Job Search Lesson 2 – conduct informational interviews

In my last post I recommended that you spend half of the time you set aside for job searching, on roles that never get advertised.

One of the key activities in this regard is conducting Informational Interviews, where the objective is to learn about roles, requirements and industries… while building your network.

Note: the objective of Informational Interviewing is definitely NOT to ask for a job. This will immediately end a conversation with someone who doesn't currently have a role available, but who may have been able to teach you about an industry and maybe introduce you to someone who is about to advertise a role.

I recommend starting out by interviewing friends of yours who work in the field that you’re interested in, whether in the exact role you’re looking for, an adjacent role, or in the same company / industry.

The reason I suggest this, is that your friends will almost certainly agree to meet with you and by interviewing them you will get practice at the process and build your confidence.