Susan Maciak’s Job Shopping: Don’t Settle for a Job that Sucks exemplifies creating literary lemonade out of the sour economy. She brings cleverness, snappy language and design sense to the employment guidebook market, incorporating advice on how to identify and market one’s skills into a gentle beige and light blue, dark green and purple color scheme. Graphics and the multicolored text and layout of each page draw readers in and focus their attention on the information presented, while the content is detailed enough to provide real information but short enough to avoid wordiness.

                Maciak’s upbeat tone empowers while sharing straightforward truth. Those working through her career program take practical action every step of the way, listing skills, developing written goals, evaluating and choosing options. The curriculum engages participants, keeping them involved while helping them put the concepts to memory.

                Job Shopping includes information useful for all ages, and goes beyond the traditional skills checklist/resume and interview pointers to offer information on how to work a room and talk with a variety of people, how and where to find job leads, and how to market oneself as a product, with a concise pitch describing skills and career interests. The comprehensive nature of this resource will come in handy in the modern economy, where one must increasingly promote oneself: simply filling out applications and sending resumes and being willing to work will not go far enough.

                To improve Job Shopping, some acknowledgement of the current economic situation would help so people have a sense that the author recognizes and has adapted to current realities. One fellow author at the San Francisco Writers’ Conference glanced at the subtitle and blurted, “Don’t Settle for a Job that Sucks?! How about ‘How to Find Any Job at All!” Maciak’s enthusiasm would certainly allow her to mention economic changes without coming off as pessimistic or interfering with the positive, action-oriented style.

 Also, today’s job seekers need and want information about how to deal with rejections…how to maintain one’s spirits and also the logistics of how and when to follow up, when it may be appropriate to apply again to the same firm, how to know when to keep pursuing a particular position. Older/more experienced job seekers may want a cleaner, more sophisticated look and feel, as well as advice more specifically suited to their situations (i.e. how to handle career changes, when to accept a job with lower pay/status, etc.) Much of Maciak’s advice works for people in all stages of life and professional development, particularly the aspects of the book which deal with courtesy and respect. However, those with work or advanced educational experience may connect better emotionally with a manual which acknowledges the work they have already completed and has less of a first-job feel.

                Overall, Job Shopping: Don’t Settle for a Job that Sucks! is smooth, upbeat, and professional. The manual provides comprehensive, practical information and meets very real needs for today’s jobseekers without compromising style and design.

 Susan Maciak is a member/consultant with Cameo Career and Corporate Consulting, LLC and she and her book are available through the firm’s website, www.cameocareer.com