networking sites?

Three out of four employers reported their business had no policy governing social networking, and on top of that, another five percent couldn’t determine if such a policy existed or not!

The implications of these results are huge, for both businesses and workers. In a world where many people don’t think twice about regularly logging in to these sites, employers stand to lose a significant number of number of man-hours to shared Flickr streams and Ashton Kutcher’s latest posts.

In fact, 63 percent of employers who did have social networking policies in place reported that those policies improved productivity. More than a third also said their social-networking policies had helped to protect their company’s intellectual property and other proprietary information.

HR professionals should also consider that the lack of a policy can leave both managers and their employees feeling vulnerable. Many workers have already adopted a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy when it comes to social networking at work, and may think the lack of specific guidelines protects them from disciplinary action. Managers may be frustrated by a perceived lack of support when they think social networking is leading to a loss in productivity. This is one case where any policy may be better than nothing — only 2 percent felt that their company’s guidelines were not effective.

About two-thirds of the existing policies cover only restrictions on the use of social networking. However, the study also revealed that many employers feel this type of site, when properly regulated, has potential in the workplace, and that this upside should be considered when drafting a policy. Nearly 60 percent saw a bright future for social networking in their own business, believing it could be useful in building their brand (20%), improving collaboration and communication (19%), recruiting talent (15%), and hiring (13%).

According to MarketingVOX, there are even bigger possibilities — and pitfalls — for social networking in the corporate world:

“Social networks have become a goldmine of information for companies skilled in the art of connecting the dots - a little-noticed development that is beginning to concern companies. In many cases mining such information is completely legally. For example, one can examine public statements by company staffers - especially if they are inconsistent - that can point to new initiatives under way.

Bob Fox, head of a competitive intelligence program for Canadian entrepreneurs advises firms to monitor competitors’ comments in the media, on industry blogs, at conferences and, yes, on social networks like Twitter and Facebook.”

The study concludes that, in general, employers are taking a “wait and see” attitude toward social networking. That may be true, but “wait” is a word that doesn’t mean much in the 24/7 culture of social networking,

Sometimes a small change can mean big change for the employment market. That’s what analysts are saying about the January unemployment numbers released last Friday by the Department of Labor.

Is the news all good for jobseekers? No, but it’s much better than anyone expected. Consider this: After losing 150,000 jobs in December, the U.S. economy lost only 20,000 jobs last month, a small statistical change that could signal much bigger things—most notably, that after a string of brutal jobs reports, the worst may be over. After revising its numbers from the end of last year, the Labor Department determined that unemployment fell to 9.7 percent last month from 10 percent.

Job-market watchers have jumped all over the unexpected good news. On the White House blog, Council of Economic Advisers chair Christina Romer wrote that “while unemployment remains a severe problem, today’s employment report contains encouraging signs of gradual labor market healing.”

Employment did rise in a few areas, including retail trade and temporary help employment, as well as manufacturing. The results of the Labor Department’s survey of households showed that 541,000 more Americans had work in January. But Romer’s choice of words may be an even bigger indicator in itself, as it marks the first time anyone analyzing the labor market has really talked about “healing” for the jobs outlook. Could the jobless recovery finally be getting back its jobs?

There are several caveats, of course. First of all, as Romer herself notes, the DOL’s revised numbers revealed that more than a million more jobs than previously thought have been lost in this recession. The new numbers suggest 8.4 million jobs have been lost in this recession, and it will likely take several years for all of those jobs to be restored to the economy.

But let’s look at that in a different light. Economic analysts believe we could add as many as 1.5 million jobs to the U.S. economy this year. For proof that 2010 is beginning to show signs of an improved outlook, look no further than CNN/Fortune’s new list of the best companies to work for in 2010. Out of those, almost a quarter have at least 500 openings each, which equals almost 88,000 jobs. In other words, Fortune’s top companies are hiring.

