After graduating from the University of Southern California, Los Altos native Daniel Seddiqui failed more than 40 job interviews.

Seddiqui decided he needed a radical change: he traveled to all 50 states in 50 weeks, working 50 different jobs that represented the state he was in.

“I was very desperate to turn my life around,” he explained. “I was also very curious about what this country had to offer, what I might be missing out on.”

Seddiqui wrote about his experiences in the book “50 Jobs in 50 States: One Man’s Journey of Discovery Across America.” On Feb. 29, he spoke to Foothill College students as part of the school’s Authors Series.

Seddiqui stressed the importance of five “elements of success”: adaptability, networking, endurance, risk taking and perseverance.

He said traveling to different states forced him to adapt to different cultures, citing the time he spent living with cowboys in South Dakota. Getting his book published required networking, and driving up to 800 miles between states each weekend required endurance.

Simply undertaking the project required taking a chance.

“I was willing to risk myself financially, emotionally (and) physically because I knew the rewards would outweigh the risks,” Seddiqui said.

Manager of the Authors Series Mia Casey said Seddiqui’s message was particularly timely.

“His message about what you need in order to be successful, as an employee, to get a job, is really important right now with the recession,” Casey said.

Student Jesse Fang said he was inspired by the talk.

“It’s awesome because I’ve been dreaming about traveling around the country,” Fang said.

Seddiqui is in the process of creating a summer program for college students to gain the same experience he did.

“It’s five jobs, five weeks and potentially five states and they get to earn college credit … It gives the kids an opportunity to experience any job that they want, that’s relevant,” Seddiqui said.

Academic and career counselor Voltaire Villanueva said she was interested in the program.

“When people first come to college, most of them are told about particular careers because of how much money they’re going to make,” Villanueva said.

“Daniel elaborates that you should do something you’re passionate about and not focus on what other people tell you.”

Seddiqui said the job market is tough, but people shouldn’t settle.

“Looking for a job is an absolute emotional rollercoaster,” Seddiqui said. “But there are ways to get to where you want to go.”

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