It&rsquo;s a fact: employers hire candidates that they know and those who are recommended to them by people that they trust. That&rsquo;s why networking is so important: it gets you face-time with fellow professionals and kickstarts relationships that get you known in the community.

When you&rsquo;re looking for a job, one of the best things you can do is conduct informational interviews with professionals in your desired field. But how do you find the right people with whom to meet? And what are the takeaways you can expect from these meetings?

In this episode of Find Your Dream Job Mac talks with Nathan Perez, an executive recruiter and writer who has mastered the art of networking. According to Huffington Post, Nathan is one of the most connected people on LinkedIn, with 30,000 professional contacts. He is also the author of The 20-Minute Networking Meeting, a primer on how to conduct successful informational interviews. &nbsp;&nbsp;

In this 36-minute episode you will learn:

 - How to structure a short but effective networking meeting
 - How to make a good impression in an informational interview
 - How to build and leverage your network
 - The one thing you should never do in a networking meeting

This week&rsquo;s guest:

Nathan Perez
Principal, 20 Minute Communications
Author of The 20 Minute Networking Meeting
Minneapolis, Minn.

Listener question of the week:

What do I do when a professional connection &ldquo;ghosts&rdquo; (disappears) on me?

Do you have a question you&rsquo;d like us to answer on a future episode? Please send your questions to Cecilia Bianco, Mac&rsquo;s List Community Manager at cecilia@macslist.org.

Resources referenced on this week&rsquo;s show:

 - The 20-Minute Networking Meeting (Executive Edition) (http://amzn.to/1KiEKt2)
 - The 20-Minute Networking Meeting (Graduate Edition) (http://amzn.to/1FaxwLC)
 - Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (http://www.ynpn.org/)
 - Network After Work (http://www.networkafterwork.com/)
 - Ignite Conferences (http://igniteshow.com/)
 - Eventbrite (https://www.eventbrite.com/)
 - Meetup.com (http://meetup.com)
 - Find Your Dream Job in Portland (and Beyond): The Complete Mac&rsquo;s List Guide (https://www.macslist.org/macslistguides/)

If you have a job-hunting or career development resource resource you&rsquo;d like to share, please contact Ben Forstag, Mac&rsquo;s List Managing Director, at ben@macslist.org.

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Thank you for listening to Find Your Dream Job. If you like this show, please help us by rating and reviewing our podcast on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/find-your-dream-job-insider/id1047320599?mt=2

Learn more about Mac's List at http://www.macslist.org.

Opening and closing music for Find Your Dream Job provided by Freddy Trujillo, http://www.freddytrujillo.com.&nbsp;

Ep. 001: How To Find A Job Through Networking

Mac’s List is the premier career development resource for connecting passionate, creative professionals to meaningful and socially impactful work in Oregon and SW Washington.