The top rankings this year, by the way, went to:

1. SAS
2. Edward Jones
3. Wegmans
4. Google
5. Nugget Market
6. DreamWorks Animation
7. NetApp
8. Boston Consulting Group
9. Qualcomm
10. Camden Property Trust

To some degree, this year’s list of top companies is just a reshuffling of last year’s, but it’s interesting to consider who moved and who didn’t. North-Carolina-based software firm SAS jumped all the way from #20 to #1, while Edward Jones remained at #2 and Google held at #4. Camden Property Trust made the biggest upward move in the top 10, from #41 to #10. Meanwhile, Cisco Systems, Genentech and Goldman Sachs all fell out of the top 10.

Unlike 2009’s list, not all of the top 10 companies had positive job growth this year, and the upticks were generally small in any case.

However, judging from what the companies are saying about their hiring for this year — and all of those openings — expect that to change on next year’s list.

The impact of social media cannot be denied. The 2009 word of the year was “tweet,” and the word of the decade was “google,” according to the American Dialect Society. Social media such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Flickr, and YouTube—which are defined by their user-generated content—have wiggled their way into most people’s working hours, and thus onto many workplace computers.

In the field of Human Resources, most talk of social media has to do with pre-employment: talent sourcing, advertising job openings, and performing background checks. But social media is now integrated with each stage of the employee lifecycle: before, during, and after. HR practitioners should study their proper use (and possible misuse), and learn what steps to take now to maximize their benefit while heading off potential legal problems.

An excellent article on this topic was just published in The National Law Journal. In “Social media permeate the employment life cycle: Employers must address their use and misuse before, during and after an employee’s tenure,” labor and employment attorney Renee M. Jackson writes about the simultaneous opportunities and risk presented by social media. Here are some of her top thoughts, as well as those of HR pros, on points you should consider at each stage of the employee lifecycle.

PRE-EMPLOYMENT

The networking power of social media is undeniably helping people find jobs, and helping companies find talent. If you’re ready to take full advantage of it, check out an article like Fistful of HR’s “5 Must-Use Social Media Tools For HR & Recruiting Professionals In 2009.”

Know this, though: because people now publicly disclose much more information than they did in the past, organizations must take care, writes Jackson in The National Law Journal:

… Applicants may reveal more information about themselves through social media than they normally would during the hiring process. In making hiring decisions, employers can lawfully use information relating to an applicant’s illegal drug use, poor work ethic, poor writing or communications skills, feelings about previous employers and racist or other discriminatory tendencies. Employers may also lawfully consider an applicant’s general poor judgment in maintenance of his or her public online persona.

Employers, however, may face liability under federal, state and local law for using any information learned from social media about an applicant’s protected class status — race, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, etc. — in a hiring decision. It may be hard for the employer to prove in later litigation that it only viewed, but didn’t actually use, the information obtained in a social medium when making its hiring decision.

Your organization must seriously consider whether you want to use social media in your talent searches at all. If you do, Jackson recommends that you follow these guidelines:

• Conduct uniform searches that are just and consistent
• Use a non-biased third party to perform social media research
• Do not “friend” applicants to gain access to non-public information
• And other important points

DURING EMPLOYMENT

One of the biggest issues caused by social media during an employee tenure is the simple theft of working time. There are also matters of privacy, nondisclosure, taboo topics and hostile work environment, brand protection, and many more. The good news is, this is the stage when you have the most control over the situation. Most organizations would benefit from a well-researched, clear, and fairly applied social media policy. To research the matter, I recommend  beginning with “10 Must-Haves for Your Social Media Policy” by Sharlyn Lauby, who you may know as The HR Bartender, or “How to Develop a Social Media Policy” from About.com. There are a wide range of policies, but one thing all the experts agree on is that a successful policy is not arbitrary, but is a genuine expression of the needs of an organization which has considered both the risks and rewards of this new media.

