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Speaking Point: Candidates need to stay positive because the news is so negative! For example, according to a recent study conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), employers expect to hire a staggering 22% fewer college grads than they actually hired in '08. To make matters worse, 46% indicate they are unsure about hiring prospects for the fall of '09. Another 17% say they expect to trim back even further.

Speaking Point: A positive mindset is especially critical in today's job search environment candidates will experience twice the rejection than under "normal" market conditions. Frequent rejection can often lead to loss of confidence, depression and ultimately a defeatist mentality. The tendency then is to cut back on job prospecting. In fact, candidates need to increase their prospecting exponentially. Job hunting remains a numbers game let's say that in good times, you'd need to send out 25 resumes to land 3 interviews resulting in 1 job offer.& nbsp; Today, you'd need to double your efforts at a minimum. STAYING POSITIVE KEEPS YOU IN THE HUNT!

Speaking Point: Finally, there's the Law of Attraction. People want to be around positive people. They want to help positive people. Maintaining a positive attitude will significantly help candidates throughout the entire process from networking to interviewing.

Speaking Point: Use positive affirmations. Positive affirmations should, a) be written in the first person, b) avoid negative language, and, c) expressed in present terms. For example: which affirmation sounds better to you (say it out loud): "I am succeeding" or, "I will not fail?" Although the differences are subtle, the subconscious mind picks up on subtleties. Therefore, job hunters should write their affirmation along the following lines: "I am succeeding in finding my dream entry-level position as a marketing analyst." Finally, the positive affirmation should be repeated out loud 5-10 times, 3 times per day.

Speaking Point: "Act-As-If" Let's face it, we're all human and sometimes we may not be thinking positively about our situation. In times like these, behave in a positive manner even if you don't feel like it. If you're inner voice is telling you that you're not up to making one more networking phone call, just do it anyway! Oftentimes, the mere act or going through the motions is enough to get us out of a mental rut.

Speaking Point: Have a PLAN. It's amazing how much more positive (and successful) people are when they wake up in the morning with a specific plan of action. The plan should set out short- and long- term SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Timebound) .

Speaking Point: FAITH works! Although the perception might be that many people have lost faith (or no faith at all) in God, recent studies show that approximately 75% of Americans believe in God (or some form of a Higher Power). Why not tap into that Higher Power through prayer, meditation, etc.? Faith has proven to be an amazing source of power, encouragement and inspiration to those who practice and apply it.

Speaking Point: Avoid negative people, influences and situations. There's a lot of FEAR talk going on nowadays. Fear can be paralyzing. IN fact it's often noting more than "False Evidence Appearing as Real." Avoid it at all costs. A recent college grad met with me about a month ago. She was giving in to all the fear messages and becoming despondent about her chance of landing a job by summertime. To make matters worse, she was looking for a position in publishing an industry hard hit by the economy and her parents were putting enormous pressure on her. I counseled her to not give in to her "fear talk" and although prospects were tough for her in particular, she should not give up to quickly on her dream. A strategy was developed with a plan for execution. Within three weeks she landed a posit

Speaking Point: a reminder that the positive thinking that I espouse is based in a combination of psychology and spirituality that has a deep tradition in American culture. The principles work when worked. Also, positive thinking must be followed up with ACTION you can't just sit in your dorm (or on the beach) thinking about the great job you want you have to do something about it. Finally, positive thinking will help you to be successful once you've found your dream job=2 0 in a team oriented work environment, employers look more favorably upon employees who can inspire and energize others.