(CNN) Patrick Hoagland of Phoenix was down on his luck after getting laid off from his job as a forklift operator at a metal recycling company. He filled out applications online and handed out résumés to local businesses, but he wasn't getting any responses.

He decided he needed to do something different and decided to stand on a streetcorner with a sign.

"I had only been unemployed a few weeks, but it was very unexpected and I needed to figure something out fast," Hoagland, 30, wrote in an email. "I at first laughed and thought that was silly, but I kept thinking about it. I figured, why not?! There are millions of people in Phoenix driving around, someone might hire me."

He printed out 200 copies of his résumé and hit the streets in search of work last week. Melissa DiGianfilippo saw him while she was driving through Phoenix.

"I was impressed with Patrick because it was 110° outside and what I saw was really unexpected," DiGianfilippo wrote in an email. "He was standing on the side of the road with a sign and a stack of resumes and a huge smile on his face."

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