I thought the 'informational interview' thing was just corporate fluff until I met a guy at a Denver coffee shop who basically handed me a job lead.

He told me to just email him directly, and that one 30 minute chat turned into a real interview next week, so has anyone else had a random meeting actually work out?

3 comments

3 Comments

sage5282mo ago

Got my last roofing gig because a guy at the hardware store overheard me talking about slate and gave me his card. Half my work comes from people just shooting the breeze, so yeah, those random chats are the real deal. All those fancy networking events just feel like forced small talk with a bad lunch. Sometimes you just get lucky and meet someone who actually needs a thing done.

beth7192mo ago

Always figured you had to chase work at those official events. Hearing how much comes from casual talks really shows where the real connections happen. Maybe the best networking is just being good at your job where people can see it.

tyler8222mo ago

Forget the idea that random chats are a solid plan. You got lucky, plain and simple. Counting on chance meetings is a terrible way to find work because you can't control when or if they happen. Most of the time you're just wasting your breath talking to someone who can't help you. Structured networking events might feel fake, but at least everyone there is actually looking to make a work connection.