The Secret To Long Term Career Success They Don't Want You Know About!

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Hey folks, in this video we're going to talk about networking. Um, and this actually came from a message that someone wrote on LinkedIn. Uh, sort of like an appreciation message, but then they had um sort of a request. And so it wasn't really a question. It was more well part of it was a question like if you agree and if I agree with this, right, then would I mind talking about this? And the sort of background for this is that they I'm not going to go into the details of it, but essentially they were talking about how their network that they had formed prior um had kind of been something that saved them. So their previous experience, their previous networking had afforded them this opportunity where they were able to get a job at a point in time where they uh were were needing it.

And um they were saying like, "Hey, if you if you believe this kind of thing, like if you believe networking is important, would you mind talking a little bit more about this?" And one of the things that they said was like, I want the younger generation to know that they shouldn't just think about tomorrow, but think about like 5 years from now. And I thought this was super interesting, right? because um like I do agree with this 100% and I think that it's extra challenging because a lot of folks especially right now totally get it um getting getting into tech is really difficult right or if you've been laid off like trying to get back in uh get employed like is really difficult and so I understand that a lot of people are like hey man like how are how are we talking about five years from now if like I need to get a job right now.

So, I get it. Um, but I don't think that means that we give up on thinking about networking. We give up on thinking about sort of forward-looking. I understand that you need to focus on now, but networking is incredibly valuable and I think that uh as this person wrote to me, I do agree with their their idea that if you are able to think about building up your network, building up genuine relations with people that this can go a really long way. And I have a couple of examples of this that I I wanted to talk about. and um and some and some general thoughts. So like I think that like when I've talked about networking and stuff before, the thing that I always remind people is like, hey, look, when it comes to like, you know, applying for jobs and things like that, I think a lot of people approach networking in a way that isn't really genuine and then they get frustrated or they think it doesn't work or it's not helpful.

But I think it's because they're using it for the wrong purpose. And I think that networking and building up those relationships is something that takes time and it's not a shortcut. I think that it's something that you do to strengthen your um your ability to uh you know to find opportunities. I think that it g like helps create a safety net over time. I think it um yeah like the opportunity part I think is probably the most general way that I can frame that because it will cover so many other scenarios but that's not something that you just like message someone on LinkedIn and they're and then you're like oh there might like LinkedIn makes it feel like okay you're connected now they're in your network and that's better than zero but at the same time like that doesn't mean that you've actually formed like a a connection or a relation with that person.

So, I understand that like networking can kind of feel frustrating or it can kind of feel like a waste of time, but it's kind of like when people want to go to the gym, right? People want to get strong, they want to lose weight, whatever it happens to be, and they they're like, "Okay, like, no, I got to do it. Like, I'm going to start going to the gym." But then they go for like a week and they're like, "Well, this is dumb. like I am not I didn't lose 20 pounds or like I am not you know the strongest person in the world so like it just doesn't work like I'm not I'm not wasting my time on this but it's like something that you literally have to keep doing you have to keep investing time into it and I think networking is the

same so um I always will refer to networking as something that creates more surface area for opportunities so it doesn't guarantee Like I'm not saying you go network that will get you job and it will do it like it's predictable and all this kind of stuff. I think that's a kind of a thing to even claim but it can help and it can be really helpful and when you're forming these types of relationships over time. So one example that comes to mind is um been talking to people a little bit more recently about um going to conferences, right? And so there was um when I went to Dallas originally, uh I went to a meetup there. I was invited to go well I was talking with the the guy who runs it. His name is Danny Thompson. And I went to go speak at the meetup.

Not even the conference they were holding, but the meetup. Um and there was uh someone that had reached out and they were like, "Hey, like if you're going to this this meetup, like I'm bringing coffee if you want coffee." Uh so I was like, "Sure." Like that's awesome. Like I'll take a coffee. So, uh, we met up there and so she was like, "Oh, you're a speaker. Like, that's awesome." Um, and like we had, you know, we had sat at the same table during the presentations. I did mine. I got a coffee. Thank you so much. Um, little things like that, right? Just actually like engaging in conversation. This is there's there's a story here. So, something so simple as that, right? um ended up we had uh by the way like I look for guests on my podcast and stuff. I know this is code commute but I do have a podcast channel.

So I try to invite people on that are I kind of have like interesting career journeys. Obviously I look for all sorts of different guests but in this case it was like hey this would be great to talk to someone who's um got a background that is not exactly like developer from day one. I think some of the most interesting people I talked to in software development did not start that way. So had her on for a podcast. He talked about um you know working with people communication like kind of like people first kind of approach to software development and why that's important. And she ended up getting a job from that. Not because I did anything, literally just because it created this opportunity because there was a video and someone who was hiring saw the video and was like, "That seems like that person would be great." Right?

So, this is a pretty extreme example, but the point is it just helped create some surface area for opportunity. Um I know there is a viewer of this channel um that reached out to me to ask about going to um conferences and said like do you think it's worth it? And I said hell yeah I think it's worth it. Like I mean if you can afford the time and you can afford the ticket cost and that kind of stuff then I I absolutely think it's worth it. But it's the kind of thing where it's not you don't just pay for the thing and then like cross your fingers and like you're done. Like if you're going to go, go talk to people. Like go go go put in the time and the effort. And I say that as someone who's introverted. That's challenging for me, but if you're going to do it, like go do it.

Don't just, you know, sit like check the box and say, "Well, I did it. Now it look didn't work. I didn't network." So, you know, the viewer of this channel, I won't say his name or anything, but like we talked about it and he ended up going to this conference and I don't think we we didn't do like a big debrief on it, but it's like, you know, there's opportunity where you get to network with people and if you meet those people like follow up with them, keep keep that conversation going, right? There's another um another person I had on my podcast. I don't think No, it's not published yet. Um, so it will be going out this week. Um, and so she was also at at this conference. So great. So got to talk about her career journey, right? These are just like like what I'm explaining in these last two examples is like those aren't job opportunities directly, but these are just like interactions, right?

