LYJ is kicking off a new series of posts with individuals who recently secured new jobs to learn how they did it and what made the difference.

Joanna is a 25-year old nonprofit professional with a brand new job at a foundation where she is doing exactly what she had hoped to be doing – writing, editing, and managing the foundation’s Web site and publications.

Here are the secrets to Joanna’s success for landing this fantastic new job:

1. How long were you unemployed?
In total, I was unemployed for about five months.

2. What was your job search strategy during this period?

I traveled for a month and a half after I resigned from my job, and returned right before Thanksgiving. Since it was the start of the holiday season, I was pretty passive at first, thinking it’d all gear up in January. Some time in December, I must have glimpsed at my dwindling savings and panicked. I applied for two jobs that day and had an interview the next day.

That didn’t end up working out, and so I started spreading the word to everyone I knew that I was looking for a job. I built up my LinkedIn profile and tweaked my resume constantly. For two weeks I applied to at least one job each day, looking primarily on Idealist.org and Mediabistro.com.

In the meantime, an old coworker had passed my resume along to her colleague, and I had another interview. It was apparent the job wasn’t a good fit for me though, so I continued networking and looking.

The owner of my favorite bar actually ended up connecting me with one of his friends who had just left her job. It turns out we are alums of the same college, and though I was under-qualified, I had applied for her old job the week before! She put in a good word for me with her old supervisors, but that also didn’t materialize…

3. How did you ultimately come to obtain your current new job? (Through a friend, cold application, etc.)

I found the job on Idealist.org and applied for it cold.

4. What do you think were the secrets to your success?

As always, I found out who the hiring manager was, and addressed my cover letter to her, even though I knew it’d go through HR first. I just knew she’d be the one making the decision, ultimately.

I tried to become an expert on the organization by perusing their Web site, and looking them up on Google News. In my interview, I mentioned an op-ed written by one of their staff members, and they were impressed I had found it.

I also have a portfolio of design and written work I’ve done through the years.

After the interviews, there were a couple of questions I felt I could have answered better, so I clarified my responses in my thank-you emails. In total, I interviewed with eight people, and each got a thank-you email after every interview – so time-consuming, but clearly worth it!

5. What advice do you have for jobseekers out there?

People like to help other people, so don’t be afraid to let people know you’re job searching.

I think it really makes a difference to be passionate about the job you’re applying for. It was much easier to write a good cover letter when I really wanted the job.

Also, practicing how to answer interview questions was key. First, I went through them by myself, and then my roommate interviewed me. He was great about being tough and providing constructive criticism.

At interviews, it’s good to keep in mind, they’re going to hire someone they want to work with. So don’t be afraid to loosen up a bit; you’re just having a conversation – be likable!

For help with your job search in NYC, LYJ (Love Your Job) Search has a new start date of Monday, April 12th! If you’d like to share the secrets of your success for your job search, email us at lyjnow (at) gmail.com.