Definitely depends on the area and exactly what position or field you're looking for!

From my own experience:
- Don't be afraid to settle for something you're not looking for. Sometimes those weird first jobs are exactly what you need to get your foot in the door in something better. (More experience under your belt, something for a better resume later, etc etc)
- Make use of temporary positions if you absolutely have to. Some temp agencies offer full time positions at the companies they send you to, it just depends on what you're able to snag.
- Use sites like Monster and Snagajob to help your search
- Make sure your resume lists everything you need to tell people about your past experience and education
- Don't tell any possible employer about any disabilities you may have until you have the job position secured. It is part of a company's policy to help you stay there as an employee, and it's illegal for them to deny you a job if you're disabled
- If finding a job in your field is becoming difficult, do what you can to compensate by finding maybe two part-time jobs. This will also show to future employers that you are able to multitask and handle many responsibilities, and that you are resourceful when times are tough. (< Good zing words for a resume by the way!)
- Employers LOVE IT if you have an open schedule! If you have kids or other obligations, this actually does affect how you get a job. Keep yourself as open as possible when it comes to scheduling.

And for when they GET the job:
- CHALLENGE. YOUR. SALARY. After staying with one company for at least a year, ask for a raise if you haven't gotten one yet. Of course it helps to actually be good at your job and do everything that needs doing! A lot of people miss out on raises simply for not asking about them. This is something I didn't even know about until recently and I'm kicking myself for not asking at all of the places I've worked!

That's all I can think of off the top of my head. All of this is a list of things I've done in the past when looking for work after dropping out of college, and doing these things helped me get through some REALLY rough times in my life. Being unemployed for several months was terrible and I learned so much about job searching, so I really hope all of this helps! I can't guarantee it will all work of course, but these are good points to start with!

Also if your friend is looking to get further in a field of study, there's consultants out there who can help out! (If they attended college for example, they can ALWAYS go back to that college counselor and ask for some help. Colleges like to make sure their graduates get good jobs and then tell people where they got their education, it benefits both ends!)

This is great advice and I will pass it along! Thank you so so much!

Connections. Meet people, be pro-active, get as much experience as you can even if it's not your "ideal" job. Get your resume proof-read by others.

My husband got out of minimum wage hell by getting a job that paid for training. He's in Casino work in Baltimore, and they work for tips (boo) but the company pays for classes and training so yay. He's trained in several table games as a dealer.

Look to see what training opportunities employers will provide! Also volunteer where you can, take any learning experience you can for your resume, make connections!

On the job training is awesome. Be willing to learn. Let OTHERS know that you're willing to learn. Ask questions.

Look online. Meet people. Network. Temporary agencies can get you a quick job that can lead to further work. One of my first full time jobs came through working as a temp then getting hired by the main company.

Don't be afraid of college/higher education. Certification in something quick (it takes six months to be a phlebotomist, for example) can get you in. You can build from there. Also, starting entry level, you can get compensation from the company to pay for college classes. A coworker of mine started as a phlebotomist, now has an associate degree as a lab tech and is training now to be a technologist.

Office work typically starts in the $9/hr range and gets up into $15/hr when you get more experience. I've gotten easy-as-pie data entry jobs that paid $15 through temp agencies. Temp agencies are great because they do the hard work of job-hunting for you, so long as you have a marketable resume and do reasonably well on their typing and computer skills tests. And even if the temp gigs don't turn into full time gigs, the experience of each gig is totally worth it.

Robert Half is the agency I'm currently working for. Temp work is usually more available in cities than in rural areas...