Or, networking for misanthropic nerds.

I’m shy, awkward around people I don’t know well, and honestly kind of a dork. So how is that I got three of the four jobs I’ve had since college by knowing people? I show up. That’s seriously it. Physically show up to events, make a minimal effort to be friendly, and you will get to know people who will either introduce you to someone who will offer you a job or offer you a job directly.

So let’s get into details. When I say “events” what am I actually talking about? User groups, code camps, meetups, developer get-togethers, conferences, etc. Victoria is not a large city and we still have a wealth of meetups, your city almost certainly has some too. Google is your friend here, as is twitter and other social media. I found out about whiskydev because a friend tweeted about it. At whiskydev I met a friend who introduced me to my new boss, and now I work at an awesome startup.

If you’re particularly shy, I recommend user groups or meetups where someone gives a talk. How do you know the group is having someone give a talk? They’ll usually announce the speaker and topic ahead of time because they’re excited about having an actual speaker (depending on the group’s topic, it can be a huge pain to find someone to speak so organizers are usually pretty stoked about finding someone) and so that people who either don’t care about or love that topic can make plans accordingly. Talks are easier for shy people because a) you can spend most of your time at the meeting quietly taking notes, and b) afterwards you can ask people how they liked the talk instead of agonizing over how to start a conversation. Not that I’ve ever done that.

Another tip for shy people or for people who are really serious about networking is to volunteer. I volunteer with a number of organizations and I speak from experience when I say there is no such thing as too many volunteers. Come early and help set up, stay late and help clean up, or ask the organizers if they need volunteers for anything. The answer will almost certainly be yes, and now you’ll have a defined job to do which makes it way easier to talk to people.

It’s great if you can be friendly and talk to people, but the first step is just physically showing up. Start there and you’ll be fine.

But to be fair, I have to mention that it is possible for showing up to backfire horribly. If you show up and act like an asshole, word will spread. Victoria in particular is a very small town when it comes to tech. The person you’re a jerk to today could easily be friends with the team lead who’ll be interviewing you tomorrow. On the upside, you kind of have to work at it to be enough of a jerk that someone would tell a friend not to hire you. People are generally pretty forgiving and we all know what it’s like to put our foot in our mouths. Just don’t be a dick and you’ll be fine. That doesn’t mean you can’t have opinions, just that you should phrase them as opinions. For example “I hate working with javascript” is just an opinion, but “javascript sucks and only shitty programmers use it” is going to make you look like a jerk.

And one more tip, particularly for students: class counts as networking. Your professors have probably had students before you, and certainly know people in the industry. Those former students may be the ones interviewing you or asking your professor about you. People your former classmates work with might also ask them what you were like as a classmate. Think about what you want them to say before you show up late and blow off assignments. This applies to your current job as well – just like you aren’t going to stay in one place for your entire career, neither are your coworkers. If you interview somewhere a former coworker now works, what are they going to say about you if the interviewer asks them?

To summarize, my tips for networking are:

  1. Show up
    1. Try to be friendly
  2. Don’t be a dick
  3. For extra credit, volunteer

That’s all you need to do to make contacts who might one day help you find a job. “Networking” can sound like something only slimy salesdroids do, but it’s really just showing up and trying to be friendly.