Some of Jackson’s top recommendations for points to include in a policy are:

• A prohibition on disclosure of the employer’s confidential, trade secret or proprietary information
• A request that employees keep company logos or trademarks off their blogs and profiles and not mention the company in commentary, unless for business purposes
• An instruction that employees not post or blog during business hours, unless for business purposes
• A request that employees bring work-related complaints to human resources before blogging or posting about such complaints
• And others

AFTER EMPLOYMENT

Then, there are the former employees. Some will be nice, and some will be not-so-nice.

The best defense against nightmare scenarios like this and like this is a having had a good social media policy in the first place—one that lasts beyond employment, if at all possible. But if you are dealing with a situation that falls outside of that, you might want to read an article such as “Dealing with Disgruntled Ex-employees via Social Media.”

Another huge issue is recommendations. Increasingly, people are asking former colleagues to write them recommendations on social media such as LinkedIn. Is that the same as an official post-employment recommendation? Jackson says yes—although it’s difficult to define when people are speaking for themselves, and when they are speaking on behalf of the organization. It’s a good reason to have a solid policy in place.

The warmest and fuzziest scenario is positive relations through social media in the form of corporate alumni networks. In Computer World’s article, “The new word for tech’s ex-employees is ‘alum’” large, successful sites catering to groups of ex-employees are examined. Microsoft’s alumni network, for example, has 10,000 members—what an incredible opportunity for networking and goodwill!

THE TAKEAWAY

What HR should take away from this, writes Jackson, is that the risks of social media are too great to be ignored any longer.

First, employers must understand the myriad issues surrounding social media in the workplace in order to strike the appropriate balance in the eyes of their employees and the law. Then, employers must craft appropriate policies and procedures regarding social media that are consistent with their industry and firm culture, and apply such policies in a consistent, objective and nondiscriminatory way.

Workers are tweeting, googling, and friending, and they’re doing it at all stages of employment. We need to acknowledge this, and craft good policies in response.

“Career transition” is on a lot of minds these days. The U.S. has more than 15 million unemployed — and if you count the discouraged and underemployed, the number is more like 27 million. You may be one of these people seeking a new job, or you may be one of millions of others who are employed, but trying to strategize a major career change in a tough market. No matter the specifics, the economic downturn is probably affecting your career.

As you craft your long-term plans, you’ll want to consider where the jobs are — and where they are going. Consumption drives these patterns, but so does technology. Don’t forget to account for older generations retiring and leaving needed jobs open, either. All of these elements affect which jobs are available.

Then, to maximize your future demand, think about adapting your strategy — be it higher education, government re-training, or developing a new area of expertise — to a field that is projected to grow.

To help you with your planning, we peeked into our “crystal ball” (actually, government projections) to share the latest statistics for the industries growing the most, and the occupations that will be adding the largest amount of workers, now through 2018.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently published its 2010-11 edition of  the Occupational Outlook Handbook, a report on occupations and employment growth trends that is updated every two years. This particular update covers 2008-2018 — meaning it has data through the end of 2008, and projects out to 2018. This is notable because it does cover one full year of the downturn (2008), which began in December 2007. Nationwide, employment is projected to increase by 15.3 million (approximately 10%) over the decade between 2008 and 2018, and the OOH describes exactly where the growth will be. Here is the OOH’s list of the 20 “fastest-growing” professions through 2018, as measured by percentage of growth.

