One email I’ve been getting lately goes something like this:

“I just don’t know if I can get in anymore, there are so many qualified people out there… what chance do I stand if the market stays like this?”

Everyone agrees that there are fewer finance jobs now than at any time since 2002-2003.

But what about the other part of this statement? Are there really “so many qualified people out there?”

No, there aren’t.

And thinking otherwise prevents you from achieving your goals.

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“I was speaking with a partner at a private equity firm recently and brought up how bad the market is. He sympathized with me and told me to take a year off and become a ski bum, then re-apply next year when hiring improves.

Do you think this is a good idea?”

-Anonymous Reader

With all that has happened over the past year and past few weeks, the thought of becoming a ski bum is quite tempting.

And there’s some truth to what the PE partner expressed here: it is worse to waste time with a dead-end job rather than taking a year off.

But should you become a ski bum?

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This article was guest-blogged by Dear John Thain, who wrote John Thain a letter in December 2007 and has yet to hear back. He has now taken his career into his own hands.

–

“The secret of steel has always carried with it a mystery. You must learn its riddle, Conan.

You must learn its discipline. For no one – no one in this world can you trust. Not men, not women, not beasts.

[Points to sword]

This you can trust.”

-Conan’s Father, Conan the Barbarian

Having dealt with recruiters a lot recently – who hasn’t? – I’ve gotten into a certain rhythm and discovered some tips that become apparent with much trial and error.

Regardless of whether you’re newly unemployed or you’re sitting in a terrible place looking to move somewhere better, the rules of taming the recruiter beast are the same.

Oh, and I’ll be using “Recruiter” rather than “Headhunter” throughout because it conjures up images of the brutal kid in dodge ball.

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What is Investment Banking?: Ari Gold: What Bankers Actually Do, Why NOT Do Investment Banking

Investment Banking Lifestyle: A Day in the Life - Worst Day and Best Day, How to Stay Fit, Investment Banking Wardrobe for Men, Investment Banking Lingo Part 1 and Part 2, A Week in the Life (Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday)

Breaking into Finance: How to Get an Investment Banking Job, Networking into Investment Banking, Recruiting in a Tough Market, Breaking in from Engineering, Breaking in from Law, Breaking in from the Back Office

Investment Banking Resumes: How to Write an Investment Banking Resume, How Investment Bankers Read Resumes

Investment Banking Interviews: Investment Banking Interview Guide, The Interview Selection Process, How to Close Your Interviews

Summer Internships: Summer Intern Success Guide, How to Dominate Your Summer Internship, Tips from a Former Summer Analyst, What You Do as a Summer Analyst, 10 Summer Internship "Don't's", How Summer Interns Get Full-Time Offers

Investment Banking Salaries: Investment Banking Salaries vs. McDonald's, Why Investment Bankers Make So Much Money, 2008 Analyst Bonuses

Private Equity / Buyside Jobs: Private Equity Resumes, Private Equity Interviews, The Myth of the Buyside Job, Headhunters: Friend or Foe?

Specific Groups: UBS LA, Boutiques, Restructuring, The Back Office

Quitting Finance: The Conference Room: How You Get Fired, The Farewell Email, A Day in the Life of a Former Investment Banker