One of the best ways to find a job is to tell everyone you know what type of job you are looking for.  This highly effective strategy of networking means that chances are good you will get an interview for a job at a place where a friend of yours already works.  Friends frequently even put in a good word for you, so that you certainly have an advantage when you go into the interview.  The interviewer already has a good impression of you, and assuming your friend that works there is a good employee, they anticipate that you will be one of their top candidates. 
 
Unfortunately, a surprising number of people turn this advantage into an assumption.  They mistakenly believe that because the interviewer already "knows" them, that the interview is just a formality and that the job is theirs for the taking.  Employers have been dismayed to find that candidates they thought would be highly qualified stroll into the interview wearing workout clothes, completely unprepared to answer any of the typical interview questions, and even flailing at answering "why do you want this job".
 
You should absolutely never assume that an interview is just a formality.  Always dress to impress, always spend time preparing for the interview, always make the effort to do the interview in person, and always send a personal thank you no matter how well you know the person interviewing you.
 
--Karen
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