1. Biomedical engineers: Slated to add 11,600 jobs, a 72% increase
2. Network systems and data communication analysts: Will add 155,800 jobs, a 53% increase
3. Home health aides: Set to add 460,900 jobs, an increase of 50%
4. Personal and home care aides: Will grow by 375,800 openings, or 46%
5. Financial examiners: Slated to add 11,100 jobs, an increase of 41%
6. Medical scientists, except epidemiologists: 44,200 jobs will be added, a 40% growth rate
7. Physician assistants: This field will add 29,200 jobs, growing by 39%
8. Skin care specialists: Set to add 14,700 positions, growing by 38%
9. Biochemists and biophysicists: Will grow by 8,700 positions, or 37%
10. Athletic trainers: Set to add 6,000 jobs, a gain of 37%
11. Physical therapist aides: 16,700 jobs will be added, a gain of 36%
12. Dental hygienists: The workforce will add 62,900 jobs, an increase of 36%
13. Veterinary technologists and technicians:  Slated to add 28,500 jobs, a 36% increase
14. Dental assistants: Will be adding 105,600 jobs, growing by 36%
15. Computer software engineers, applications: Set to add 175,100 jobs, a growth rate of 34%
16. Medical assistants: Will grow by 163,900 personnel, an increase of 34%
17. Physical therapist assistants: 21,200 jobs will be added, growing by 33%
18. Veterinarians: Will add 19,700 jobs, an increase of 33%
19. Self-enrichment education teachers: Slated to add 81,300 positions, an increase of 32%
20. Compliance officers, except agriculture, construction, health and safety, and transportation: Will add 80,800 jobs, growing by 31%

The first thing to note about this list is that a smaller industry can show an explosive rate of growth, yet still add fewer jobs in total than a huge industry that is growing more slowly. This is shown by the top occupation, biomedical engineer, which is going up steeply (72%!), but in spite of this is still only adding one job for every 39 added of the #3 job, home health assistant.

Examining the above list, here are some big trends I observe in the fastest-growing industries:

Biological sciences: In the Top 20, we see a high demand for biomedical engineers (#1) and biochemists and biophysicists ( #9), which reflects medicine’s growing interest in genetic research and biologic drugs. If you are inclined toward the sciences, biology would be a strategic area to explore.

IT: Don’t overlook the second-fastest-growing job, network systems and data communication analysts, which is set to add more than 150,000 new jobs, while computer software engineers, applications, #15, is adding another 175,000. Together, this is 325,000 jobs, so people who can run networks and write software will definitely continue to be needed.

Health assistance: Home health aide is #3, while personal and home care aides are right behind at #4. It makes sense: our increasingly aging population has an independent spirit, values their health, and would like help with it at home rather than at an institution. Physician assistants (#7), dental hygienists (#12), dental assistants (#14) also reflect these demographics, plus increased access to and demand for medical and dental services. Could you grow a career around this?

Veterinary sciences: The pet is of ever-increasing importance in the U.S.: people devote more of their money to a pet’s needs than before, and rates of pet ownership are up. So it’s not surprising to see veterinarians at #18 and veterinary technologists and technicians at #13. If you love animals, veterinary medicine may be the path for you.

Those were the occupations with steep growth. If you’re more interested in which occupations will be adding the most jobs in terms of sheer numbers, the following list (also from the new edition of the Occupational Outlook Handbook) delivers that. Here are the 20 occupations that will be adding the most new jobs, in individual openings:

1. Registered nurses (581,500)
2. Home health aides (460,900)
3. Customer service representatives (399,500)
4. Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food (394,300)
5. Personal and home care aides (375,800)
6. Retail salespersons (374,700)
7. Office clerks, general (358,700)
8. Accountants and auditors (279,400)
9. Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants (276,000)
10. Postsecondary teachers (256,900)
11. Construction laborers (255,900)
12. Elementary school teachers, except special education (244,200)
13. Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer (232,900)
14. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers (217,100)
15. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks (212,400)
16. Executive secretaries and administrative assistants (204,400)
17. Management analysts (178,300)
18. Computer software engineers, applications (175,100)
19. Receptionists and information clerks (172,900)
20. Carpenters (165,400)

Observations on the list of occupations that are growing the most:

Healthcare: The need for registered nurses is #1. Although they didn’t make the Top 20, you should know that licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses came in at #24 on the list, and physicians and surgeons ranked #28. Being a doctor or nurse has always been an in-demand profession, and the demand will continue.

