Miami has a lot going for it–sun, Art Deco style and carb-loaded Cuban food. But just try finding work there.

A new report from job search engine Juju.com ranks the job search difficulty in 50 US cities. Washington DC is the locale where you’re most likely to score a gig–it has 1.18 unemployed people per advertised job opening. Miami, meanwhile, comes in at the bottom of the batch. For every job ad, there are more than nine people looking for work. Detroit is an unsurprising second. Check out the rest of the rankings below:

99er n./ a person who has gone through all 99 weeks of unemployment benefits.

This is one of the sadder definitions in our recession glossary. According to a story in the New York Times several days ago, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that by June, 1.4 million people had been out of work for at least 99 weeks–the maximum time you can collect unemployment, even with all the extensions that Congress has tacked on to give people more of a safety net in tough times.

Let’s put that a different way: A population almost the size of Philadelphia has been out of work for nearly two years. Discuss.

Since 2009, LearnVest has been providing sharp and seriously useful money advice for women. Now, the site has launched a series of email bootcamps to get readers ramped up financially. The investing unit costs $7.99, but the Cut Your Costs and Personal Finance Basics Bootcamps are free. You don’t have to be a personal finance dork (like me) to appreciate that deal.

A couple of weeks ago, we wrote about the huge money-saving deal at Restaurant.com. It’s ending today–so get 80 percent off dining gift certificates ASAP, with the discount code PLATE.

From today’s New York Times:

Many economists — concerned about the sluggish pace of job creation, dwindling housing activity and decelerating retail sales — say that slowdown is continuing this summer and have recently downgraded their expectations for the second half of the year.

Read more here.

It’s not just a load of Web 2.0 hype—you can find a job using social networks, according to Brad and Debra Schepp.

“ We’ve spoken to many people who use LinkedIn, Twitter and even MySpace to find jobs—regular 9-to-5 jobs or consulting gigs or freelance work,” says Brad, who with his wife authored How to Find a Job on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Other Social Networks.

I get pitched a lot of job-hunting books. Most of them should have been made into pamphlets instead. But after my first glance through the Schepps’ book, I quickly made a few adjustments to my LinkedIn profile—and I’m not even looking for a job. Here are ten of their tips for getting the most out of social networks.

Get on LinkedIn

The site has become so widely used, that if you don’t have a profile, “it might give an employer pause,” Brad says.  “That’s often where they first check people out.”

Join Groups

That includes industry, nonprofit and alumni groups on LinkedIn. Once you join, you are automatically linked to everyone else in the group, so you can start becoming a thought leader. “If you belong to the humane society group and you are posting info about disaster relief and animals, people are going to think of you in that way,” Brad says. Debra was even approached by an agent after she answered a question about deadlines in a writing group. “She said she liked my ethic and asked if I would be interested in her representing me,” she says.

Post Things That Help You Get Found

LinkedIn allows you to share an “update” with others, which you can use to turn up in people’s searches.  “If you write an interesting blog post or read an interesting journal article, put it on your Linked in profile,” Debra advises. “Someone who is searching for related keywords might end up coming upon you.”

Don’t Use the “U” Word

If you happen to have been laid off, don’t tell everyone you’re unemployed—especially in a status update. Spin it in a positive way. “You might want to say something like, ‘Enthusiastically pursuing opportunities in IT,’” Brad says.

Follow Companies You’re Interested In

Twitter and Facebook let you see updates from companies, and now LinkedIn does too, Brad points out. Updates about a new business, new hire (or a new departure) might clue you in to opportunities. Employers have also been known to post jobs on their Twitter feeds.

Check Out People with “Your” Job

Look for people who hold a position you would like to have, and examine their profiles. What keywords do they use? How do they describe their work? “It will help you frame your experience in the same kinds of terms that other people are searching for,” Debra says.

Use “Consulting” Carefully

“It’s a really bad idea to say that you’re freelancing or consulting unless you really are,” Debra advises. “It’s going to come up in an interview and if you can’t back it up, it’s going to look bad.”

Don’t Lie

Desperate times may seem to call for corresponding methods. “Nowadays with the internet, it’s way too easy to find out that something isn’t true,” Brad warns.

Don’t Connect Generically

“Suppose you go to a seminar and the speaker is really fabulous and you leave with their business card. If you just send them a canned [LinkedIn] invitation, what’s in it for that person to open up her network?” Debra says. The Schepps advise sending a customized message to each person. If you’re building your network, start with former colleagues you know. “Say something like, I’m so glad to see you on LinkedIn, and I’m eager to find out what’s going on with you. Please join my network.”

Enhance Your Resume

Use LinkedIn’s tools to show more of what you can do. Link to your website or Twitter feed, and include slideshows of your work, Brad suggests.

Starting a business is tough—and that goes double when you’re starting a business in an economic environment this challenging. If you’re bootstrapping (and chances are good that you’re using your own money to fund the company) it’s important to use your resources as efficiently as possible, You want to protect your capital but also invest where it counts most. I’ve been helping businesses for years, and here is what successful bootstrappers know:

Control fixed expenses

At some point—usually when you need to bring other people aboard to accommodate growth—you’ll probably need an office. Until then, work from home and use e-mail and cell phones to communicate, so you can minimize fixed expenses like office space and furniture.

