If you are a job searcher in today’s economy, you are well aware that jobs are scarce and competition is intense. In certain industries, like construction, it is bordering on impossible to find a new job. That’s why you need to look beyond the industry you’ve always worked in, or the industry you want to work in, when job searching. You also need to expand your geographical search area, especially if you are looking for higher level jobs or something that is specialized.

Even if you have spent your entire working life in one industry, analyze how your skills, experience and training could transfer to another industry. Many white collar job seekers, upon examination, find that their skills can readily transfer to the healthcare industry, a great place to look for a new job. Healthcare has been barely touched by the economy.

If you are limiting your job search to the area in which you live, you may be making your search longer than it needs to be and you may be limiting the salary you can earn. Different parts of the country and even different municipalities have been impacted to differing degrees by the recession. Look beyond where you live, but be sure you have determined at what salary level you would move.

The best things that happen to most people occur when they move outside their comfort zone. Increase your chances of finding a great job by looking in those places where you haven’t before.