Earlier this year I did a little marketing consulting for a local real estate agency. I loved it! It was great to enter what was, for me, an entirely new industry and use my skills and know-how to help the agency implement some powerful marketing ideas that they'd never seen, let alone used before.

What may be interesting to you, however, was how I got the consulting work in the first place.

If you think I went through some rigorous application process... or had to make some kind of formal presentation... or even that the agency conducted extensive reference checks, reviewed my resume, or evaluated my credentials before bringing me on board... you'd be wrong.

In reality, all it took were a couple of chats over coffee, a few emails to keep in touch... and bam! I was asked to come in and start work.

What's more, I wasn't at all surprised by how easy it was. You see, I'd gotten virtually all my previous jobs and consulting assignments by going through the "side door" - WITHOUT competing against dozens of other candidates or vendors, jumping through numerous "interview" hoops, and having to prove my credentials and background with a sparkling resume.

It's NOT because I have the "gift of the gab" or am a big networker. The truth is, I'm pretty shy and almost never go to "networking" events. Even when I do, I typically seek out a few people I can hang around with, rather than "work the room", handing out business cards.

However, there ARE a few things I do that most people don't in order to get a job or consulting work. I call them "Insider Job Secrets" and have actually poured them into a book of the same name.

In short, though, these secrets are not all that special. Once you know them, you'll probably think they're common sense. Well, as we all know, common sense isn't all that common! But the fact is, all it takes is a bit of lateral thinking and placing your effort in a slightly different direction, to find the "side door" to the job you want too.