Networking After A Bootcamp

Today I will be walking us through some tips, tricks, and not-so-obvious strategies to jumpstart your networking in Software Engineering or maybe other technology fields.

1. Make a list of industries you would like to work for as a Software Engineer:

Example:

1. Retail2. Medical / Hospital3. Education 4. Sales 

1. Within that list, write 2-3 companies for each industry that interest you / you can picture yourself working for:

Example:

1. Retail (Amazon, UrbanOutfitters, Target)2. Medical / Hospital (Stony brook Hospital, Company that makes patient portals)

These first steps are important. They replicate goal setting and picturing yourself at your "dream" company in your "dream" position.

These next few steps reflect connecting with people from your past, present, and future in a professional setting. Let's take a look:

1. Create a LinkedIn account (if you do not have one already).

2. Connect with 10 new people from your past (i.e High school, college, past colleagues, friends, acquaintances). These people do not necessarily have to be in your desired industry or in Tech.

3. Connect with 10 new people from your present (i.e current employer, current colleagues, friends/acquaintances from hobbies, volunteer work, associations)

4. Connect with 10 new people from your future (i.e recruiters, HR reps, Software Engineers from your list of "dream" industries + companies, friends/acquaintances that are software engineers/work in Tech, Tech-driven associations like 'GirlsWhoCode')

5. Reach out to 1-2 people from past, from present, and from future. 3-6 people total. Ask them to look at your resume, ask for advice on how to reach out to recruiters, ask them what their daily work day looks like, ask them what type of person usually stands out...

Remember be polite + professional ALWAYS

Prepare a polite, professional message to be sent; always give thanks for anything that person has provided; and follow-up consistently.

The last block of steps helps to build your online "branding" or presence. This shows recruiters or future employers that you have passion, intelligence + like to make a difference:

1. Create a blog account / vlog account on Youtube / Twitter account focused around sharing tips, teaching code, sharing tech news...

2. Like + respond to others' posts or tweets. Get people to see your name + see that you have something important to say!

3. Start creating your own content + share across multiple platforms. Build up a nice following + create a discussion in your comment section.

4. Teach others when you can + ask questions; don't be afraid of not knowing something.

These steps have helped me to jumpstart my networking as a recent graduate of Flatiron Bootcamp. There are so many resources online + provided through bootcamps. However, sometimes the simplest tips + tricks can help you get out from under the hood of fear (or imposter syndrome) and into the world of communication + technology.

If you have any other tips or any resources that have helped you, please share below :) Let's help each other achieve our dreams and our goals.