05 Dec Being a Conversation Starter

One of the amazing things about San Francisco is the number of opportunities that about by simply getting to know people. It might be that I’m making more of an effort as far as meeting new people goes, but it seems that because there’s so much going on and people are so fixated on networking (a concept I really dislike), there’s a greater frequency with which a friendly conversation might lead to a work opportunity, or something exciting like that.

That’s how I found my internship. I struck up a conversation with a guy at a cafe where I like doing my   homework (they have some of the best coffee in the city, in my opinion) and it turned out he was the head of an IT company that was looking for an extra hand. Like I said earlier, I’m really not into networking, at least as far as my general impression of how it works, goes. It all seems so contrived and shmoozy. I like having sincere interactions with people, and I hate the idea of the way that I am towards them being compelled by some agenda other than genuinely wanting to get to know them. Maybe my perspective was wrong, though. Maybe it comes down to your approach, and the legitimacy of the whole thing can change accordingly.

My point is that it pays to make an effort with new people, especially in a place like this. You’ve got a much better chance of creating opportunities (like internships) for yourself, by giving the people who are holding on to what you’re after a genuine, firsthand impression of your character and cleverness. In San Francisco those people are everywhere, so get out there and start a conversation or two.