Here is an excerpt from an article from ABC News that illustrates the WORST attitude to have in this job market.

Couch PotatoTriple major Jody Ellsworth has had a full-time job for four years, working as much as 60 hours a week to pay her way through school.

All that came to end with graduation today because she doesn’t have a job. “It’s gonna go from waking up at 5:30 to go to work to run to class to run to meetings and then back to work to waking up whenever I feel like it,” said Ellsworth. “Being a couch potato laying around on my parents’ sofa. I’m not looking forward to that.”

Worst of all, six months from now when her student loans come due, she’ll be $30,000 in debt. “What I will do now … is anything. Absolutely anything. Any crap job that I can get I’m gonna take. Babysitting, working on cars. Whatever it takes.”

No matter how frustrating this job market is, you NEVER want to come off as desperate. It’s why job hunting is often compared to dating—desperation is unattractive both to potential employers and potential suitors. “He’ll date anything that breathes” is equivalent to “She’ll take any job that comes with a paycheck.” Neither are compliments.

What may be even worse is Ellsworth’s superior attitude. She says she’ll take “any crap job” and even mentions a couple of examples. Just think how the owner of her local auto shop would react to her calling “working on cars” a “crap job.” The owner puts tons of time and energy into that shop and likely wouldn’t hire someone who considered the work beneath her.

It doesn’t help that Ellsworth plans on getting a job by being a “couch potato.”

It’s a reality that many graduates are going to have to settle for jobs that aren’t their ideal. The best way to think of the job is as an experience booster, an opportunity to network, a chance to find out what you like and don’t like on the job (even if your job has mostly qualities you don’t like, if you think through WHY you don’t like them it will help you in your next job search)—overall, it will be time well-spent if you make use of your situation so that it helps you accomplish your long-term goals. Most companies hire recent graduates because they want a fresh face and new ideas. Give them what they want and you may end up with a glowing recommendation that helps you land your dream job.