if you've got the capitol to spend... i would suggest getting yourself into the housing markets.. and rather, into renting a place or space out. no matter how bad the economy is, you have to thinkin about the things people need. one of which is housing. with this market, houses are cheap and you can find a renter pretty fast because os many people were kicked out for not paying taxes and such. also, if you're already in a good place (have a job that pays enough to take care of the bills) you should invest your estra cash in SOMETHING ... almost anything will do. stocks, gold, houses... because we're all young enough were a small enough investment now will turn into a HUGE return when the market rebounds.
now, if you're out looking for a job now, it depends on your experiences. A college grad is gonna have it hard now... you're not gonna get a good job now a days. i would suggest taking your time to get a masters now in your field. after another 2 (or so) years of school, living off of loans, the market will bounce back OR you'll be more competitive in the market. (note, you may have to take bachelors degree wages even if you have a masters...)
if college isnt yoru bag (and it isnt mine)... find a trade you're good at or like doing and just apprentice or intern with a major company. sure, you wont get paid a lot, but you'll move up faster and get paid relatively more and faster than the college job. don't waste your time working at a grocery store or flipping burgers... that doesn't get you very far. try being a cake decorator instead or a mechanic or (the recession proof) technical theatre/design.
point is, use this time to expand your knowledge and do it while working or wait till a bounce back in the economy and live off of loans.
freelancing certain jobs is very good now a days. you can undercut larger companies because you have no over head so people will be more willing to hire less experience or worse quality to save a couple of bucks. for example, if you're into web design... you can undercut a corporation doign the same thing.... if thats your bag... i would suggest that you incorporate yourself now! run all of your work through the (S class) company so you can write EVERYTHING off as a business expense... like gas and internet bills and such. and if you deal in a field were you're likely to get sued, you can always protect yourself and your credit and your money.
i'm willing to expand on any one of those ideas if you're interested