People often ask me why I go to networking events when I'm not actively job hunting. The answer is simple - having a broad, diverse network is valuable for more than just getting hired.
Engaging with professionals from various industries not only fosters career growth, but also provides different perspectives, exposure to exciting technologies, and insight from other people's experiences. Sharing your own experience and opinions helps to spark a dynamic conversation that can help others as well. Your seemingly routine experiences might be invaluable to others - never underestimate the impact of what you bring to the table. By cultivating a network based on genuine connections, there's a higher likelihood that someone will advocate for you when it comes to finding a job.
While these conversations can happen at work, my remote-first, small-sized company limited these interactions for me.
Remote Work Realizations
Early in my career, I worked for a remote-first company. The company and its founders were in San Francisco, while I was in Los Angeles. Remote work offers incredible flexibility, but I also discovered that it can be lonely without the casual interactions found at the office. Those water cooler chats, overheard conversations, and spontaneous lunches with co-workers really make a difference. Moreover, my company was rather small - only 5 people. If I wanted to stay up to date with technologies and level up as a software engineer, I had to be proactive about it.
Embracing Proactivity
If I couldn't enjoy the office environment, then I needed to be more proactive in seeking growth opportunities. And that's exactly what I did! I started incorporating software engineering content into my daily life through blogs, podcasts, YouTube videos, TikTok videos, and evidently local events.
I started by looking at events at LA Tech Week. It was intimidating to say the least. Everyday there were countless events spanning across any and every industry even remotely related to tech. A lot of events had an entry fee or required you to be on a list - but some were free. I signed up for as many free events as I could find. When I arrived at these events, I saw a room full of people talking and laughing - it felt like everyone already knew each other. But the more I looked around, the more I started to realize that everyone felt just as awkward as me - it was comforting to know that I wasn't alone.
I took a leap of faith and joined one of the groups. I introduced myself and asked about everyone else's backgrounds and found that a lot of people were looking for a job. Eventually, I bumped into someone who was hosting their own networking event for Software Engineers on EventBrite after LA Tech Week and so I went to check that out. At that event, I met some people who hosted their own tech events on MeetUp. You can see how this quickly snowballed - soon I became connected with many people, events, Slack channels, and Discord communities, all related to Software Engineering.
Embracing The Community
I became actively involved in the coding community in my local area. At the big events, I met a lot of people - some people who were hiring, but most people were looking for a job. These interactions were typically surface level since there were so many people to talk to. I tended to enjoy the smaller events with groups that met regularly. At these events, I started to see familiar faces and we could move beyond the surface level pleasantries and dive into deeper topics. We could debate about newly released tools or discuss some of the problems we've been dealing with on our projects that week. Personally, I prefer these deeper, more meaningful interactions and I also think it can be more mutually beneficial compared to the larger events.
The support and camaraderie I found in these groups has been invaluable to my professional growth and the genuine connections I've made have led to interesting conversations and even job opportunities. Everyone can learn a lot by hearing someone else's experience and how they overcame a problem in their project or on their team. You can debate the merits of various tools and technologies and defend your own hot takes. These experiences poured over into my own projects and allowed me to expand and grow as an engineer.
The Impact of Networking
People often talk about networking in a professional context, but I prefer to think about it as building new friendships. These connections with people who share a passion for software engineering can offer valuable insights. Sharing your own experiences can help other engineers understand a different perspective. As the saying goes, you're only as good as your five closest friends. Surrounding yourself with like-minded individuals who embrace a growth mindset not only ensures continuous development as an engineer, but it can also lead to a diverse network who will advocate for you when the time comes.
So, next time you're deciding whether to go to a networking event, consider the untapped possibilities waiting for you and how they might propel your journey forward.