Health care writer Corrine Casanova spent several months looking for writing and editing jobs on the Web and e-mailing former colleagues to chat and ask for any employment leads.
It was a comfortable strategy, but few leads trickled in. After attending a Creative Job Search class, she decided to start calling potential employers outside her network.
A suburban Minneapolis hospital marketing staffer told Casanova the inquiry came at the right time and that some freelance assignments could be on the way. Another call to a former competitor brought news of a position in Nevada that might become available soon.
"I thought I was pretty connected, but it wasn't helpful using e-mail and the Web almost exclusively," says Casanova. "In picking up the phone and calling people that I did not know I opened the door to freelancing and potential full-time opportunities."
