Start a job search diary right now. Even if you have been unemployed for some time, start one anyway because a late start is better than never doing it at all.

Take a plain old exercise book and title it: Job Search Diary. Find a spot to keep it where it will always be close at hand when you need it, probably several times a day.

If you are newly jobless, start out by recording your feelings. Writing out (keep it simple, it’s not the great American novel) what you are thinking, in black and white sentences, helps to sort out your jumbled emotions, clear your mind, and reach a better understanding of your inner self. Jot down your anger, your fears, what you expect, what you secretly dread. Pouring out your soul will release a lot of the inner tension you’re feeling and soothe your nerves.

This record is for you – no one else will ever see it – so you can be brutally honest. If you fear you are a loser who will never amount to anything, write it out. If you think you’re really a good, competent worker but your old boss was a jerk or the company sucked, put it down.

If you have been out of work for a while, make your initial entries a recap of what has been happening in your life since you lost your job. Trace the sequence of events and see if you can remember how you felt at different times. There were probably times when you were overwhelmed and stressed out: record when you felt that way and, if you can recall, what activities you were engaged in when those feelings appeared. There were also probably times when you felt hopeful or elated. Record that too and what events were connected with such emotions.

Use your diary as a place to plan what you want to do. List all activities that you are going to perform that will get you back to work. You might initially plan on updating your resume and reading the classifieds to gauge the state of the labor market. If you are further along in the job search, you might list some networking targets or identify some employers where follow up on earlier contacts might be beneficial. Frequently, throughout the day, record what you did, who you talked to, how you felt.

This is going to become your Special Place where you have a record of your journey from the badlands of unemployment to the green fields of regular work. Visit it often to keep updating your plans, record your smallest successes and failures, and unload your emotional baggage.

When you can’t bear the thought of one more telephone call leading to one more rejection; when you can’t find the energy to get dressed up to visit an agency or cold-call an employer; when you can’t stand the sight of another misleading ad or internet job site; then reach for the comfort of your journal. Read over what you have written and see the changing moods of your long pilgrimage. See if you can identify a pattern. What were you doing when you felt despondent and alone? What were you doing when you felt upbeat and positive about the future? Concentrate on your own specific actions, not merely your reaction to outside events. If you can find a thread relating what you do to how you feel, you have found a valuable key for managing your hunt for work. You now know what to do to feel pretty good and what not to do to avoid a recurrence of despair.

Maintain your diary throughout your job search and it will become an increasingly rich source of information about you and your inner self. It will challenge you to get active and it will comfort you when you just want to curl up into a ball and turn your back on life.

Then close it up and lock it away in a safe place. If you ever find yourself jobless again (and it happens to many of us over and over), take it out. Reread it for the insights you will gain, and the mistakes you’ll be able to avoid, in your next (probably shorter) job search campaign.

People enjoy working out of their homes for many reasons. Some enjoy the flexibility of being able to drop off and pick up their children in school as well as attend special events. Others like to be available during the day in case their children need them.

Still, other people enjoy working from homebecause of what it is not – working in an office. People do not have to worry about being late, dress codes or meetings that run over their allotted time. Instead, people set their own hours and dress the way they want to when they work from home.

For every person who is working at home via the Internet, there are five more working in the corporate world who want to work from home but do not know how to get started. They are not sure what businesses are available for those who would like to work from home, much less how to get started.

So, how do these curious people find Internet jobs that they can work from home?

On the Internet, there are web sites that have set up home employment directories for people like you who would like to work from home.

There are companies who will employ people to work from home to assemble products or crafts. Companies are willing to pay people to work from home for them because of the tremendous amount of money it saves them.

These companies do not have to pay any overhead for a large building dedicated to assembly, nor do they need to pay costs associated with a workforce gathered together under one roof (think everything from health insurance to toilet paper).

Another benefit to working for such companies is that they often offer jobs that can be done by people with disabilities. So, even if you are homebound, you can still work from home and earn a living.

Home employment directories can point you in the direction of such companies that are reputable and have a proven track record. Their products are doable and they pay as promised.

Another type of company you can find in a home employment directory is one who pays you to drive your own car. This type of company would pay you to work at home
by placing advertisements on your car. Some companies will even give you a car to drive for your work-at-home business.

If you are not interested in driving or assembling objects, you may like to address circulars or stuff envelopes. This type of job can be done while children are sleeping, while watching television and while children are at school. You will be working, but you will also be available for the family. The obvious benefit here is flexibility.

As you can see, these work-at-home jobs do not require much skill. However, it is very important to know what type of company you are working for and whether or not they have ethical business practices.

Again, home employment directories are useful for those wanting to work from home. If you are interested in earning several hundred or several thousand dollars a month, put the time and effort into doing some research with home employment directories.

Working at home can bring huge rewards financially and emotionally. Being available to your family and not having to report to a boss are some intuitively appealing aspects of working at home and using a home employment directory.