Services: The service sector is adding millions of jobs in the coming eight years. A large portion of them are adjacent to healthcare; home health aides are #2, while nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants is #9, and personal and home care aides is #5. Other growth areas in service are food preparation and landscaping.

Construction and carpentry: Good news! Building is projected to come back from its current slump, making construction laborer #11 on this list, and carpenter #20.

For more planning resources, be sure to visit the OOH website. There, you can read up on hundreds of jobs. For each job, you will find descriptions of the duties and working conditions, the skills and experience needed, projected earnings, and even information on the job in your region. It is a valuable resource for imagining, planning, and implementing your successful career transition.

Although the U.S. closed out 2009 with steep unemployment, some recently announced year-end data indicates that hiring is set to rebound in 2010. The encouraging news comes from this 2010 Job Forecast, which surveyed more than 2,700 hiring managers and human resource professionals about their staffing plans for the coming year.

While the forecast warns that employers are still keeping a cautious eye on the economy, their general reluctance to hire seems to be abating. Fully 20% of the employers surveyed said they plan to add permanent full-time employees in 2010 — up from 14% in 2009. Meanwhile, on the job-loss side, just 9% of the respondents said they plan to cut headcount, which is down from 16% in 2009.

These numbers, taken together, show plans for a 11% net gain in companies that are hiring full-time workers, which would bring welcome relief to our unemployment situation.

The sunny news is not confined to the U.S. According to The Wall Street Journal, a similar survey of our northern neighbor offered even better numbers: 29% of employers indicated that they plan to increase permanent full-time employment in 2010 — up from 18% in 2009. Only 9% plan to cut positions in 2010, making their “net hirers” number hit 20%.

Here are some other hiring practices the survey identified as growing trends for 2010:

• Rehiring laid-off workers
• Replacing low-performing employees
• Rehiring retirees / delaying retirement
• Continuing to hire contract workers to mitigate risk
• Increased need for bilingual workers

Not every field will see gains equally. Fields that the survey found were most likely to increase hiring were:

• 32%   Information technology
• 27%   Manufacturing
• 23%   Financial services
• 22%   Professional and business services
• 21%   Sales
• 21%   Healthcare
• 18%   Transportation
• 15%   Retail

In a related article, “The most secure jobs for 2010” describes careers likely to be in high demand in 2010 and beyond. While some made perfect sense — occupational therapist to our growing population of senior citizens is a needed specialty, and being a gas/electric/utilities strategic planning analyst in a time of energy crisis is surely secure — others came as an interesting surprise to me (for instance, I was not aware that there is a projected demand for more interior designers in spite of economic pressures, but the profession is on the rise). Check out the whole article to read their take on the most recession-proof jobs for the coming year.

What’s your sense of these numbers and trends? Will 2010 be the year we turn unemployment around? Do these “more companies hiring than firing” predictions seem feasible to you, based on what you’re seeing out in the field? Let us know in the comments, and please be sure to note your location, too. Not all regions are suffering unemployment equally, nor will they recover at the exact same pace. We’re interested in your eyewitness reports.

2009 was a long and challenging year for jobseekers. Unemployment reached record highs, and competition for jobs was fierce. If you had trouble landing your ideal job, you weren’t alone.

As we cross into 2010, it’s a natural time to take stock of your 2009 job search: what worked, and what didn’t; what time was well spent, and what time was wasted. If you were using methods that didn’t give good returns on your time and energy, now is the time to drop them.

Then, resolve to channel your fresh start and high energy into new habits designed to get you into your ideal job in the coming year. Here are six recommended resolutions to make your job search successful in 2010.

