DEAR JOYCE: I'm at a crossroads -- unemployed, scared of what's ahead and reluctant to part with the estimated cost of $4,000 for a career coach in my city. What do you charge for individual coaching? -- K.M.

Zip. Coaching and career-document prep are not services I offer to the public. I earn my living as a researcher and writer. My visits to the job search trenches -- pro bono efforts on behalf of friends -- allow me to get a firsthand view of changing realities in the job market.

Over my 40 years as a columnist specializing in all things careers, I've been privileged to learn from the nation's best minds in career development and management. When other readers ask questions like yours, I occasionally refer them to one or more standout coaches in various parts of the country. I do not charge a fee from anyone, reader or coach, for referrals.

More often, I'm unable to oblige in making a referral -- there's no way I can be familiar with the quality of service offered by thousands and thousands of career coaches, consultants and counselors. (Tip: Your best bet for a referral to a career coach is someone in your locale, either a former client of the coach, or the career center at a college. Ask for a complimentary first meeting and an outline of the services that will be provided to you as a client. Ask, too, for a detailed list of prices you will pay as you progress and are satisfied; do not pay not up front or sign a contract for services.)

You raise an issue that columnist Chris Colin of the San Francisco Chronicle recently addressed, noting that in this broken economy, there's no shortage of mortgage and career consultants offering help to the fiscally downtrodden, but questioning who can afford them. (Browse: Unemployed? Tell me where it hurts.)

The reader comments attached to the column are instructive. One person notes: "Staying hopeful and strong is very important when you're unemployed ... But those things in themselves will not get you a job."

True, but I add: "Staying gloomy and sour is also very important. Those things in themselves will keep you out of a job."

DEAR JOYCE: I am going to be interviewed next week for an internship at a veterinarian's office. Two veterinarians and the office manager will interview me. I am 17. I want this internship very much. What advice do you have on making a good impression? -- S.M.

Remember this psychological principle: "People like people who are similar to themselves." They want to be assured that you're a good fit, that you're a "member of the tribe."

Your interview is a smaller version of the company panel interview where candidates may be quizzed by a half-dozen interviewers. A few basic tips: Continued...