This is Find Your Dream Job, the podcast that helps you get hired, have the career you want, and make a difference in life.

I'm your host, Mack Pritchard.

I'm also the founder of Max List.

It's a job board in the Pacific Northwest that helps you find a fulfilling career. Every Wednesday,

I talk to a different expert about the tools you need to get the work you want. You know the

difference that connections can make when you apply for a job.

But what do you do when you have no contacts inside an organization?

Kathleen Davis is here to talk about how to get your foot in the door when you don't know anyone.

She's the deputy editor at fast company.com where she writes about careers, hiring, and other workplace topics.

Kathleen also hosts the New Way We Work podcast, and she joins us from Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Well, let's jump right into it, Kathleen. What do you mean exactly when you talk about getting

your foot in the door? So what I mean is, and I'm sure that a lot of job

seekers have had this experience I certainly did when I was looking for a job. If you don't know

anybody, especially if you're trying to break into a new industry, my industry is media. It's

incredibly competitive. A lot of it you'll find is who you know. There's that saying it's not

what you know, it's who you know.

And if you went to a, you know, a certain school and you have an alumni network, if you have

interned at a company, you kind of already have those connections. But if you don't, you don't have

those connections. And, you know, you can feel like you're sending your resume out into a void

and how do you get somebody... somebody to actually notice you

so tell us more about why building those connections are so important and

and what stops job seekers from from doing that for making those connections

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