There is a comfort that comes from a two-income household. While it isn’t easy when one spouse gets canned, at least the other is still bringing in a paycheck.

But what happens when both wife and husband hit career hell? And there are young children in the mix?

You have to rethink your job strategy pronto.

I got an email last week from a former newspaper colleague of mine from Tampa, Florida. It was a short note about how he was applying for a job as an emergency dispatcher with the Sheriff’s Office in town and wanted to know if he could add me to his list of personal references.

This was a bit surprising because this guy has been a journalist for years and was pretty set on this career.

He figured I would be perplexed so he added this line:

“Sounds strange, I know. I’ll fill you in on all the details soon. Right now I gotta rush this thing through.”

This morning I got the follow-up email explaining what was going on.

The newspaper he was freelancing for slashed its budget to the core and had little money for contractors like him; and his wife, a long-time employee in the mortgage sector, had been recently laid off after months of speculation that the pink slip was coming.

“So we’ve both been on the job hunt for quite some time,” he wrote. “After much drudgery and soul searching, not to mention financial hardship, here’s where we’re at now:”

His wife had just passed “her final state exam to become a certified nursing assistant, the first important (and employable) step to her eventually making RN or LPN. She’s sent out a barrage of resumes to local facilities. Fingers crossed.”

And he was pursuing the Sheriff’s dispatcher job.

Here’s some of the thought process that went into his decision to change careers:

Why do I want this kind of job? At first I was just as bemused. But I’m a good communicator if you boil me down, whether writing is involved or not. This job is mostly about talking to a wide range of people over the phone, getting the information I need out of them quickly, and recording it accurately. I’ve been doing that for the paper for over 15 years. That’s how I’ve been selling myself to the Sheriff so far, and it’s working (even though I had calm their early fears about my background in the news media. No, I’m not some deep cover reporter on special assignment, I told them.).
Besides, like most government jobs, this one has above average benefits and job security. Those are huge factors for young parents in a shaky economy.

This all makes sense. And it takes a lot of balls to totally embark on a new career path.

His choice and the choice of his wife may not be choices you would make. But I share this story because it’s a great example of how we have to all be ready to make changes and pursue new avenues in this economy. This couple was probably driven into action, in part, by the need to provide for their two young kid, both under 6.

But the bottom line is they looked at the world around them and figured out two gigs that would probably offer some job security.

Where they will end up is unclear, but they are both hard working individuals who won’t let economic hardships derail them.

It’s not easy folk, there is no way around it.

Here are some of my friends final thoughts:

“These past couple of years have been very trying to for us. We see some real light at the end of the tunnel, but we’re not quite there yet.”

If you’re looking for a town where there’s major job opportunities you should check out Fishers, Indiana, or Round Rock, Texas.

Money Magazine just released its list of top small cities to live in and these two have the highest job-growth rates among the top ten.

Fishers and Round Rock are indeed small towns, with populations of 61,800 and 92,300 respectively, but if you don’t mind that it’s an option.

I’m pointing out some U.S. cities to consider right now because my column this week on MSNBC.com is about how many readers have been asking me about job opportunities abroad. Making a move overseas is a difficult proposition so maybe many of you may want to consider something in the good old USA before you start taking French lessons.

Whether you make the move abroad, or stay closer to home, here’s a great resource list from Quint Careers if you’re even considering relocating.

Someone asked me this weekend if I had a wanderlust problem because I’ve moved a lot and had many, many jobs. New York, Delaware, Florida. UPI, Women’s Wear Daily, St. Petersburg Times, etc. It never really seemed like a lot to me, but this guy seemed to think I had trouble staying in one place.

I guess I’m not tied to one place, never have been. I could pack up and move my family overseas tomorrow and be happy as a clam. That’s just how I’ve always been.

You have to make the best of your life where ever you are. That’s how I was brought up. Maybe it’s because my parents felt forced to leave their homeland, Istanbul, Turkey. Maybe they just drummed into my head how no matter where you’re forced to go you make the best of it. They did.

I know, right now, a lot of people may be making moves across country, or to other lands, because they feel compelled to do so in this economy. You have to do what’s right for your economic health and your family. I’m here to tell you it can be great experience if you make the most of it. Go out and make friends, get to know the area, participate in community events. You make it great. Great doesn’t just happen.

I interviewed Bernd Beetz, the chief executive officer of Coty Inc., a fragrance and cosmetics producer, a while back for the New York Times, and he was one of those constant travelers, changing careers and countries often in his career.

