Minnesota

Minnesota Albany Albert Lea Alexandria Apple Valley Arden Hills Austin Avon Baudette Baxter Becker Belle Plaine Bemidji Benson Blaine Bloomington Blue Earth Brainerd Breckenridge Breezy Point Brooklyn Center Brooklyn Park Buffalo Burnsville Caledonia Cambridge Cannon Falls Carlton Chanhassen Chaska Cloquet Coon Rapids Crookston Deerwood Detroit Lakes Duluth Eagan Eden Prairie Edina Elk River Eveleth Fairmont Faribault Fergus Falls Finlayson Forest Lake Fosston Fridley Glencoe Grand Marais Grand Rapids Hallock Ham Lake Hastings Hibbing Hinckley Hoyt Lakes Hutchinson International Falls Inver Grove Heights Jackson Lakeville Litchfield Little Falls Long Lake Lutsen Luverne Mankato Maple Grove Maplewood Marshall Mendota Heights Milaca Minneapolis Minnetonka Montevideo Montgomery Monticello Moorhead Moose Lake Mora Morris Mounds View Mountain Iron New Prague New Ulm Nisswa North Branch Northfield Oak Park Heights Oakdale Onamia Orr Ortonville Owatonna Park Rapids Paynesville Pequot Lakes Perham Pine River Pipestone Plymouth Preston Princeton Prior Lake Proctor Ramsey Red Wing Redwood Falls Richfield Rochester Rogers Roseau Roseville Sauk Centre Sauk Rapids Savage Shakopee Shoreview Sleepy Eye South St. Paul Spring Valley St. Cloud St. James St. Louis Park St. Paul St. Peter Staples Stewartville Stillwater Thief River Falls Tofte Tower Two Harbors Virginia Wabasha Wadena Walker Warroad Waseca White Bear Lake Willmar Windom Winona Woodbury Worthington Zumbrota

With Minneapolis' unemployment rate holding steady at about 7.1%, there are many people in the Twin Cities looking for a job right now. If you're one of them, here are a few resources that may ease the burden of your search:

1. Know who the players are. Five Fortune 500 companies have their headquarters here: Target Corp, US Bancorp, Xcel Energy, Ameriprise Financial, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. The city's major employers include Target, Wells Fargo, Ameriprise, Star Tribune, U.S. Bancorp, Xcel Energy, IBM, Piper Jaffray, RBC Dain Rauscher, ING Group, and Qwest. There's also the Mayo Clinic in nearby Rochester. Go directly to these companies' websites and search for jobs from there. Many of them don't need to advertise on sites other than their own.
2. Craig's List, Indeed.com, Star Tribune, and the State of Minnesota websites. All of these websites are valuable places to search for a job. Of them, the most valuable one is probably Indeed.com. But put a lot of irons in the fire and diversify your search-don't just submit your application to one place.
3. LinkedIn. LinkedIn tailors the job search to keywords that match job descriptions already on your resume. It also allows you to search your network for possible contacts at different employers.
4. Your alma mater's alumni association and career bank. The university you went to is a valuable resource for networking yourself into a new career.
5. Professional associations. Most professional associations have a "Find a Job" link on their website. This is an excellent way to find jobs that are suited to your background.
6. Temp Agencies. When all else fails, it never hurts to find a temp job while you're waiting for a permanent position to come along. What's more, temp jobs may lead to a permanent position with the company that you're temping with. Kelly Services, Robert Half Legal, and Manpower are all excellent resources for this line of work.

Job Hunting manuals like What Color is Your Parachute? can be helpful during a career transition. Also, try volunteer work while you're looking for a job, because it will occupy your time and improve your spirits. What's most important when searching for a job in Minneapolis is not to give up. The right job is out there for you, it just may take awhile to find it.

Lisa Brown is a Sales and Marketing Associate for Almost Home USA ( Corporate Housing Minneapolis ), a corporate housing company whose goal is to provide such excellent experiences that clients feel almost home.