Resolution #1: I will create a list of targeted employers.
If you’re only applying to jobs that you see being advertised, you’re leaving key elements of your job search up to chance. Take control of your future by identifying the organizations in your industry where you would like to work — even if they don’t have any job openings at the moment. Do your research, and make up a list of 8-12 target employers with products or cultures you admire. Devote time to introducing yourself to them as a future candidate. Get on their radar now, before a job is even open, and sow the seeds for them to call on you later on when something opens up. This is one of the best ways to take advantage of the “hidden job market.” It requires time and planning, but the end result is a position with a company you hand-selected as a good match for your skills and desires.

Resolution #2: I will carry job-search business cards.
A person’s job is a large part of their identity, and sometimes displaced workers feel lost without the security of a title and a business card. But do you really want to be scribbling your contact information on a napkin or index card when you network in public? Increase your poise, confidence, and professional appearance by creating and carrying a personal business card just for your job search. They are easy to produce at home with a printer, or simply use a free service such as Vistaprint, which offers jobhunters 250 cards printed free (pay only shipping and handling). Job-search cards are the perfect positive marketing tool — shorter than a resume, but something physical for people to take away and remember you by. This leads to our next resolution:

Resolution #3: I will expand my network.
No matter how much you are networking, you could undoubtedly do more. Jobseekers are often shy about expanding their network, but people are typically flattered to be asked for their expertise or connections. So take the plunge: if you haven’t made the time for Facebook or LinkedIn, now is the time (keep it professional on Facebook, of course). And don’t just concentrate on online, either! Whenever you talk with a friend, peer, neighbor, or relative, aim to get at least one informational contact (not a job interview, but a person you can call and chat with for 10 minutes or so about their industry) out of the conversation. While jobseeking, you should aim to have a short informational call or coffee meeting at least a few times a month. People will be impressed with your initiative, and flattered by your attention. You may be surprised where these short, no-pressure meetings can take you.

Resolution #4: I will build my personal brand.
This is a fairly new element of the job search, and as such, many older jobseekers are not aware of it. The candidate’s role now goes far beyond their resume; it is now common for employers to do preliminary research on you on the Internet before you are contacted. Your competitors are building their personal brand online, and so should you. Start commenting on an industry with a Twitter account or on a free blog at WordPress or Blogger; establish your expertise. Benefit #1 is that you’ll make great industry connections. Benefit #2 is that you’ll shape your online image for those who are researching you. Both are necessary for your successful 2010 job search.

Resolution #5: I will revamp my resume and cover letter.
When was the last time you really gave these crucial materials more than a simple update? Adding your last position is the bare minimum, and for 2010, you owe yourself an upgrade. Research current job ads for the hot keywords are in your field, and make sure your terminology matches the current jargon. Evaluate the entire document, even older sections that have served you well for years — these are the very sections that could benefit from a re-write in the context of your later accomplishments. Aim for a clean, simple look. When you’re done, save a formatted version for printing and email attachments, and a plain text version for online forms.

Resolution #6: I will genuinely seek out feedback.
Many jobseekers get “stuck” on some issue that they don’t even know about. Maybe it’s the presentation of their resume; maybe it’s some interviewing quirk. The point is, they won’t ever know about it unless they ask their “support squad” for constructive criticism. Unfortunately, due to rejection in the job market, these same people may feel too vulnerable to ask for any feedback. If this sounds like it might apply to you, turn to trusted friends and family for resume critiques, mock interviews, and ideas about where your talents might be useful. They know you better than anyone, and you should resolve not to let any insecurity prevent you from asking for their excellent help and perspective. Ask for feedback, and you may get a surprising boost!

Do you have any job-related resolutions for the New Year? We’d love to hear about them. Share your inspiration and progress in the comments.

If you’re jobless this December –- and there are roughly 16 million Americans who are –- you know that being unemployed over the holiday season can make it feel like there is little to celebrate.

There are several types of stressors you may encounter over the holidays:

1. You may worry what to tell friends and family at social gatherings;
2. You may be facing a cash shortfall, yet still wish to provide gifts for your loved ones;
3. You may be feeling depressed, angry, or less worthy than usual;
4. You may be tempted to take a vacation from your job search.

