John, great stuff. Just today I was speaking with a college student who is trying to make a job change within her own organization. I asked what steps she'd taken to make that happen, and she said "I applied." I suggested that was a great start, but not enough. I encouraged her to take it a step further. Call the hiring manager. Get her name known. Tell him she wants the job. As you say, take the initiative. Leading starts with leading ourselves, and if we wait for others to make things happen for us, we will be waiting a long time.  Thanks for the great tips and the book recommendation! - Alan