Soon after I moved to Pittsburgh in 1980 from Portland, Oregon, I learned that our city’s business, cultural and sports life was built upon a matrix of close relationships fostered over decades. Pittsburgh and Allegheny County was dominated by a group of political leaders, business executives, foundation directors and members of the arts and sports elite who determined, to a large extent, how the area was to grow and prosper.
This meant that if you wanted a job, a contract or funding for your business, you needed to penetrate that matrix of individuals and cultivate relationships with members of this elite. While much has changed since 1980, personal and professional success is still built on who you know and who you can get to know.
My Life-Work Discovery model utlizes two key ingredients to help individuals to find jobs, change careers or establish consultant practices or businesses of their own. Those two ingredients are informational interviewing and work-of-mouth referal networking. Tomorrow I will tell you why you should consider these strategies.