I wanted to personally thank you after finding my dream job in just about 8 weeks. I took a year off to travel after grad school and everybody told me it would be very difficult to sell that to any employer (it was not). When I came across your book, I thought that it's the perfect way to start a job hunt, slow and thoroughly. I had just finished your book and done the exercises when somebody posted an ad in one of my alumni networks that sounded to good to be true. I did not yet feel confident enough to only rely on the informational interview approach you recommend and decided to begin the job hunt with one traditional application. At least I knew they were really looking for somebody as I could speak with the person who was currently holding the position and absolutely loved it. 

Turns out, I ended up getting that job, having written only one single application! I never believed this would be possible. I know so many MA graduates who looked for jobs for a year, so I'm very excited (and moving to Zambia next week to evaluate an international development project in the education sector). I knew already what I wanted to do and where, but the part about what my special abilities are and how I do things differently than other people proved to be invaluable (I loved the whole book, but this and also the parts on tips for interviews and salary negotiations were particularly important for me as I was much more self-confident after having done my research and knowing what I wanted to find out about the company). I could tell the difference in the 5(!) interviews and people said they were impressed with nuanced I could talk about myself, and especially with the questions I had about them. 

Also, the over 50 informational interviews I did in about 6 weeks helped me to keep up the spirit as I had a positive interaction every day, which is not the norm when you job hunt in an 'old school' style and spend lots of time looking at unrealistic ads and waiting for people to get back to you about applications and CVs you send them, so I really felt empowered and like I'm the one who is holding this whole process in her hand and not like a recent graduate who urgently needs a job. While they [had] not (yet) lead to any job offers, I was amazed by how much I learned, had a lot of fun and highly recommend this strategy to anybody looking for a job.

Your work and your book is simply fabulous, I wish every high school student would get it for graduation.