With the first five steps completed, you now have enough information and contacts to start making noteworthy progress. Keep the following equation in mind:
Meaningful contact x frequency = increased amount of interviews
Interviews lead to offers and more interviews lead to better offers. But what do you have to do first? Have calls, A LOT of calls.
Set a certain amount of emails, phone calls and coffees to send/conduct each week. You want to avoid any week going by without consequential interactions that advance your transition. If all you can do is one of each, then that’s good enough. One is always better than zero.
Initially, consistent contact might be limited to your trailblazers and connectors. Don’t fret. This is excellent momentum to begin building an extended network. The vaster your network becomes, the more opportunities you’ll uncover.
Recognize you’ll have a significant portion of cancellations, reschedulings and no-shows. The above equation is key to overcoming these inevitable circumstances. Just like more at-bats increase the likelihood of an on-base hit, scheduling more contacts per week increases your ability to connect with someone making hiring decisions for a position you’re after.
A final tip: manage your schedule with a calendar application to avoid double booking. It’s a terrible feeling to know you missed out on a valuable discussion by failing to keep track of simple details.
Next week, I’ll break down how to ensure each conversation advances you towards your goal of landing that perfect role in tech.