For many of us, job hunting can be an emotional process. You will have roadblocks. You will hear the word "NO." You may feel discouraged, and question your own abilities and self worth. If getting a dream job were an easy task then everyone would have one. The secret to finding that killer job is going through an organized job search campaign.

In the 21^st Century, job hunting is a skill you must develop to stay employed - especially in high technology fields like the games industry. Like learning to swim or ride a bike, job-hunting takes practice and planning. The "rule of the game" is that only those who change along with the pace of technology will continue to stay employed. Others will get disqualified.

Advanced technology companies tend to be less stable. It is unusual for our generation to meet a person who actually had the luxury of staying with the same company for 20 or 30 years. This is why job hunting is no longer something that happens when you change jobs. You should be virtually job hunting all the time. Do it informally on a regular basis. Don't expect your employer to tell you in advance that the company could not obtain its second round of venture funding and therefore can no longer employ you. Or that a merger means that you will be losing your job. You should always be aware of what may adversely affect your current job, especially with the rate of consolidation and growth in the games market. You need to keep your finger on the market both inside and outside of your company. Statistics show that the average job hunt can take 6 months! Be proactive in your career planning and not reactive to whether that killer game you just helped create sells or not. Don't depend on the business acumen and skill of the management team running the company. This is your life and your career, so take control of it! Wonder why that guy who started working as a Game Tester the same time you did is now an Executive Producer? Chances are he has a well thought out career objective and job search campaign. Do you?

Plan your career moves and be prepared at all times to be able to demonstrate your skills. Always have an up to date resume. If you’re an Artist, always collect copies of your hard work for demo purposes. If you’re a Game Designer, always keep copies of your game design. If you’re a Game Programmer, always keep copies of freshly created code.

Note: A word on non-disclosure agreements, company confidential information and your demo. Many people struggle with keeping their demos up to date without violating the company's non-disclosure agreement. In this article, I am advocating that you show samples of your most recent work which at times can be product not yet released to market. While you certainly do not want to disclose your company's confidential information, it is my opinion that showing a 1-minute animation, 1 level design, or portion of code pulled out of the context of the game can't in itself reveal the storyline or nature of the game your developing. Therefore, it is my opinion*, you're not violating what is intended by these documents.

*This is the sole opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of GIGnews.com. When in doubt, consult your lawyer.

Day one of your new job should also be day one of your new informal job search. Begin by creating a new job search folder, which you either keep at home, in your briefcase, or in an easy to get to spot in your office. This is the one folder you will snag the day you come to work and discover you have lost your job or that you are no longer able to gain access to your computer files and work you have done.

An organized and structured job search campaign will increase the chances of obtaining the job you want. An organized system will relieve the natural anxiety about what you should be doing next in your job search. It will help prevent you from getting discouraged and help you assess where you stand. Simply stated: Structure provides peace of mind.

The average game company receives over 100,000 unsolicited resumes every year. This is a discouraging fact but don't forget someone does indeed get hired to work at the game company you are approaching. The person with the most organized and most effective job hunting campaign is the one who succeeds!

Job hunting can be broken down into a series of steps starting from the first step which is targeting your search, and ending with your first day on the new job. While I will help you organize your job search in this article, it is important to add your own personality to the job search. Remember to contribute your own uniqueness, just like you would add your own personality and flair to an art image you may be creating, a game design you are flushing out, a presentation you are preparing to give, etc.

Job searching and networking are really about getting yourself noticed. You must do this in an organized and formal process so that you maintain control. You will be creating lists of companies to approach, lists of people currently working at your target companies, maintaining records of interviews, records of conversations and their results, and next steps you must perform per company.

As with most things in life, job-hunting works best when you have a plan of action laid out. Focused and directed people succeed at anything they do. Step one in establishing your job search campaign would be to focus yourself. Determine what job within the game industry you want and, geographically, where you are willing to live and work. If you're new to the industry, you should consider being as flexible on location as possible. Once you have gained industry experience, you will gain more control on geographical preferences as well.

Consider what type and size game company you would be most comfortable working with. Small third party developer? Large publisher? Companies whose product mix is Sports only? Online games? Traditional coin-op games, etc. Once you determine what type of job you seek in the games industry you can then target your search. Develop a list of all game companies in your target area that you wish to approach. Include the names of anyone you know who works at the company or anyone you can identify by researching the website, networking, and reading press releases. If you can't identify any contacts in the company then go out and buy the latest game that your target company has just released. If you interview with this company you will need to know about their games anyway. Having experience, playing them can only make you more credible. There is a list of credits buried in the game or in the games instruction manual. These people can be utilized as contacts for you to approach when you are ready to talk to the company you target. Get on the company website. Most news releases will contain someone's name such as a Producer on a certain title, a Product Marketing person, a PR contact, etc.

The beginning of your job search will be more like networking. At this stage your goal is to identify at least 5 to 10 people per company you intend to approach. Later in your job search some of your identified contacts will turn into prospective job opportunities that you will try to move into job offers.