He shared a great story with me about moving around from country to country when he was with Proctor & Gamble starting out on the management track and how he learned to adapt.

Here’s an excerpt from the story I wrote:

My career has been very international, and in some ways my father influenced that as well. I started in Germany with Proctor & Gamble, then moved to Paris, then Geneva, then Rome, then Milan, then Istanbul, then briefly in Cincinnati, then to Frankfort. I stayed in most places about two and a half years and was mainly the general manager.

At the end of the 1980s, I was brought in to help our Turkish operations. Procter & Gamble had bought one of the biggest local companies making detergent, toothpaste, shampoos. It was called Mintax. At the time, Turkey was called the Vietnam of Procter & Gamble because the operations were in a downspin. I was in my early 40s and Turkey was a totally different experience. The workforce, suppliers, unions. It was a country where the government changed the rules every other week. The initial team couldn’t control the situation, inflation was 80, 90 percent, and turnover was high. The plant looked not anything close to standard, which we had in the U.S. or Western Europe. It was obvious a lot of things needed to be done.

I immediately realized it was the way they produced, it was the way of thinking. There was a huge workforce, about 3,000 from Mintax, and the work was very manual, not very structured. They were basically living day by day.

The workers and management received me with open arms. First of all, I became part of them. Soccer is big in Turkey so I played soccer on what was the Mintax soccer team. I got close to their habits and got close to them outside, the managers, workers on the floor. I went to their homes for dinner. You go to their homes, take your shoes off, have tea. Most of the time they cooked in front of me and I saw how the meals were prepared. You got to know the whole family; the whole clan comes around. I became very visible.

Is it as easy as joining a soccer team? Maybe not. But we can all adapt if we put our hearts into it.

Bon Voyage.

It seems almost everyone has a “sky-is-falling” attitude toward the economy these days.

You know we’re in trouble when long-time NPR commentator Daniel Schorr starts singing depression era songs.

“I have found myself reflecting on the recession, no depression, that I experienced in my youth,” said 92-year-old Schorr in his analysis yesterday of our present economy. After describing the horrific economic tragedy of the Depression, he then was asked by Liane Hansen, the host of NPR’s Weekend Edition, about the music of the era. He said there was one song he remembered, “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime.”

It’s a haunting song about the Great Depression written by Yip Harburg.

They used to tell me I was building a dream, and so I followed the mob,
When there was earth to plow, or guns to bear, I was always there right on the job.
They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead,
Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?

Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time.
Once I built a railroad; now it’s done. Brother, can you spare a dime?
Once I built a tower, up to the sun, brick, and rivet, and lime;
Once I built a tower, now it’s done. Brother, can you spare a dime?

Here’s a more updated version by George Michael I love:

While it was a great radio moment, hearing Schorr sing the old tune a cappella, I couldn’t help but think these type of comparisons are hurting all of us.

I know, Starbucks is closing 600 stores and with that 12,000 jobs will be lost. And the U.S. auto industry is in a tail spin. Not to mention banking and the brokerage industry. Thousands of jobs among hourly workers, and even among the mansion set have been hacked and slashed.

But are we really talking economic collapse? There’s been so much shrill in the media lately and among politicians that it got me wondering if we really should be making any analogies to the Depression.

Since I didn’t live through that time I figured I had to ask a historian if our present economic state mirrors the Depression, or have we all lost our minds?

“I’d be happy to offer my two cents though you ask quite the large question,” says Peter Cole, an associate professor and labor historian from Western Illinois University.

“My short answer is no, we are nowhere near the economic conditions of the Great Depression, fortunately,” he maintains.

Phew!

“While foreclosures are at the level that they were then, seeing that unemployment is SO much lower that there’s really no comparison,” he adds.

You all might be wondering why I’m making such a big deal out of this. Why I care that some people equate our present situation to something much more dire.

The reason is simple, if we think the sky is falling we may be apt to make rash career decisions right now. We may be convinced to accept less pay or benefits because everything is falling apart, and oh, aren’t we lucky that an employer has offered us a job at all.

This is never a good way to navigate through your work life, with a sense of panic.

Look, it is bad out there right now. We’re all struggling with higher prices and many of our jobs could be up on the chopping block, but we have to resist this crowd mentality of fear. There are still jobs to be had and many companies are stilling turning in profits.

