[dhitchco]

As an old man, let me chime in with lessons in life:

1) Job networking is a CONSTANT thing. You can't just network when you're looking for your "first" job (no pun intended) and you can't just do networking when you're in-between jobs (e.g. laid-off). It's a constant part of life, and it's not bragging, just sharing info on what you do. Be sure to ask the other person what he/she does as well....

2) You will indeed have more than one job in your career life. So, plan for it. There's not much left in the realm of a 30-40 year one-job career path. Therefore, be prepared to be booted-out of a job/company (fired, laid-off, bankrupt yourself, etc). It may not actually happen, but you have to have a game plan if it does ever happen. Grab your 401K savings, and move on to the next job.

3) The game of careers and job-hopping won't happen instantly. So, be sure to take time in-between jobs to "smell the roses". If you're young, go travel the world! If you've got family, enjoy time with them....

Most importantly, make sure that your paper resume really tells HOW you did a job, not WHAT you did. be sure EVERY line-item has quantifiable results and is written clearly.

And, throughout life, be gracious.......