Nishant did not know anyone in the US when he moved here to start the MBA program at UNC Kenan-Flager. The job search guidance you receive as an MBA student is to network, network, network! Whether you’re a student or have been in the workforce for years, networking should be a huge part of your job search strategy. Listen up while Nishant talks about how he built his network from scratch. There are a lot of lessons here you can apply to your job search.

Nishant reached out to people primarily through LinkedIn. He started with people he knew he’d have something in common with, such as alumni of his school, but he didn’t limit himself to just alumni. He did searches on LinkedIn to find people working in tech in California because that’s what he wanted to do. He asked if they’d be willing to have a phone call with him, so he could learn about their job or company.

After doing about 20-30 calls, he realized he had to change his strategy and that the keys to being successful on a networking call were observing proper meeting etiquette by sticking to the time allotted, having great communication skills and convincing people that you are credible.

For every phone call, Nishant had with someone he reached out to, there were 10 others he contacted but who did not respond to him. This is important: set reasonable expectations for how often people will respond to you or you’ll be very discouraged as you expand your network.

Nishant estimates that he conducted over 120 networking calls! And he shares tons of tips so that you can do this successfully too.