Alone or combined, these situations can present a real challenge for downsized individuals. Fortunately, the holiday season also offers some special opportunities to rejuvenate your spirits and advance your job search. That’s why we’re providing six power tips on how to maximize the month of December and re-vamp your search for employment by January 1.

TIP 1: That “no one’s hiring in December” thing? That’s a myth. Keep trying.
It’s true that lots of offices slow down during the holidays, but plenty of recruitment goes on in this period! Some departments face “lose it or use it” provisions on their hiring budgets, so you may find they’re eager to seal a deal with you by December 31. On the other side of the coin, lots of projects come into brand-new funds as of Q1 2010, meaning your long wait may be over. Best of all, because so many people believe December is dead for hiring, there is greatly reduced competition for jobs. So don’t slow down on submitting online applications, and make sure your resume is front-and-center with your desired employers all through the last month of the year.

TIP 2: Manage your downtime intelligently.
The holidays are a special time to relax and enjoy family traditions and get-togethers. While you are entitled to enjoy this time, I urge you not to have the same vacation expectations as your friends who have been working full-time. Some of them will take off from December 18 through January 4, and you just can’t afford to neglect your job search for that long. Thoughtfully plan out your daily activities for the rest of the year using a calendar. Give yourself the “big days” off –- New Year’s Eve, for instance –- but schedule a few hours of job-search work for almost every other day… even if your “working friends” aren’t working at all. It’s a tough break, but you’ll feel better about yourself and your job hunt if you stick to a productive schedule throughout the holiday season.

TIP 3: Get ready to mingle, sip eggnog, and smile; you’re going to network at holiday parties.
Don’t hide at home, no matter how uncertain you may be feeling. There are increased social opportunities at the holidays, and these can really help with your personal feelings of satisfaction and support, as you re-connect with people who like you for you! Meeting new people is great, too: put on a nice sweater or sports jacket to network with rarely seen relatives and neighbors, and have a short speech ready stating what kind of professionals you’d like to chat with. It makes people happy to be able to make introductions or give advice. Accept this help gracefully and in the generous spirit that it is given.

TIP 4: Use this occasion to make over your family’s gifting traditions.
When your cash flow is compromised, you must be very careful with your resources. It is probably best not to succumb to the pressures of a consumer culture that urges materialistic expressions of your emotions. Your loved ones will understand and likely welcome the proposal of a low-cost gift exchange or a “handmade holiday.” Not only will they be happy to receive your gifts of love and time, but they will be relieved to see you not going into debt or suffering stress to provide a costly present. There are many creative, free gifts that you can put together easily.

TIP 5: While you’re doing that, take a critical look at your own wishlist.
If you’re unemployed, you’ve probably been “doing without” for quite some time, concentrating on must-haves such as rent, utilities, and groceries. If you have been asking your family for any kind of assistance with cash or food, then it is not appropriate to request luxurious or lifestyle items at the holidays. You should postpone these as rewards for yourself when you have a paycheck again. In the meantime, if you need items for your job hunt, let your family know. They will probably be happy to fulfill requests for job-search necessities such as office supplies (quality resume paper, or ink cartridges for your printer); personal accessories (a silk tie or an attractive briefcase); or even personal services (a resume consultation or a LinkedIn premium upgrade might be in order). Note to well-meaning gift-givers: These are only things that should be given if on a jobhunter’s wishlist: unsolicited career gifts to the unemployed can be seen as lacking tact.

TIP 6: Practice writing “2010″ and pull out some postage stamps!
Maybe you’re not entirely confident about sending holiday cards to people in your network… or maybe you’ve already waited too long for them to be delivered on time. Consider New Year’s cards as a professional, secular replacement. Now that most business mail is electronic, people have a re-discovered interest in physical mail. (Hang around any mailroom, and you’ll notice how eagerly people rip open packages.) The strategy is to get yourself noticed just as everyone comes back to work from the holidays, ready to apply themselves in the New Year. In their in-box, they’ll find a cheery New Year’s card wishing them a happy and prosperous new year, along with a printed copy of your resume and a business card attached. Congratulations: you’ve just achieved top-of-mind awareness in the mind of an employer – and aren’t you happy you worked on your job hunt over the holidays?

