5. Be open about your personal career goals

Discuss your career aspirations with your recruiter. Doing this upfront provides you with an opportunity to take a collaborative approach to defining the parameters of your job search, and it helps the recruiter to identify viable opportunities that he or she may not have realized you were interested in by just reviewing your resume.

Having a frank discussion about your personal career goals will also help you avoid situations where you may be tempted to take an interview - or worse yet, accept a position - that you know does not meet your expectations.