If you're stuck in a job-search rut, here's a tip: the newspaper is a great place to look for leads.

If there's one holiday activity I can really get behind, it's buying gifts for myself. If you're looking for a job or just want to class up your office accoutrements, here are some gift ideas. (If you're not as selfish as I am, these are also fine items to give to your favorite job seeker.)

I will level with you: I started out thinking I was going to give you a list of "answers" -- i.e. a cheat sheet of real, tried-and-true questions that will impress the interviewer at the end of your next job interview. You know: the part where the hiring manager asks you if you have any questions for him. After talking to various executive IT recruiters, however, it turns out asking the right questions can't be simplified into a mere list of examples. This is largely because, at the senior levels, the high-quality questions to ask are specific to the particular vacancy in question. Instead of a cheat sheet, a few important qualities of good questions emerged.

Not long ago I was on the phone with the CIO of a major professional sports organization. During our conversation she shared that she was at the time fielding applications from experienced IT professionals, contractors who would normally charge upwards of $30 per hour for their services. They were facing a job market so bleak they were now sending her their résumés for internships designed for college students that paid around $10 per hour.

I'm going to be brief today and give you just one thing. And it's going to be good.

I'm not trying to say "me" in French in my headline, of course; I'm referring to your résumé -- specifically when it comes to online applications. I may be dating myself, but I remember when form rejection letters came in the mail. Now, they're not only delivered by computer in an e-mail, they're also generated by computer. That can be good news, actually. Unlike the form letters of yore, today's automated rejection e-mails cloak a hidden opportunity: If at first you don't succeed, apply, apply again. This time, though, try a few changes.