Hurry right up, come and get your US debt default survival guide. Believe me when i tell you if/when it happens you'll need to be prepared. So let't cut to the chase, pack light just three things:

1. 8x10 framed picture of GOP mafia - Who? none other than, Boehner and Cantor skinning and grinning from ear to ear. These two will undoubtedly delight themselves in winning the battle at the expense of the war. Of course it doesn't matter that they will have single handedly caused just as much if not more Americans to enter the rank of unemployed and jobless than the so called Great Recession. You'll undoubtedly want to thank them each and every moment of your waking hours going forward.
2. A shovel - Make sure you stop on by your neighborhood Lowes or HomeDepot and pick up a good heavy duty shovel. You'll need it to dig out your final resting place in your backyard. Surely, you won't want to delay in this purchase as shovels will sell out fast. So getting a head start at digging your own grave would mean you just might finish the job before your bank issues a foreclosure notice on your home. This is, of course, since you likely won't have a job, if you have one now, when employers can no longer afford to borrow at sky high interest rates, even with stellar credit. Oh and if you don't already have a job, forget it. Don't even bother looking for one com August 2nd, 2011, instead you might want to get a head start on the digging.
3. Mother in-law's Christmas gift - Sure you hated it and it served no practical use except to satisfy a check mark on a Christmas list; but now that the end is near that worthless tie or trinket is starting to look good. Besides, just in case you underestimate how long it will take for you to run out of oxygen in the wooden box of your makeshift grave, you can have something to remember what life was like before Boehner and Cantor ushered in your last days. So you can take both your 8x10 of the GOP mafia and your mother in-laws worthless gift and remember the good ole' days while you wait to die in your poor cheap wooden box.

There you have it, the US debt default survival guide. It's sure to bring peace to your final days. Of course, living out your natural life gainfully employed would have been better but Boehner and Cantor believed otherwise. Sorry Charlie.

Still think the worst is over with the economic rebound? Maybe not, perhaps we're looking at five more years of new inductees into the jobless arena. So you think I’m kidding? Sorry to disappoint but that's what the economic adviser geeks are saying. By the end of the next five years the US will have gone through its own lost decade similar to Japan. So this just begs the question -- what happened to the bailout billions that were slated to pull the economy out of the depths of hell and spur huge tides of job growth? It's anyone's guess at this moment on where the money went - but surely it didn't create the jobs as expected.

Let’s face it, the situation is looking a little grim as far as available jobs goes, considering new college grads are beginning to outpace the number of jobs created. Moreover, that doesn't even include those with established careers looking to regain footing in the job market. With all the Harvard and Yale grads hanging out in Washington, it makes you wonder --- hummh maybe we need a few more Harvard/Yale yuppies to preside over this mess in Washington. Then on the other hand, you begin to wonder if this "stuck in the ditch" job situation is actually intentional. Hummh, now there's a thought. Perhaps, any real job growth is strategically planned to magically happen sometime near the 2012 elections. Undoubtedly, either the Red or the Blue pill will try to pull off a magical "save the earth" next year to propel to success in the elections. Who stands to gain the most by this job situation mess? The votes are in --- none other than the GOP - high unemployment, low wages and high crime equate to high profit margins for the fat cats. Five more years of this jobless drama means none other than wealth preservation...and you thought they cared - sike!

Social this, social that and all things social represent the new buzz word trends. The big question is whether or not social networking is living up to its promises? Promises - what promises? Well for advertisers, that means extending product and service reach. For job search [recruiters and job hunters] that means making new social connections that allow recruiters to reach new pools of candidates and for job seekers the obvious - make the necessary connections to get a new job. Well it's been over a year - more like two and what has social networking delivered on? Well the jury is still out but it's not looking good for social networking.

Why is social networking having such a challenge delivering anything meaningful other than blips and sound bites that most aren't even listening to? Well for starters, according to path, the new social networking site, it really just isn't possible to manage the hundreds and thousands of relationships that Twitter and Facebook users are obsessed with establishing. Can you really keep up with one of 150,000 followers that you interact with once if that? Perhaps, you can now begin to see why the tens of thousands of followers and fans aren't delivering. Quite simply, they aren't listening -- they have tuned you out -- because they don't know you or even care. This of course is bad news for job hunters and especially for advertisers. Sounds, like the problem here is the classic "bigger is better" myth. If you're looking for job do you really need to be connected to 5,000 recruiters that aren't listening or 25 recruiters that know you, are listening and going to bat for you?

While the jury is still out and social networking still has a chance of providing some meaningful value, it looks like social networking is having problems living up to promises. With that being said, i don't know how optimistic i would be on expecting much from social networking. You could on the other hand, give Path a spin and see what happens. After all, managing small groups is easier and more realistic anyway.

With the economy weak and many people still looking for jobs one thing is clear, you have plenty of time to reflect and recognize the key issues with your job situation. Moreover, with all the time to think, lets throw this in the mix - Is it the job market, your current occupation or your thinking that is the greatest obstacle to getting back on your feet? Now that's a doozy - isn't it? Tough question to think about, but many would respond that its the economy and high unemployment or their occupation or career.

While their is no doubt about the state of the economy, perhaps during these times it's a good time to consider adjusting your thinking to influence your situation going forward. What does that mean exactly? Well for starters, if you don't like your job or don't see a future in your career field, why are you breaking your neck trying to get reemployed in a position or career you don't like? Hummh, another head scratcher huh. Here's another Einstein moment - why not set your career goals around more fulfilling things - like your family and friends versus monetary gain. Don't get me wrong - personally I am not advocating life as a pauper; but, most of us know the reasons for pursuing big paychecks has little to do with the paycheck and more to do with the ego. Since ego has been getting mankind in trouble for - i don't know - two thousand plus years now - it might be worth your while to at least make a quick once over to make sure you aren't contributing to your job situation woes, more than the economy is contributing.

In short, take some time to recognize key issues with your job situation, don't let pursuing the job with a big paycheck or the big boss career be a misconceptions you fall for feebly. The price you pay for such a mistake will likely be a lot more than losing your job. In fact, in a paradoxical kind of way, losing your job in such a case, may be more of a benefit than a loss.