Seattle is a great city, and its greatness is about more than just being situated between the Cascade Mountains and the Puget Sound or having nice people on the streets. The culture of Seattle remains quality-oriented in a way that has been lost in much of the rest of the country, so you’re more likely to develop lasting friendships that aren’t superficial. And when it comes time to hire an accountant or personal injury lawyer Seattle has a professional class that is a cut above.

Today, millions of people across the country have had their life plans altered dramatically through no fault of their own. A combination of currents at the highest levels of the economy created turbulence in every sector, shaking businesses and pushing them to shed employees. In an overall economic contraction the newly unemployed have found it harder to find work.

That is a psychologically crippling situation for many people. We live in the current of momentum toward our goals, and we trust certain important players in our lives (our boss, our spouse, our political leaders) to facilitate, or at least not obstruct, that current. The loss of employment and the inability to find a new job makes our goals seem unachievable, and when that situation is reasonably someone else’s fault we can find ourselves falling into a pit of anger.

But a period of unemployment can also be a time of opportunity. A difficult one. One that tests our mettle in a unique way. But opportunity nonetheless. Without a job tying us to a place, we can go anywhere we want. We can do anything we want, change our career path if we choose to. We can create something new from the ashes of what we’ve lost, and our new life can be much bolder and more interesting than our last one.

Finding a new city can be an important part of that personal renaissance. But it’s important not to go to a new city just because of the hype. After you’ve looked at all the relocation guides, you should also take a good, hard look at how the job and real estate markets compare, and you should investigate the reputations of the professional class.

Finding a good city for you is different than finding a good city because everybody’s situation is different. After you’ve made a list of potential cities, you should do some research. Look up what your job title is expected to earn in that city (there are a number of sites that provide this information) and then look up the kind of place you’d like to live in. Your decision will be influenced by how those two numbers compare.

Everybody’s going to need professional services at some point in their lives, and a brief look on any of the online customer review sites can tell you a lot about the culture of the professional class in a city. It’s that culture that you want to look at, not just whether or not there are professionals who receive good reviews. This is important because the culture of the professional class influences the culture of the city’s institutions dramatically.

That’s what led me to the Seattle area. Not only could I find a good home for my family and have a number of income sources from my work, but also, if I ever need a good accountant, psychologist, criminal attorney, or personal injury lawyer Seattle boasts a robust and generally honorable professional community.