nick,

One of the largest parts of being an instructor is "not knowing"... although it is often joked that the CFI is God, the very best instructors are the ones who are willing to admit "I don't know it... let's look it up".

You will learn more about aviation and flying in your first 3 months of teaching, than you do during your entire time at ERAU (I know... I went to UND and learned more over a summer of teaching than my entire degree). Teaching is THE ABSOLUTE BEST WAY to study and prepare for an airline interview. And trust me, you will learn and be the most proficient pilot that you ever will be when you instruct. Since I went to the airlines, my flying skills have decreased significantly (simply due to automation and lact of use).

Don't sell yourself (or the profession) short, by whoring yourself you and working for free (and that's exactly what it is). To be perfectly honest, it can actually work against you... We recently hired a contract pilot to fly our corporate jet- Of all of the candidates we interviewed, one of them was willing to work for free/very cheap and the other had done so in the past flying a jet. Needless to say, we eliminated them from the competition. Why?

Simply because we feel that a well trained pilot is AN ASSET. Why would I want to hire somebody that is willing to undercut my salary? It hurts my job security, and makes a statement about how committed that person might be (whats to keep him/her from jumping ship if that better offer comes along?).

There are plenty of options. Fly traffic watch, tow banners, fly sightseeing tours, instruct, fly with friends/split time, take some of the money you're thinking about spending for bogus time at Gulfstream and rent a plane... have fun- fly to the other coast with a friend... fly as a safety pilot, join the Civil Air Patrol, put together a resume and mail it to all corners of the earth. Work as an intern at an airline, or get a job at the local FBO working the desk to make aviation contacts.

Most importantly, NETWORK! Get to know the pilots at your local airport. Talk to airline pilots, corporate pilots, cargo haulers. Carry your resume and business card around, and dress professionally when you meet people. Ask for airplane tours. Arrange to visit local flight departments. Ask online for job openings and opportunites, you'll find a lot of people that are willing to help. Most people out there that fly professionally can usually give you a job lead, or knows somebody that can.

Whatever you do though, don't sell yourself short, just because "it's a stepping stone, and only for a few months"... that opens the door for a few months to become a few years, and before you know it, you're 40 years old, making $25,000/year flying a 120 passenger airliner under code share agreements for 8 different airlines, with 8 days a month at home. Sounds fun, huh?

Not to use the old cliche, but be patient and pay your dues... believe it or not, flying for a living requires experience and dedication. There's no easy way to get there (and any paths that seem too good to be true, probably are). Stick with it, work the contacts and keep building the time... with the turbine you have, you shouldn't have too much trouble getting on with a regional before too much longer.