亲爱的安妮：还有几周我就要大学毕业了，大学期间我主修英语，辅修电影。我在南加州长大，总是梦想着进入电影这一行，将来自己制作或导演电影。我已经写了几个剧本，我的编剧老师们（同时也是电影业的资深人士）也认为不错。我在制片公司实习过几次，因此有一些实践经验。

    我的问题是要想在电影圈里谋得一职，这种想法有多现实？我知道我必须从底层慢慢做上去，但我的父母总是告诉我，电影圈竞争非常激烈（我也知道这一点），成功与否很大程度上取决于运气和时机（等等），我应该拿一张教师证，找一份“正经的工作”，把写剧本当做闲暇的兴趣爱好。我担心如果这样做，我永远也无法实现梦想中的事业。你怎么看？——来自加州圣地亚哥小镇拉荷亚的迷茫者

亲爱的迷茫者：我不想反驳你的父母，他们只是不想看到你在这个极其残酷的行业中痛苦挣扎。但在决定退而求其次之前，你（和他们）或许可以看看一本新书《我得到了梦想的工作，你也能：大学毕业后打造理想职业的七个步骤》（I Got My Dream Job and So Can You: 7 Steps to Creating Your Ideal Career After College）。这是一本关于如何追求梦想职业的实用指南——而且，大多数建议和真知灼见也同样适用于其他求职者，而不仅仅是刚刚毕业的人。

    这本书的作者彼得•雷伯曼说：“大多数人轻易就放弃了他们真正想要的工作。”他给出的建议以及他目前的职业教练工作都是根据个人的亲身经验。2003年作为约翰霍普金斯大学（Johns Hopkins University）的四年级学生，雷伯曼希望能进入职业球队工作。当时的失业率创下十年高点，在这样的背景下，“很多很多人都建议我别做这个，找些竞争不那么激烈的行业，”他回忆说。

    雷伯曼没听这些劝告。那年春天，他听说某运动品牌公司的一位高管会来参加一个就业研讨会并发言，于是就报名参加了这次会议，希望能向这位高管当面请教，怎样才能进入运动营销行业。当时提问的学生很多，但雷伯曼是其中唯一在研讨会结束后继续与演讲者保持联系的一个。

    这是个聪明的做法。后来，这位高管把雷伯曼介绍给了几位业内人士——其中一位后来告诉他，NBA华盛顿奇才队（Washington Wizards）的营销团队有一个空缺。他提交了申请并获得了录取，大约18个月后，23岁的他被提拔进了管理层。

    雷伯曼在新出版的书中为后来者列出了详细的策略。下面是其中部分要点：

    不要追逐别人的梦想。“追逐热门行业并不会让你找到自己的梦想工作，”雷伯曼说。“必须诚实面对自己内心的渴望。答案就在你自己心里，而不是在外界的某个地方。”

    经济问题不重要。“你需要几份工作？不是100份，不是25份，甚至连3份也不需要，而只需要1份，”他说。“只有你觉得经济是个问题时，它才会成为问题”，这时，你就会停止尝试。

    Dear Annie: I'm graduating from college in a few weeks, with a major in English and minor in film. I grew up in southern California and have always wanted to work in the movie business, eventually producing and maybe directing, and I've written a couple of screenplays that my screenwriting professors (who are also movie industry veterans) have said are good. I've also done a couple of internships at production companies, so I have some hands-on experience.

    My question is, how practical is it to pursue a film career? I know I'd have to start at the bottom and work my way up, but my parents keep telling me that show business is hyper-competitive (which I know), success depends too much on luck and timing (ditto), and I should get a teaching certificate and a "real job" and just keep writing screenplays in my spare time as a hobby. I'm afraid if I do that, I'll never get the career I really want. What do you think? — Lost in La Jolla

    Dear L.L.J.: Far be it from me to contradict your parents, who are only trying to spare you what could be a painful struggle in a notoriously tough business. But before you decide to settle for second best, you (and they) might want to check out a new book called I Got My Dream Job and So Can You: 7 Steps to Creating Your Ideal Career After College. It's a practical, down-to-earth guide to going after a career you can get excited about -- and incidentally, most of the tips and insights in it apply equally to any job seeker, not just those with newly minted diplomas.

    Says author Pete Leibman, "Most people give up far too easily on getting the job they really want." His advice, and his current work as a career coach, is based on his own experience. As a senior at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore in 2003, Leibman wanted to work for a professional sports franchise. At the time, unemployment was the highest it had been in 10 years, and "there were plenty of naysayers telling me to forget about it and go after something less competitive," he recalls.

    Leibman ignored them. That spring, he heard about a career workshop where a senior executive from a sporting goods company was scheduled to speak, and signed up for it with the goal of meeting him and asking for advice on breaking into sports marketing. Of the many students who approached the speaker with questions, Leibman was the only one who followed up by staying in touch when the workshop was over.

    That was smart. The executive introduced Leibman to several industry insiders -- one of whom alerted him to an opening in marketing with the NBA's Washington Wizards. He applied for the job, got it, and about 18 months later, at age 23, was promoted into management.

    In his book, Leibman lays out a detailed strategy for following in his footsteps. A few of the essentials:

    Don't chase someone else's dream. "You won't find your dream job by chasing a 'hot' field," Leibman says. "You have to be honest about what you really want. The answer is inside you, not somewhere outside."

    The economy doesn't matter. "How many jobs do you need to get? Not 100, not 25, not even 3, just one," he says. "The economy is only a problem if you think it's a problem" and stop trying.