Use contractors as much as possible

Avoid hiring people even when you need additional help. By using contractors you can save significant capital when compared to hiring employees (BusinessWeek.com, October/November, 2007). Your per-hour costs may be higher for projects, but you don’t have to deal with payroll taxes, benefits or workers’ comp, and you have a lot more spending flexibility because when there is no work, you don’t have to pay. Just beware of IRS rules differentiating employees vs. contractors – the government is cracking down on companies that treat contractors like employees.

Establish good record keeping habits

Getting it right from the start establishes the proper foundation as the business grows. Good record keeping helps you make good decisions because without good information you cannot make business decisions. Having your records in order not only helps you monitor successes and failures, you’ll need it should you get audited by the IRS, and may be required by states you do business with or perhaps even your insurance company looking to raise premiums.

Make sure you are adequately capitalized

I cannot overemphasize the importance of financial planning in the early stages of business life. Projecting cash flow requirements — how much money you will need and how much money you will make — is something all startup companies must do. This report will help you estimate how much cash you will need to start and where and when it will be spent.

Have business advisors

You may be the expert on your business, but you’re likely not an expert in law, accounting and banking. So it’s important in the early stages of business life is to establish relationships with qualified business advisors, who possess the vital information you lack. Examples include:

• Find a law firm that focuses on entrepreneurs.
• Hire an accountant who works with entrepreneurs and who understands the economic realities of a start-up. Along with your lawyer, he or she can help determine whether you should form a corporation for your business.
• Develop a relationship with a commercial bank and establish a small line of credit — even if they will only offer the company a small credit card line. This is the first step in establishing a credit history for the company for future borrowing.

Chris E. Talis is a CPA, MBA and senior partner at Hedgerow Mergers & Acquisitions, which delivers merger, acquisition and business consulting services targeted primarily to the middle market community of private business owners with annual sales of up to $100 million.

Apparently, some people are still concerned about the stability of U.S. banks. In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, cable titan John Malone, for one, noted that his wife had pulled all of her money out of American financial institutions and parked it in Australia and Canada.

“She wants to have a place to go if things blow up here,” he told the paper in an interview. “Canada has a lot more fiscal and bank responsibility than most places in the world and lots of natural resources. We have a retreat that’s right on the Quebec border. We own 18 miles on the border, so we can cross. Any time we want to, we can get away. It would probably be illegal, but we could go. Actually, our snowmobile trail goes right on the border.”

So far this year, the FDIC has seized about 100 banks. Maybe she’s on to something.

If you care about this issue, you’ve probably heard that the US Senate voted 60-40 to keep emergency unemployment benefits going. Long story short: Good for jobless peeps, bad for the deficit.

Millions of people stopped getting checks in June when the program expired in June. According to the Washington Post: 8.7 million people were receiving jobless benefits at the end of June. A little more than half received state benefits, which are typically available for 26 weeks. The rest were receiving extended benefits financed by the federal government, which are due to run out soon unless the bill before the Senate passes. The Labor Department estimates that 2.5 million people had been cut off by the end of last week.

The House is expected to okay the bill this week–possibly today–and forward it on to the prez for his signature.

Start-up activity, which got a boost from the recession as millions of people looked for new work opportunities or rethought their careers, is on the slide. According to a new survey by executive outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas, 3.7 percent of job seekers were looking to start something up in the first half of 2010. That’s a big drop from the 7.6 percent in the first half of 2009. That’s a low point since 1986, when the company began tracking this stuff.

What gives? It could be that more people are getting jobs and don’t feel like starting a business is necessary. “Then there is the fragility of the recovery and the uncertainty that comes with it,” said John A. Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray &
Christmas.. “Many small business owners are increasingly pessimistic about business conditions and still find it difficult to get a loan.”

That’s bad news for America, if we are to believe the many experts who say a recovery depends on a rebound for small businesses.

Going to the movies was once a simple, inexpensive pleasure. Now a flick for two runs $25 in New York—and that’s before the popcorn. So we jumped on this deal when we spotted it yesterday: $4 for a ticket to any AMC, Loews, Cineplex Odeon, Magic Johnson, or Star theater. The catches are, you have to pay up front, you can only get one (I’m making my fiance buy his own) and they will only mail them in the five boroughs of New York City. Still, $4! Get it now at KGB, yet another daily deals site.

Talk about bang for your buck. This Saturday, July 17, you can hear live professional music and hunt for bargains for free. The One World Symphony will hold its Super Summer Rummage Sale in Brooklyn Heights—complete with live jazz, cabaret and classical music, led by Artistic Director and Conductor Sung Jin Hong. The wares include two-piece suits, tuxes, dresses, gowns, scores and CDs. Did we mention entrance is free? Check out their site for more details.

July 17, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

St. Ann and the Holy Trinity

157 Montague Street, Brooklyn Heights