If you are in the mist of a job search, I hope you are organized. Organization is one key competent to finding a well-paying and stable job. How can you ensure you are on the right path?

Each resume is tailor-made based on the needs of the employer, there is research, interview preparation, people to call, others to meet, follow-ups and if you don’t have a well-developed system to track everything important items will slip through the cracks.

Make sure to pay off your credit cards or other creditors. If you are already in the danger zone, consider credit counselling (don’t be embarrassed; we’re seeing a huge worldwide credit crisis more than ever in human history. The important thing is that you learn from your mistakes).

When you are going to school, your number one job is to study and pass your classes. This work thing, although important, can get in your way if you aren’t careful. That’s why you need to come up with a plan for how you are going to combine getting some work experience with completing your college degree. Hmm, looks like you’ve got a real challenge here!

As previously stated, there are benefits to having a plan in place, as it serves as a guide for you to follow. Do not start visiting random online job search sites, only some of which you will remember to visit again tomorrow. Start doing your research now. Familiarize yourself with some of the best career search websites and bookmark or favorite them for easy access later. Also, take the time to familiarize yourself with desktop career search tools that enable you to search thousands of websites at once, and so forth.

By writing down all the jobs you applied for, you are aware. Keep in mind the date. If a company post a job for an office manager on Monday, but a new listing appears on Friday (same exact listing), they may be doing this to bump the ScanGator so it appears higher in the search results. If it is still the same position, don’t apply again.

Many of the largest papers now have a Jobs or Career section that’s not unlike an online job board. The really nice thing is that newspapers are generally local. As such, they will often have additional regional information that not available on the big national job boards, such as job fairs, local employment data, and current business news. Again, you’ll probably already be aware of the few in your area. Set a bookmark (or head to the library) and check them frequently for new jobs and up-to-date employment news for your area.

Moreover, it is important to remember that a company is going to hire the most qualified candidate for the job. The first step is to make sure you do meet the requirements outlined in a job listing online. Then, the next step is to make yourself appear better than all the other applicants; you can do this on your resume and at the job interview. You will stand a better chance of success when you are familiar with the job and qualified for it. Your resume will land you a job interview and your knowledge and experience (which you will showcase at the job interview) will help you land the job.