Why You’re One Coffee Away from a Different Perspective

When I started my career after grad school, I served as an AmeriCorps volunteer at a non-profit in Burlington, VT that matched underserved youth with businesses, exposing students to different careers and giving them a way to gain work experience. It was awesome. In fact, our model for high school internships is still going strong in Vermont today!

Little did I know that each time I bought someone a cup of coffee to talk about how they could create an internship, I was one step closer to uncovering what I was meant to do. During these meetings, I would ask questions like: What do you love about what you do? What is your definition of success? What would you tell someone getting started in your career? I quickly became aware of just how much a person’s body language can tell you. In some cases, the person would become larger than life as they told me all the cool things they spend their time on and how excited they were to share this with a young person. And sometimes, I'd see the opposite as they’d shrink into themselves as though hiding from the truth that they wanted a career change.

In those moments, I’d listen; mostly to their fear (“I’ve spent so much time and money, how can I change now?”) and how they felt misguided (“I didn’t realize it would be like this.”) Needless to say, I would end those exchanges asking who else at their business might be a good connection for a student! 

I share this not as my Coaching origin story, but rather to highlight how buying someone a cup of coffee and asking a few questions can have a life changing impact. Welcome to informational interviewing.

If you’ve never heard of this, it basically means meeting up with someone you think has an interesting career and asking them about it. That’s it.

In my opinion, this is the easiest way to learn more about a company, organization, industry, or project you are curious about. It may even lead to a tour, shadow, internship, job, or opportunity to volunteer or collaborate.

If the first three sound like something you can only do in high school or college, know this: they are not. People of all ages can benefit tremendously from these experiences, especially in times when you are bored at work, looking for your next thing, or want to expand your professional network.

“But I don’t have the time.”

To that I say, you don’t have time NOT to. One of my clients challenged herself to do two 45 minute meetings per month. At the end of each meeting, she would ask “who else do you think I should talk to?” and “would you introduce me to them?” These two questions are key and having a personal introduction, even virtually, will greatly increase your chances of setting something up. How did that go for my client? She landed her new job way sooner than she thought.

Here are three creative ways to reach out:

1. Follow them on social media, retweet or share their posts, and then direct message them.
2. Email them directly and get their attention by including their first name in the subject line with a question (ex: “Lindsey - have time for a brief phone call?”)
3. Attend a workshop, presentation, or event they are speaking at and introduce yourself either before or after. Speakers love having people introduce themselves, especially beforehand - it gives them a boost of confidence before they "go on." Just be sure to follow-up after.

And, finally, if you’re not able to meet in person because of location or time, my suggestion is to send them a $5 gift card to a coffee shop right after you connect. Not sure which one? Pick a universal place like Starbucks. My gut tells me that $5 is well worth spending.

Author
Lindsey Lathrop works with motivated people who want to make a change but feel stuck - stuck in their thinking, stuck because of perfection paralysis and imposter syndrome, you name it. She understands the value of a solid support system, and that's what she's able to give her clients. Lindsey believes in "eating the frog," good socks, strong coffee, and paying it forward. ​