I do. It's a nice meeting, but it seems to keep happening: the informational interview with a job seeker.
It's really a nice meeting. Nice: an ethical obligation, a mitzvah, a kindness, a help to the local economy. And, possibly, it could truly boost both of us. The other person might discover the connection to an opportunity. I might make a friend.
You Can Skip This Meeting
I do. Rather than meet, I send an email.
You can do the same thing. Here's my email, edited for your use:
Thanks for asking for an informational interview. I really want to be of help. Here's the way, I can be of the most help.
A friend of mine, Artie Isaac, has had more than a thousand informational interviews. Over time, he realized he was saying the same things at every interview. Whenever he met someone for the first time, he would offer the same list of suggestions. Here they are, if you are a recent college graduate (or if you are deeper in your career) seeking a job.
Artie found that, if the interviewee read through the list of suggestions, and applied a few, then, when they did meet, they could move faster. The first meeting would be much more helpful to the job seeker. At least, they could skip the part where Artie offered those suggestions. And, often, the advance work by the interviewee would have already sparked progress.
So, their first meeting was really their second meeting. They had the second meeting first, because the first meeting was done by email.
If you want to get together with me, please read through the list of suggestions, linked above. Especially apply the Hecker Method, which is in the deeper career article. It's really good.
Feel free to use my information. (Everyone on my sites is free for you to lift and use, with or without attribution.)
How Google Hires
Thomas Friedman desribes "How To Get A Job At Google" in today's The New York Times. Be sure to read some of the comments from readers, many of which call into question, among other concerns, whether Google is a relavant example.