J.T. & Dale: I can’t seem to find a permanent job. My current resume is littered with temp jobs! I left a good job in 2001 to start an Internet business that was a spectacular failure. I have been unable to find a professional job since. I would love to work for a nonprofit doing communications. I really want to move on and stop reminiscing about the good old days (i.e., the late ’90s).

- Garrison

DALE: Ah, the late ’90s. Seems like such a simple time. These days, we worry about the president’s troop levels going up or down. Back then, it was just the president’s pants.

J.T.: But back to Garrison’s future.

DALE: Yes. He’s attempting a difficult career maneuver: moving into a new career within a new field, while going from temp to full-time. That’s skating onto the ice and opening with a triple axel.

J.T.: He could get down to a double, by altering his resume. There’s no need to list temporary work as a separate entity. The reality is we’re all temporary workers. No one stays at a job for more than a few years these days. So, Garrison, there’s no need to point out they are temporary simply because they didn’t offer full-time benefits. You were at each of those jobs full-time and for a nice stretch.

DALE: However, because you have neither communications nor nonprofit experience, you’re going to have to set aside a traditional search and network in, finding someone who’s willing to take a chance on you, or else split the career move in two.

J.T.: If it’s the latter, I’d start by finding a company that will let you do PR/communications for them. Then, once you are on board and settled in, you can volunteer to run, or establish, the company’s relationships with nonprofits. Over time, you’ll have a network of contacts in the nonprofit world. At the same time, you’ll have the added perspective of having been on the private-sector side, recognizing what it’s like to be the corporate donor.

DALE: The end result is that you’ll be doubly valuable and thus doubly likely to get an assignment that’s as “permanent” as they get in the good old 2000s.