Once you’ve crafted your elevator pitch, you’ll need to meet people face to face. Ask your friends, professors, family, or connections to introduce you to working professionals who would be valuable for you to meet.

This could be a grad three to five years out of school or a seasoned professional with more than 20 years of experience. Either way, you are now on a fact-finding mission to understand their professional path and listen to any advice they have for someone in your position.

Find people you admire and ask for 30 minutes of their time. Use your elevator pitch to introduce yourself and describe what you want. Your goal at this point is to see what jobs might be a fit, make a personal connection, and learn more about the industry. Beyond gaining information, making an in-person connection gets you one step closer to sidestepping the application portal black hole.

Get as many of these as possible on the books so you can learn as much as you can!