So, take a deep breath and concentrate, with a level head, on your own situation and your own job opportunities.

Clearly, there are economic problems, but our worries may be feeding the flames.

Here are some more of Cole’s insights:

The tremendous anxiousness of most US workers and the powerlessness most feel, the ever-dwindling number of folks with employer-based health and retirement benefits, the very real fear that globalization will result in more jobs lost (not just in manufacturing), the seemingly-endless decline of US organized labor (essential, I believe, for a healthy society and economy with a large middle class) all suggest real issues that dramatically affect the lives of us workers as well as the entire economy. Just look at the stats on number of strikes today compared to previous decades; SO much lower. That, too, is a result of not just Bush’s anti-worker National Labor Relations Board and the Department of Labor but longer trends of corporations cavalierly ignoring US labor law because they know no enforcement is happening.

I wouldn’t say that the problems we are facing our trivial, not by a long shot, but I wouldn’t say that they have risen (or, perhaps, I should say fallen) to the level of the 1930s. Of course, it was the economic crisis of the 30s that produced many of the programs that ALL Americans have benefited from for almost a century as well as a revitalized labor movement that greatly democratized workplaces and our nation. Americans are more individualistic today but I believe that a dose of collective action would be quite beneficial. But Americans and US workers are scared and individualistic and unions are weak, if attempting to rectify that.

Now I understand being spurred to take “collective action”. But that can only be spurred by anger and disgust on the part of workers who believe they’re getting the shaft, and not because pundits, journalists and politicians pull a Chicken Little on us and have everyone running scared.

It seems like a job blood bath out there. A broad range of companies, everything from car makers to latte makers, are slashing their workforces.

It’s time to start thinking about what your options are, updating that resume, and maybe even calling that recruiter who left you a couple of messages months ago.

I know, many of you think recruiters are useless. My husband compares many of them to car salesmen.

One anonymous writer on a message board where the topic was “recruiters are useless” summed it up best:

The good recruiters call you back and follow up. The idiots are three inches up your ass when they see your resume and then you never hear back if you aren’t ideal for the company that minute.

And that’s the reality of life, some good, some bad.

That said, how do you get the most out of the good ones?

*First off, you have to figure out if they’re good at what they do. There is nothing wrong with asking these recruiters about their credentials. Ask them, “tell me about the last person you placed. What kind of job did he or she get? Did they get the salary they wanted?” If a recruiter refuses to answer these questions DO NOT WORK WITH THEM.

*Look for expertise, especially if you are looking for a job in a technical field. If a recruiter has no idea what Java or PHP is, then you probably don’t want them trying to place you in a web applications gig. The big problem with working with a non expert is they won’t be able to do a great job singing your praises because they don’t understand what your praises really are.

*Beware the email written in broken English. Look, both my parents came to this country from Istanbul and struggled with learning English, so I’m not anti foreigner. But a lot of recruiting work is being outsourced to places like India, especially contract jobs, and that means you’ll get spotty results, if any results at all. One job seeker told me he got a call from someone calling himself “Bob” who had a think Indian accent, and the job lead went no where.

*You also have to do your part when connecting with a recruiter. “Recruiters can end up seeing hundreds of resumes a day,” says executive search experts Ron Bates in an article about recruitnig. “Did I mention your resume should be ‘pin sharp’? Did I mention you should always attach a resume even in a follow up email to an unresponsive recruiter? Even if a recruiter took the time to respond to your email or voicemail there is still a very good chance they have not actually seen/read let alone - saved - your resume.”

*And think about packaging yourself well. “Give them your 30-Second Elevator Pitch. Don’t tell them your life story,” Bates writes. “Ask them what if anything they’d like to know more. Ask them the best way and when to follow-up, or if they’d like to schedule some time.”

*Stick to your guns when it comes to money and benefits. These recruiters want to get you on the cheap so they have little incentive making sure you get the salary you need. If you’ve done your research and figured out what a fair salary for the job you’re looking for is, don’t let a recruiter low ball you. Make it clear that you’re not willing to compromise.

Here’s a great resource from career website Quintessential Careers for finding a recruiter in your field.

If your not going to ask these men and women the tough questions and do you homework when it comes to figuring out what you want out of a job, then forget about using a recruiter. These people will do more harm than good to your ego at a time when you might be fragile. You don’t need anyone telling you your not worth the money, or your skills are lacking if they really aren’t. And that’s just what could happen if you end up with a recruiting bozo that’s just trying to fill a quota and doesn’t no anything about your industry.

