4) Contacts Participate in online discussion groups, attend conferences, industry related meetings including software user groups and network. Keep your ears open for opportunities. Call friends you haven't seen in ages because you have been so swamped with work. Invite them to get out of the office and take them to lunch. You can check out their company and see if it's the kind of environment you would like. Ask your friends if they have any leads and be willing to share information with them as well. If you meet with anyone, be sure to send thank you notes.

5) Research
Do some research to find the employers that offer the kind of work you want to do. Target employers that offer that kind of work. This research will help you prepare for interviews.

Visit Websites like Animation World Network (www.awn.com) regularly and read trades like Animation Magazine. Visit company Websites. If you don't own a computer you may gain access to the Web through local libraries and colleges. Libraries also often subscribe to many trade publications like Variety and Hollywood Reporter. Most jobs aren't advertised but news articles offer clues for work. Look at announcements about new company launches, people changing jobs, or special projects.

Take Time Off
If you are laid off don't be ashamed of losing your job. Chuck Jones, Glen Keane and Steve Jobs were all out on the street once. Just regroup and take it as an opportunity to move up. Sometimes getting laid off gives you a chance to move up or into a new area. Think about applying in a category the last company never wanted to promote you to.

Give yourself a chance to grieve over losing your job, if you need to. But don't let your self-esteem suffer. Being laid off or fired is not a crime. It doesn't mean you are bad or your work was bad, just that the company doesn't need your skills at this time.

You may feel cast adrift on a desert island, but you are not marooned. Attitude makes all the difference so take time to realize that you may have just landed in paradise. Your new situation may be just the break you need. Don't panic and start looking for work immediately or you may end up in a job that just pays the bills, but doesn't meet your other goals or advance your career.

You need to be refreshed to start looking for a job so take a two week vacation and get away from your normal stomping grounds. Getting away will give you a different perspective. The place you go doesn't have to be an island, exotic or expensive, just a change of scene.

During your vacation, your assignment is to daydream. Make a list of what you liked about your last job and what you didn't like. What do you want on your next job? What kind of company do you want to work for? To be happy in life you have to like your work.

Time for Take Off
If you have your emergency kit prepared, when disaster strikes you will be ready with your marketing tools (an up to date resume, portfolio, demo reel and shot list). You know what you want to do because you have done the self-assessment and the research, so now is the time to relaunch your career. Make lots of calls. Keep conversations brief (a minute or two tops) and to the point. Find out if they are hiring in your category and who to address a package to. Spend at least two hours a day making contacts/calls and get those packages in the mail. Follow up in 3 to 6 weeks. It takes work to find work. These tips will help you get through the down times and back in the action at a job you want. Your career will take off again.

Having held every job in the entertainment industry and weathered many layoffs, Pamela Kleibrink Thompson is uniquely qualified as a career coach, independent recruiter and management consultant. She frequently speaks about careers at colleges and universities.