The Informational Interview

If you are job hunting these days, you probably already know that you need an edge. Almost all of us know someone who is looking for work, or is afraid of losing their jobs. If you are already job hunting, but are running out of leads or need some fresh perspective, I highly recommend planning informational interviews as a way to network and also get a handle on what's important in your target industry right now.

In a nutshell, an informational interview is a meeting between you (the potential job hunter), and a specific company that interests you for the purpose of familiarizing you with a company and its culture WITHOUT actually applying for a job there.

An informational interview allows you not only to learn about the company (information which you can use if you decide to apply for a job there), but to also potentially get your foot in the door since you will be meeting people and becoming a known face and name to them. In other words, an informational interview is an "information gathering" activity that can be exceptionally valuable in your job search.

Because there is SO MUCH to learn about this particular activity, I have written two long informational articles about this topic which you can see over at Squidoo. It's just too much to fit into my blog here. I'll be writing more about the topic, and will post updates here.

My first article (or "lens" as they call it at Squidoo) is The Informational Interview - Job Interview Technique #2 in a series.

The second article/lens is Preparing for an Informational Interview - Job Interview Technique #3 in a series.

You'll find information about how to formulate informational interview questions as well as how to make a request for informational interview.

There is a LOT of information there, so please pop on over and give it a read! I would also love to hear your comments. Thanks for visiting!

PS: If you want a VERY GOOD Job Interview Strategy, visit www.JobInterviewTechnique.net for what I believe is the best advice I've ever heard!