This is the short version of how to find a job. You can read my entire series here for a longer one.
Point 1: Set an amount of new people you can reach to a day
I recommend 4-5 people a day; 2-3 if you already have a full-time work.
->) This refers to starting a conversation, including people like recruiters who reach out to you, but not a follow-up with someone who you have been talking to for a while.
->) When someone recommends you talk to someone else, I usually count that, but it’s up to you (like later rounds of a job interview may not count; a judgement call).
->) Finding a job is a marathon, not a sprint. Snowball (aka increasingly exponentially): Talking to people leads to talking to more people, who recommend talk to more people. It may take a few weeks to build.
Point 2: Set an amount of jobs to apply in one day
I recommend applying to 10 jobs online a day.
->) For online job applications, quantity over quality works better, because of the way that the internet gamifies applications. Now, many applications won’t get back to you, so you have to apply a lot. It used to be the case that you might hear back from 10% of online applications, but the percentage may be even lower now.
->) Easy apply on LinkedIn is your friend.
->) Many job application platforms like LinkedIn notice that you are applying to jobs and are more likely to put on top of the list for recruiters looking for roles. Thus, sometimes quickly applying to many jobs on them in itself is a good thing even if you aren’t interested in those specific roles.
->) This is more important than applying online. Usually I find about two thirds to three quarters of my interviews are from networking connections rather than applying to jobs online.
Point 3: Reach out to people to talk to them
->) These are the best people to reach out to in order, those most likely to get back to you:
1) People you know and the people they know (friends, family, acquaintances, former classmates, etc.): Ask people you know if they know anyone in the fields you are interested in. Studies show that those most likely to coordinate a job are technically not friends or family but the acquaintance your friend and family members knows from “the whatever” two years. Ask for your people if they know people doing something similar to what you do.
2) Alum from any of your schools: It does not matter the year, even if they graduated decades before you. The perceived commonality of having attended the same schools means they are more likely to respond to you.
3) Internet searches on platforms like LinkedIn: For example, you can search for people in your area who work one of the jobs you would like, or anywhere. You can look up companies like those you are interest in and try to connect with people who work at that company (easier to lead to jobs with smaller companies).
->) What to say when reaching out to people:
Basic ask: Request to meet with them to learn about their experiences (the technical word for these are “informational interviews”, but I never actually use the phrase when talking to a regular person)
a) Prepare an introductory message template to use. Two important rules I follow:
Rule 1) Be succinct: Rarely more than 3-4 sentences. All your experiences, refine to a sentence or two.
Rule 2) Cut to the chase. State your request in the first sentence (after any greeting you have).
->) This is a basic template for an introductory message:
Hello,
I am passionate about _ [your desired field], and I would love to learn more about your experiences at _ [where they currently work] as _ [their title or describe their role]. Is it okay if we schedule a time to talk in the next two weeks to learn about your experiences?
More context about me: [Write 1-2 sentence bio that explains why you are interested in that field.]
Sincerely,
Stephen
Second example specifically for when you are transitioning from one field to another field:
Hello,
I have been working as a _ [your current field], but I have been trying to learn more about [the field they work in]. It seems like you do rather interesting work as a _ [their role] at _ [their company], and I would love to learn more about your experiences. Would you it be okay to schedule a time to talk in the next few weeks?
More context about me: [Write 1-2 sentence bio that explains why you are interested in transitioning into this field.]
Sincerely,
Stephen
You will refine these templates over time based on what seems to work for you and for that specific industry.
->) LinkedIn templates: You can include a message when connecting with people, but it has a very small character limitation, so I synthesize my “email template” above into something smaller that can fit their character limits. Then, for those who connect, I will write use the email template above as my basis for writing them a follow-up LinkedIn message.
->) People can choose whether to respond. It’s fine if they don’t have time. Don’t hound people. I don’t follow-up at all if people don’t respond to me. They may have better things to do with their life than talk to me, and that is fine. I focus my energy on those who apply and continue reaching out to more people if I need to talk to more people.
->) One important rule: Don’t formally ask people for a job. That puts people on the spot. They will know from such a message that you are looking for a role and will bring up a good role they have. There are a few subtle questions that draw the conversation towards jobs without asking explicitly. These work much better. Examples: “What does an entry position typically look in [the field they work in] or at [their company]?” or “How did you first enter this field? What kind of role did you have first, and how did you find it?” If they click with you, they may say their organization has a role, or that they may say they know someone who has an open position and offer to introduce you to them. They may also not say anything, often because they don’t know any roles. That’s fine.
->) Always ask: “Is there someone else who does this kind of work that you would recommend I talk to?” They may offer to introduce you to their friends. This keeps you meeting new people. Eventually one of whom will have a job for you.
With this, good luck. It’s a marathon not a sprint, so make you pace yourself, take stock, and prepare yourself for the adventure and inevitable frustration of rejection. If you feel discouraged, remember pretty much everyone has at least once when applying for a new job (for me, at least seventeen times).