And who needs yet another person not calling you back or answering your emails.

It’s easy to identify someone who has a disability if they’re in a wheel chair or walking around with a seeing eye dog.

But what about a worker who wears a hearing aid or an employee who has epilepsy?

Can a manager fire someone with a hearing aid because they use a hearing aid? Can a boss demote a worker who has an epileptic fit?

Today, the answer is pretty much “yes.”

Under the Americans With Disabilities Act the law is pretty clear on those easy to spot disabilities. You can’t fire someone because they’re blind or unable to walk.

For all those other disabled employees out there who have what seems like less constraining physical issues or for those who are able to deal with their ailments through the use of medicines or prosthetics, for example, they are not typically covered under the ADA.

All that may change soon. The House passed a bill this week that would expand the ADA to cover disabilities that didn’t come under the really disabled umbrella.

This from the Washington Post this week:

WASHINGTON — People who take medicine to control epilepsy, diabetes or cancer or use prosthetic limbs or hearing aids could use the Americans With Disabilities Act to fight workplace discrimination under legislation the House passed Wednesday.

Lawmakers said the Supreme Court has limited the ADA’s reach since it was signed into law by the first President Bush in 1990. “For some the ADA is failing to live up to its promise,” said Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Calif., top Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee.

The bill, passed 402-17, is designed to bring people back under the ADA’s protection. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.

Under the ADA today, a disability would have to “substantially” impact a person daily activities. Under the new legislation the wording would be changed to “materially restricts”, opening up the door for many disabled individuals who are challenged by their disability but can do many day-do-day functions we all do.

So what will this mean for the American workforce? Simply, more people will be considered disabled under the ADA.

“This means more employees will be able to ask for an accommodation even when the medication they take or the device they use (such as a hearing aid) makes them fully capable to do their job,” says David Ritter, an expert on employment law and chair of Neal Gerber Eisenberg’s Labor & Employment Group. “Employers will have to grant accommodations and engage in an interactive process with many more employees.”

It’s unfortunate that we need a law to force employers to “engage in an interactive process” with their workers.

“I was not going to stay at a job and be miserable. Everyone around me would have been miserable too.”

That statement came from Lorna Francis, a former colleague and good friend. Many moons ago we worked together in Manhattan at a fashion publication called Footwear News. (Yes, we all had to pay our dues folks.)

I recently asked her about her decision to get the hell out of journalism and pursue her passions — food and entertaining. I wanted to know how she was able to leave a long-time career and embark on something totally new with no guarantees she’d be able to ever make a living.

So many readers tell me about what their dream jobs would be, but few have the guts to go for it.

Lorna’s “miserable” comment goes to the very heart of this.

I believe she would have made her co-workers and bosses miserable if she stayed in a gig she didn’t love. Lorna has always worn her heart on her sleeve. She’s brutally honest and will tell you to your face what’s wrong with you. That’s what I love about her.

Maybe this attitude is what gave her the strength to make a major change mid career.

Is there a personality type of someone that can successfully shift career gears?

There are two top types, says Marci Alboher, author of One Person/Multiple Careers: A New Model for Work/Life Success.

There are the “I-do-what-I want” career changer and the “I-have-no-other-choice” career changer, she explains.

Alboher, who also writes the Shifting Careers blog at the New York Times, says Lorna sounds like the kind of person who doesn’t care what other people think, and that makes her a prime candidate for someone who can shift careers easily. Most people are worried what their spouses, parents, friends will think and have difficulty following their work bliss.

The other big category of career changers, she says, are those who are pushed into making a change.

“It doesn’t feel like a choice,” she adds, “but these people make a change because they are laid off, scared or just tired and they’re pushed to a place where they say, ‘what do I have to lose?’”

Lorna left the shoe publication to go into television in the 1990s. I thought she was nuts back then but she saw herself as a TV producer. Well, she took a cut in pay and went off to become a successful producer in cities from Florida to Alabama, and ended up producing for a Houston station.

One day, in 2003, she realized she was numb to the world of news because of all the rapes and murders she was writing about, and on that day began her quest for a new career.

She enrolled in culinary school in Houston for an 18-month program and quit her job at the TV station. To make ends meet she took jobs at retailers like Ann Taylor and Pier One, and the jobs were anything but easy.

“At one point I felt embarrassed working in retail because people treat you differently. They act like they’re better than you,” she explains.

