Here's the absolute latest statistic. 71% of all jobs are NOT advertised jobs.

Ok. So, what happens if you respond to an advertised job -- online or in the newspaper? Here are 5 straight facts about what happens. When you realize what's going on I think you'll understand why the longest, most painful way to get a job is through advertised openings.

1. Frequently, advertised openings aren't for real jobs. In fact, employers often advertise jobs to get a feel for what's out there by way of talent. In other words, when you respond you're providing some HR researcher with statistical information.

2. Do you have any idea how many people respond to an advertised job? Now, you may think someone wrote the ad with you in mind because the requirements meet your background so exactly. However, there are thousands out there who think the same thing as you. And they're all responding, too!

3. What happens when your masterpiece of information (like a resume or application) comes to the attention of an organization? Well, first of all, it's screened. But not by the person making the hiring decision. A lower level staff assistant is going to review your credentials to determine if you have what it takes.

4. Let's assume through some minor miracle you make the screening cut. Your resume or application has been singled out for further study. So you're invited in for an interview. Do you think you're the only one who's going to be interviewed? And you're still not talking to the decision-maker. You're just being further screened by a professional interviewer.

5. By answering an advertised job opening, you've done the worst thing of all. You've put yourself right in the middle of all the competition for the job. You're requiring someone to make preliminary decisions about your future based on their reading of a piece of paper or an email. You never have an opportunity to tell anyone what distinguishes your from the crowd.

So, if answering advertised job openings is not the recommended way to go, what's an intelligent job seeker to do?

First of all, we know that no employer is going to hire you without meeting you face-to-face. It's in that dialogue that a decision-maker will make an honest assessment of you, regardless of what you've put down on a piece of paper. It's there you have the opportunity to directly state how you can make a difference to the organization. And this is what gets you the job.

Instead of spending countless hours polishing your resume and answering untold advertised openings, we recommend you research the organization and specifically the decision-maker you'd be working for. And then devise a way to get in front of that person without going through the screening process.

Challenging? You bet. But a lot faster. And you've just dramatically moved the odds in your favor over your competition!