If I was looking for a career change right now, I wouldn’t spend a moment applying to jobs online.

My background is a mix of consulting, customer success, finance, bizops, marketing, and now entrepreneurship… it’s pretty difficult to craft a compelling narrative using a resume alone.

If you’re also a generalist or pivoter reshaping your career, you already know: the online application game is not in your favor. (Frankly, it's not in anyone's favor).

And if you’re ready for a career change but aren’t sure yet what’s next, applying online is the worst way to figure it out.

Regardless of where you are in your career transition, the answer is always: Networking.

Networking is simply building relationships — you can do it anywhere. I’ve met fascinating people at the gym, at concerts, New York social events, and while traveling abroad. It’s essentially making new friends.

But when it comes to making an aligned career change, you can't rely on spontaneous connections. Strategic networking is key. Master this skill to start feeling empowered in your career change.

We'll cover what holds most people back and how to network more effectively...

Common Mistakes

Even the most confident high achievers freeze up when networking becomes tied to their job search.

These are the most common mistakes I see as a career coach:

1. Short-term transactional thinking vs. long-term relationship building

Thinking “this connection must result in an opportunity” blocks you from being open to how you might create a real relationship. Practice detachment from your desired outcome and trust in the compounding power of your network over the long-term.

2. Only network when it’s tied to open roles

It’s much easier to build connections before you “need” them. Skip this and you miss your shot of uncovering unposted jobs and building internal advocates to alert you of them.

3. Only reach out to people you already know

If you limit outreach to your existing network, it won’t grow. It's time to get comfy with cold outreach.

4. Make it all about you

This is the #1 reason why people don’t reply to networking messages. Their messages are me-focused vs. about the receiver. Striking the right balance is an art and a science.

Now that you know what to avoid...let's break down what to do instead.

Effective Networking Strategies by Stage

Networking effectively depends on the stage in your career transition. Your approach will shift the closer you get to narrowing in on your target role, positioning, and target companies.
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1️⃣ Early Stage: Exploration and Discovery

You're beginning to figure out what's next. Not quite sure which role to target or how to navigate a potential industry change.

The goal:

• Identify information to help you approach your job search / career path
• Narrow down your hypotheses of what could be next to identify 1 clear target
• Let people know you’re on the market and looking

Who to talk to:

• Former Colleagues: Easy to warm up since you know them. Plus, they have overlapping career experience with you and can speak to their experience transitioning.
• Pathblazers: Those who have a similar background to you and align with your potential career change. At this stage, they can help you scope out particular roles/paths within guiding principles.
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2️⃣ Mid Stage: Targeting Specific Role and Industry Alignment

You're clear on the role you're targeting and industry that's most interesting to you. You're sourcing connections and opportunities to upskill into your target role or industry, and iterating on your overall positioning as you learn more.

The goal:

• Discuss your job search dimensions to surface new options
• Source introductions, companies, and opportunities that fit your career transition goals
• Learn more about functional and industry knowledge you need to speak the lingo

Who to talk to:

• Pathblazers: Those who identify with your desired career transition. At this stage, they can help you learn more about specific companies, role requirements, and industry knowledge
• Former Colleagues: Great source for introductions since they know you very well already
• Agency Recruiters: Those who specialize in your space once you know what you want
• VC Talent Partners: Similar to agency recruiters, they source for talent for portfolio companies & have visibility across multiple companies. Should be specialized
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3️⃣ Late Stage: Deep Dive into Specific Companies

You've locked in your target next role and positioning, so you're going full force for your target companies. You want to understand the insider's perspective on whether you'd actually like it there and how to best stand out to that team.

The goal:

• Evaluate whether a company is a good fit with your criteria
• Learn about the company problems and priorities, so you can better position yourself
• Build advocates internally who can help you get intros, interviews, and offers

Who to talk to:

• Pathblazers: People at the company who identify with your background (e.g. your desired career transition, similar degree/background). They’ll be more likely to reply.
• Hiring Influencers: Those negatively impacted by a specific unfilled role… hiring manager, recruiter, teammates.
  • Ideally, build connections with teammates first so you can learn from peers and be more informed going into any interviews.
  • If you want to get to an interview ASAP since they’re already interviewing, reach out to the decision maker (the hiring manager) or team leadership directly if you’re well qualified. Contact teammates and recruiters in parallel.
• Content Creators: People from the company who create content on LinkedIn regularly and those who create content FOR the company — e.g. company YouTube, blog, etc.
• Recent Joiners: These people just went through the company’s hiring process. They relate to the job search, can share intel on the company’s process & why they joined, and can help you navigate the process or get intros.
• Ex-Employees: Employees who recently left the company. They’ll be more likely to give you real insight into whether this company is worth pursuing. If the conversation goes well, they’ll also be able to connect you directly to someone on the inside.

That's not all...

Why you’re reaching out and who to contact is only the start. In next week's newsletter, I’ll give you the download on how to reach out effectively so you can get responses and convert conversations into tangible opportunities. Stay tuned

If you’re a generalist ready to level up your job search, it's time to join the Stand Out Candidate Club.
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In this new free masterclass, I’ll teach you how to stop getting passed over and become THE top 1% candidate who stands OUT to get hired for the dream role you can’t wait to wake up for.

✅ Action step to start next-level networking:

• ​Make a copy of my free Career Transition Tracker​
• Follow the steps to download your existing connections from LinkedIn
• Then, add target contacts that are tied to companies and roles
• Track your metrics and progress on a weekly basis

Remember: your network is a compounding investment.

It’s a long-term game that will pay off throughout the course of your career. Trust that you’re being led to the right opportunities, even if the next connection doesn’t pan out how you’ve hoped.

Start small, stay consistent.

Let’s win together,