Smart Ways to Land Your Next Gig

3. Don't blow it before you get started.

Sad but true fact: Many people interviewing today still don't act or look presentable, says Opton. Does that mean wear a suit? It might -- but the onus is on you, the job seeker, to find out the dress code at a company and to dress and act accordingly. "You need to look the part," says Opton. "Figure out whom you're going to see, and determine the style most important to that person." That is particularly important if you're going from a dotcom to a larger company, says Allison Hemming, president of the Hired Guns, an interim consulting firm, and hostess of the pink-slip parties. "We were interviewing the other day, and a dude took his shoe off and scratched his toes," she says, disgusted.

A more dignified demeanor is back in style, and that goes for other aspects of your public face as well. Being whimsical is not going to score you points anymore -- so remove that personal rendition of the "Star-Spangled Banner" from your voice mail, and forget about standing outside the office wearing a sandwich board advertising yourself. In more sober times, sending balloon gifts to a prospective employer simply won't cut it. "Cutesy just isn't working," says Kaye. "It might get you noticed, but it may not be the kind of notice you want."

4. Be the aspirin.

In this tightfisted environment, any company that is willing to spend money to hire someone must need something pretty badly. The question for the job seeker: What is that itch, and how can I scratch it? "If the company has a headache," says Opton, "you want to be the aspirin. Look for ways to present solutions in every contact you have with the company, from the cover letter to the phone call to the interview itself. When asked how you'd handle a particular situation, ask for an opportunity to return at another time and make a presentation on your solution, says Hemming. "Prove that you can do the job. Do the assignment and then come back to the company. It's as if you're already working there."

5. Keep a cheat sheet.

Matthew Kelleher is a veteran of several dotcom efforts, including itraffic, Barnesandnoble.com, and Watchworld.com. Now he's the marketing manager at Chelsea Interactive, an affiliate of Chelsea Property Group. He's had a lot of jobs in an unstable environment. So to be prepared for interviews, he keeps a master résumé on file, listing every worthy accomplishment of his entire professional career, from negotiating a deal with Apple to beating a sales projection by 63%. He adds every accomplishment to the master list, so when it's time to find a new job, he can simply cut and paste the most relevant parts into a slimmed down résumé, and can develop very specific talking points for the interview. "Imagine a photographer or artist who has a portfolio," he says. "What you actually show is one thing, but keep track of all your stuff." Kelleher's master résumé has some 25 bullets for each job, and he can easily tailor a résumé without having to finesse what he did three years ago all over again.

6. Be prepared -- but don't overdo it.

In tough times, anyone who goes into an interview unprepared is dead in the water. Everyone knows that you have to research the company thoroughly before you land the interview and go in with guns blazing. You need to be armed with ready examples of what you learned in certain situations, how you demonstrated leadership, and the like. "In the new job market, you have to interview like an investor," says Nat Antman, an analyst at Reciprocal Inc., a digital distribution services company. "If you had a few million dollars, would you back the company you're interviewing? When I interviewed, I read everything that I could find on the company and spoke to people who were involved with it, including investors and employees. The work paid off two-fold. First, my interviewers were damned impressed that I was so diligent, and second, I landed a job with a company that is very well positioned."

But don't go too far, says Kaye. If you come out sounding too coached, you're in big trouble. "Sometimes, interviewees sound like they've written a script," she says. "People do the perfect case that shows a whole list of attributes but is over-rehearsed." If you feel yourself falling into that trap, says Kaye, it's okay to take a breather. "If I feel like I'm rattling, I might stop and say, 'Look, I may be overprepared. Let's step back for a second.' " Employers will appreciate your self-awareness, and they'll still be impressed by your preparation. But then you can remember to be yourself.