For more excellent advice on how unemployed professionals can best survive and thrive throughout the holiday season, check out:

• Surviving Christmas spirit when unemployed: special holiday tips for the jobless
• Hope for those unemployed for the holidays
• Tips for the unemployed to stay sane during the next two weeks

Unemployment is up, and job openings are down. But there is one sector where hiring is on the upswing — the hiring of interns. And within many companies, the roles and responsibilities of interns are expanding.

There are certainly pros for the interns and the companies alike: the interns get needed on-the-job experience, and the companies get eager (and often free) assistance. There are many strong and well-respected intern programs out there, and most professionals will tell you they couldn’t have gotten where they are today without a key internship.

But there are cons, too. The most worrying item is that the recent ubiquity and “upsizing” of the intern role means that regular, paid entry-level work is increasingly scarce, which can result in difficulties for younger workers.

In the recent The New York Times article, “Hiring Is Rising in One Area: Low-Paid Interns,”  business owners were very clear on how valuable interns are to them. The owner of one marketing firm says bringing on interns is “a brilliant, recession-proof way to double your work force,” and that he experiences a certain personal satisfaction when an intern succeeds and he knows that he gave them “that little boost.”   The Times went on to quote C. Mason Gates, the president and founder of Internships.com, as saying that with economic uncertainty, smaller businesses would continue to view interns as a source of growth, talent development and project-based work.

It’s clear that such internships are win-win. People are using them to get ahead, and companies are using them to stay strong in a tough economy. But is the upsizing of the internship coming at the expense of paid, entry-level positions? And what might be the consequences of this?

Among my job-seeking peers, I am more and more often hearing the complaint that “all” the entry-level openings have been re-tooled as internships where you are offered “experience” and “exposure” but very rarely pay. These people (most of whom have been laid off after 2-6 years of experience) consider themselves “past” seeking internships, and would prefer paid work. But these increasingly upsized internships, they claim, are eclipsing regular work.

I found myself curious about my own profession: has the role of intern shifted in the past few years? Just to check, I took a an unscientific, but well-informed, whirl through the want ads on craigslist.org, checking the openings in my own specialty. I’ve kept daily tabs on this website and this category for seven years or so, and I often contributed to posting and writing the ads myself for big-name local firms. I figured I could easily spot some differences in titles, duties, and pay, if they existed.

Some former employers jumped out immediately, and so did the terms of their ads. I can say with certainty that at one former employer — a medium-sized publishing company — entry-level jobs seem to no longer exist. What we would have once called an “assistant editor” is now an unpaid intern with a full load of responsibilities such as reviewing products, writing articles, proofing pages for publication, and more.

While I don’t begrudge the interns their chance to shine, I uneasily recalled that some of these activities come with a journalistic code of ethics and corporate exposure to liability. I wondered what kind of legal oversight a company has over unpaid workers. When I worked there (and the economy was good), unpaid interns were given mostly “grunt work” concerning mailing lists, data back-ups, contest administration, and organization, coupled with the chance of possibly writing one heavily-supervised article each issue. With training, good interns eventually made their way into paid entry-level positions — which are now, in turn, internships.

I have to say that something does seem wrong with this picture. I am a strong supporter of internships, but I am concerned that the poor economy is leading to a deficiency in paid entry-level work. Ironically, it seems that the solution to this is to — you guessed it — get a great internship, get your experience, and try to transition it into a paid position. It may simply be a reality that market forces have led to a shift, and we may all have to adjust expectations accordingly.

Do you have any observations about the changing role of the intern?