And like it's great to meet people. It's like I would love to keep talking with these people, learn about like what they're doing. You know, if either of these two individuals that reached out to me and have been talking to me about this stuff, if they're going to conferences and stuff, keep me up to date. I would love to know if I'm around and able to go. That would be great. But this is the kind of stuff that like you do it and then go do this with other people, go meet other people, form these relationships. It takes time. you have to talk with people and it doesn't like you're not guaranteed a result, but you form a network of people. Okay?

So, not only can you do this in the way that I'm describing, which is like going to conferences or reaching out to people online and uh like there's a couple of people that again on this channel comment quite regularly or they head over to the podcast channel and they join the live streams and stuff and it's great. There's people that watch this channel that have submitted multiple questions and it's great. Like I get to learn more about them and I think that's super cool. Does that mean like does that mean that I'm like oh well soon as there's a job opening I'm getting you a job. Like no and I don't think they expect that either. But also like we're just forming like network effect relationships, right?

if they ever reached out to me and they're like, "Hey, like I'm thinking about doing whatever, like could you give me some insight on this?" Or if they were like, "Hey, do you know of job openings?" You know, like I'm at Microsoft right now, so they're like in in Azure, in Office, whatever. I could give them some insight into that, right? So, it's it's not like a job guarantee. I would never say that, but at least I'm a resource that they can reach out to because they have spent time connecting with me versus people that will randomly reach out and they're like, "Give me a job referral." And I'm like, "I don't even know who you are." So, you can do this kind of thing. The other thing, and especially this person that wrote in this time for this topic, they were saying like think about you can think about your network too even for places that you have worked.

So if you've worked somewhere, that might be something that like in the future those people that you worked with, they might be at other companies, right? They might still be at the same company, maybe you're going back. Like don't burn the bridges. Invest into time and relationships with people, right? These are potential opportunities for the future. But if you really liked working with someone, that might be a great opportunity for the future in a different role, different team, different company, and you could reach out to them and say, "Hey, like I, you know, really enjoyed working with you or, you know, interest. I see you're at this place. Like was really curious what it's like there. Do you know if there's openings? Like this could be a door to walk through." It's not a guarantee. It just increases the opportunity. Um I was reminded about this even recently talking with um actually like a couple of classmates from university, right?

So one of them I reconnected with at a at the Dallas conference I was just at. We hadn't seen each other in years and he works does like uh uh does a lot of travel and stuff for work. But it's like I'm just making this up, but if I was like, hey, you know what? Like maybe a career change for me, like maybe I am interested in doing something like he's describing. I'm not saying, oh, I'm going to reach out to him and he's going to get me a job. But I could reach out and be like, hey, like tell me about this, man. Like, you've been doing this for years. Tell me about this. Where would I start looking? Right? This is just it becomes a doorway that I can reach out to someone, start talking to them about it because I have a connection because I've built up that relationship and then I can learn from them.

Maybe maybe they're like, "Hey, and and by the way, like our company's hiring or they're like, "By the way, the place I used to be at, they're hiring." Those are great side effects, but even if not, I can learn from them, learn about what that's like, and then say, "Yeah, maybe that does sound cool. Maybe I should pursue that more." or maybe I learn about that from them and I'm like not for me like I won't do it. Cool. Okay. But that conversation led to another conversation where he was like hey you should catch up with our other classmate. So, I just had her on my podcast that'll go out in a couple weeks and that was really cool and we were chatting and I got to hear about like how her career's gone since university and how she was in like an engineer, how she was a program manager back to engineer and then became an engineering manager.

Really cool, right? And she's at a company and then she was like, "Hey, like I do you remember our other classmate? I work with him." Super cool. She's like, "You should reach out to him and bring him on your podcast." So, like the whole point is that like these are relationships, your network that you form over time. This last one I'm talking about are these last two. I graduated university over a decade ago. That's a long time, but these are people that I went to school with. I had known much more closely at that time for years because we were going through all the same class. the way our program was structured, we were all in the same classes together, so we all knew each other.

But again, this is like if I went to school and I was like, "Oh, I'm going to be an an to everyone and or like not make any friends or no, you know, no um sort of working relation at all with classmates, just disregard them." Then these opportunities would never come up. So the point is investing into the relationships that you have in terms of like your network. So whether that's uh spending time with classmates, if that's colleagues, if that's going to meetups, if that's reaching out on social media, like invest time into human relations because these are the people that that you're working with. These are the people that you could potentially be working with. These are people that you can learn from. These are people that you can surround yourself with, right? It's not just code. And no, networking and these types of things don't instantly solve problems overnight.

These are things that take a long time, but they're sort of like part of your your life story and your career. And I strongly encourage you to think about how you invest time into them with a conscious effort, not just as a accidental side effect. And that would be one piece of advice I wish I could give to myself. I've said this before, even on the classmate thing. I did not put as much time and effort as I should have investing time into forming like friendships and stuff with classmates. And I wish I did. I wish I did because they've all gone on to do amazing things and I would love to catch up with all them and learn about them and I probably need to spend time doing that. So starting to but like it would have been really cool to kind of see more of their journey along the way.

So I encourage that for you whether it's classmates, if that's previous colleagues or just people that you're meeting at different events and stuff, invest time and energy into it. It helps. So thanks so much for watching. Uh I appreciate this person reaching out and asking about this topic. And of course if you have questions, things like that, leave them below in the comments. Otherwise, go to code.com. You can submit stuff anonymously. and I will catch you in the next video. Take care.