I wasted the first 4-6 years of my career. I was like an overweight person who constantly talked about losing weight, but never did. My whole world was consumed by not liking the job I had and feeling as though D.C. was fixed. I believed that a guy like me couldn’t make it. I went out chasing the fads. Like a person who chases every new diet fad, weight loss pill, and crazy machine, I was looking for the quick and easy fix to launch my career. Eventually I met enough people and asked them the secret. The secret is there is no secret! You have to change your lifestyle and daily habits. Every day you have to eat right and exercise.
I went to every job site, I paid a company $500 to write the magic resume, I met with placement agencies, I took online classes, I did it all! It wasn’t until after all of that I realized that to get my career on the right path there was no magic fix. I was going to have to develop daily habits and have faith that if I lived the Steadfast Spirit doors would begin to fly open!
You trust one another and more importantly care about each other. A feedback friend is someone who gives you legitimate and sometimes tough feedback. These are the people you go to when you are struggling, and they are the people that tell you things you need to hear over what you want to hear. Feedback friends usually should be in your relative field of work. Although I don’t do exactly the same type of work as these guys, they all work in D.C. and usually understand my situation. I have never made a serious 
career move or decision without consulting at least one of these guys. Asking for this type of feedback from contacts/connections can be tricky. They do not know you that well and may feel uncomfortable being overly blunt or truthful with you.