10/10 coffee chat -> job referral

☕️👇how this 15-min coffee chat ➜ turned into a 2-hour chat ➜ and a job referral She is proof that even as a non-traditional applicant, by showing agency and thoughtfulness, you can get a job referral. Here’s why she stood out: 𝟭. 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 What most people say when I ask “How are you?” → “Good, how are you?” What she said: → “I’m doing great! I just watched a Claude Code tutorial and I’m excited to try it after our call.” Why this worked: ✅ She signaled agency (learning on her own time) ✅ She signaled energy (genuine excitement) ✅ She signaled she’d drive the conversation (I could relax) 𝟮. 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱/𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿 She made it very clear that she had read my Substack post about pivoting between PM roles (AR research → ed tech → creator tools). Her question: “How did you decide when to diversify your experience versus deepen your expertise?” Good question. But she didn’t stop there. 𝟯. 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 𝗔𝘀𝗸 𝗮 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗮 𝘃𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗮 𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗳𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. She explained her specific dilemma: why she was having a hard time picking between product marketing and product management. She pointed out the similarities between our paths AND the differences. She synthesized everything I needed to help her. That’s how she made it easy for me to want to help her. — coffee chat tips, networking advice, how to stand out in interviews, informational interview script, product management career advice, non traditional background, career pivot strategy, portfolio career, pivot into tech, break into tech, career growth, career advanement, first impression tips, how to ask for career advice, professional networking strategies, PM interview prep, coffee chat questions, how to network effectively, career transition advice, building professional relationships, how to find a mentor at work, career mentorship, questions to ask during coffee chat