i was a CFI for about a year, and loved the work, but hated the paycheck i was getting. I've talked to others from my school, and they have gotten a raise recently, with another one on the way, it wasn't a bad lifestyle, but it did get me accustomed to long hours, the majority of which were spent not flying, and not being paid...much like my current job.

Don't limit the scope of your search however, there are other things out there besides the typical CFI route. When i applied to the regionals, i was a definite low time guy by the standards of a couple years ago, and even with that time, i got a phone call about a month past training for a King Air position out in KS i had applied for months before. If i was suddenly "qualified" with that company, even though i hadn't updated my resume' i'd assume jobs of the same type are still out there, and as a result, would be another option for gaining some more real world flying experience, and lots of practical IFR experience, but it's still different from the regionals....