But she persevered even as she struggled financially.

When she graduated she landed a job as catering coordinator for Perry’s Restaurant Group in Houston, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard her sound happier.

I just recently received an email from her that shows how proud she is of her new career.

During a recent high-end party she helped organize, she did such an incredible job that the D.J. who was also hired for the gig sent a letter to her manager about what a great job she and her team did.

While it was normal to get a letter from the people that hire Perry’s it was unusual for a vendor to praise the staff:

Special kudos go to Lorna! She is a wonderful asset to your catering team! Everything ran smoothly due in large part to her leadership and direction! She is a wonderful person!

Lorna was so proud of this letter she wanted to share it with her friends, and it proves that you can survive and thrive when you finally decide to make a major career change.

“I am a firm believer that if you are passionate about something, you should take the leap of faith,” she says. “There’s nothing wrong with taking it, and failing, but there’s something wrong with not taking it at all, and regretting it later.”

See how happy she looks:

Okay, I try not to toot my own horn, too much. But many months ago I wrote about how this would be a tough summer for teens looking for employment. And surprise, surprise, it looks like I was right.

Newspapers across the country, from Michigan to Delaware, have been writing about the problem this week.

From the Detroit Free Press:

Metro Detroit teens might find plenty of opportunities to volunteer this summer, but landing a paid job will not be as easy. And many area employers say teens who have not applied for jobs yet have even slimmer hopes of gainful employment.

And the Wilmington News Journal reports:

Gallucio’s Cafe in Wilmington used to have a handful of teens working part time during the summer, but now those positions have been replaced with full-time and year-round employees.

“Things have changed. The opportunities that were here aren’t here anymore,” said Bob Losey, Gallucio’s owner. “It’s harder for businesses to give summer jobs.”

Losey said that while he has a few teenagers on staff, most of his employees are older and were hired before the summer.

I know, it’s hard for people to plan ahead, especially for younger people. But unfortunately, it will be the savvy teens who were thinking about summer jobs months ago that had the pick of the crop.

There are lots of things working against teens. The economy is at the top of the list. But also, immigrants and older workers are increasingly muscling in on jobs that were once mainly a haven for young kids, things like restaurants, landscaping and clothing shops.

From my MSNBC.com column that ran in March:

A report put out this month by the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University states that “the summer 2008 job outlook for teens looks particularly bleak.”

During the recession of 2001, the teen employment rate plummeted, says Joseph McLaughlin, research associate with the center, maintaining that teens are typically the hardest hit group during tough economic times. “We could be headed toward a historic low in the teen employment rate this summer,” he warns.

Adding to the problems, he says, is the growing number of older workers going after traditional teen jobs in retail and food services, and also the increase in illegal and legal immigrants vying for those jobs.

“Employers view adults as more responsible than teens, and they don’t have to worry about them going back to school,” he notes.

Teens need to keep this in mind when they head over to a store or restaurant and decide to fill out an application.

Please don’t wear shorts and flip flops if you want to make a good impression. I know, it’s summer, you’re out of school and you want to let it all hang out. But just don’t let it hang out too much when you meet a prospective employer.

Here are some sites teens can check out right now: TeenJobSection.com; JobDoggy.com and Groovejob.com.

And here’s some sound advice for parents from Debi Yohn, author of “Parenting College Students: 27 Winning Strategies for Success.”

“Have them talk to parents of their friends, teachers, and adult friends of the family. The teen can let everyone know they are looking for a job,” she notes. “You might role-play this with them so they are more comfortable. But remember, let them do their marketing. Do not do it all for them. You will deprive them of the lesson.”

I know, this is hard for us parents to do. But if we don’t, they’ll end up sitting on our couches and watching TV until they’re 30.

My daughter Circe often asks me what I’m writing about when I’m sitting at my computer typing away. When I told her recently that I was writing about older workers who lose their jobs, she seemed perplexed.

I explained to her how hard it is for people to lose their jobs from a financial and a self-esteem perspective. I didn’t use those exact words, but she seemed to get what I was talking about.

She ended up writing a list for me on what workers can do to help their spirits when they face the loss of a job.

Here are her suggestions:
1. Eat candy.
2. Play video games.
3. Sing the happy song. (You know, the one by Bobby Mcferrin, “Don’t Worry Be Happy”)

There is something about resiliency. If you don’t have it you’re screwed.

