And at no time I can remember has that been truer than it is today. Work has slowed to a veritable trickle for many -- if not all -- of us. Homeowners are holding onto their money, doing projects themselves, or worse, looking for new jobs because they lost the old one. As a result of that, I've been networking like a madman in areas I've never had to reach to before.

To that end, I met a realtor recently. When she found out that I wrote, she asked me to submit something to her newsletter and I obliged. It also got me thinking:

I just happened to run into her and she just happened to have a newsletter. But if I were you, I'd start knocking on realtors' doors, sending them emails, whatever, just to let them know I was out there -- whether they have a newsletter or not. And if they do have a newsletter -- ask if you can submit something. Get your name out there. For the record, I am you, and I have done this.

Realtors are as hungry as we are to get the few houses they do have in the pipeline to the settlement table. If the place needs a new roof, landscape repair, a deck repaired -- whatever issues pop up at the home inspection -- it'd be nice to be the first one on the list to have your phone ring.

The tie-in to "tough times make tough people" is this: writing isn't for everyone. Neither is networking. I've never had to do it before with such focus, and I'm not in love with it. But I'm doing it -- with a big old smile on my face to boot.

We have to get tough to ride this storm out, whether that's at the end of a pen (or keyboard) or phone or handshake. My phone has by no means rung off the hook, but building relationships is better than building nothing.

What's working for you? Are you on full-tilt marketing hustle? Are you staying the course? Are you taking jobs you'd previously never even consider? (Secondary question: is your ego smashed because of it?) What are your keys for success... or survival?