“If you choose to, you can morph the worst of times into the best of times if you consciously make the effort to learn lessons from every setback,” says a colleague of mine Karen Salmansohn recently wrote a book about this very topic and she called it “The Bounce Back Book”.

“If you’ve been fired from a job or laid off,” she advises, “use this time as an opportunity to explore a whole new and different career? Or consider starting your own company. Or moving to another city. View ‘change’ as ‘chance.’ You now have a chance to learn something new about yourself - and do something new for yourself.”

I know, she sounds like a crunchy, wide-eyed flower child. But Karen is actually a cynical New Yorker who also tries hard to look at the bright side of life. She wrote a best-selling book called “Be Happy, Dammit” and that’s sort of her mantra.

I asked my intern Katherine to read her latest book and offer her thoughts.

Here’s her short review:

The phrase “you’re fired” is not exactly something an employee wants to hear. But, let’s face it, these words do get spoken. So, what do you do when you’re on the receiving end of that phrase?

Karen Salmansohn, a self-help book writer, dishes out some advice in The Bounce Back Book that may help the suddenly unemployed answer this question.

Bounce Back offers 75 tips that are based on everything from Eastern medicine to Greek philosophy and happiness research. Each tip condenses and simplifies a viewpoint into an easy-to-understand concept, so you don’t have to read an entire narrative to get to the point.

Because Bounce Back applies to anyone who has experienced setbacks and adversity, not every tip applies to the loss of a job, but a few hit the nail on the head.

Tip #15: Find your bounceable people
Salmansohn notes that after any kind of loss or setback it’s common to want to hide away, but it’s much more healthful to seek support. Spend time with people who want you to succeed and believe you can.

Tip #21: When life throws you curveballs, hit them out of the park.
Life has thrown you a curveball and there really isn’t anything you can do about it, except make it work positively for you. So, “if you’ve been fired,” says the author, “consider starting your own company.”

Tip #42: See work failure as “fullure”-full of lessons.
Many successful people have been fired, says Salmansohn. The only difference is that successful people learn from their mistakes and apply those lessons to future endeavors. According to Salmansohn, the Fortune 500 club could easily be called “the Misfortune 500 Club.”

Let’s not join!

I know, it seems pretty bad out there right now.

The jobless rate has hit the highest level in more than two decades. And everyone is wondering what will be the next shoe to drop.

But folks, let’s get our heads together. There are lots of opportunities out there in growth industries, and many companies are going to great lengths to recruit workers these days.

My column this week on MSNBC.com looks at how some firms are using employee testimonials to convince people to consider working for them. Some of the employee videos are corny but a few give you a peak at what it might be like to work for one of these employers, employers that are actually in hiring mode.

OK, I’ve gone over this list before. The job opportunities are a plenty in healthcare; education; consulting; the trades like plumbing and HVAC; all things related to the aging of the population; and a host of green sector jobs, everything from solar energy to bike shops. What about entrepreneurship?

Also, make sure to do what you can to keep your job. Start letting your managers know what you do, and take on some assignments just to let everyone know you’re on the ball and willing to work. Don’t be a loner either. Go out to lunch with coworkers and any manager that will have you. The more everyone feels comfortable with you the harder it will be to add you to the pink-slip list.

If you’ve already lost your job and need advice, please post your questions here. I’ll try to offer you any help I can.

Good luck everyone!

“Disgruntled.” That’s the label supporters of President Bush have put on former White House press secretary Scott McClellan, whose new book exposes alleged dirty deeds by Bush and top White House officials.

The woman who holds McClellan’s position now, Dana Perino, was quoted saying the dreaded word, “disgruntled.”

One thing you learn early on when you enter the workforce is to be careful when dogging your former employer. This has been a piece of career advice that has been handed down from generation to generation.

McClellan probably isn’t worried about his future employability given his book is number one on Amazon today, but for the rest of us who can’t make a killing by writing a tell-all book, we need to think twice before we bitch about a past boss.

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t expose illegal behavior, especially if someone can get hurt. But in this case, waiting until years after you leave a company to expose such behavior is unethical on your part as well. I’ve written before how employee themselves have to stand up for injustices they see, even if it means sacrificing your job. (If McClellan’s allegations are true, that Bush used propaganda to prop up an unjust war, then it seems he had a hand in the tragedy. No?)

But complaining about a former employer, especially to hiring managers that are interviewing you leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.

I know, we’re human, and want to get things off our our chests, but restrain the urge to purge.