Appreciation post: old school in-person networking versus all this LinkedIn nonsense

I spent 12 years working in sales and marketing in Austin and I swear the best jobs I ever got just came from grabbing a beer with someone after a meetup. Last month I decided to try the whole LinkedIn approach for a career switch into project management. I sent out 40 connection requests with custom notes, followed up with DMs, the whole routine. Got maybe 3 replies and none of them led anywhere real. Meanwhile I ran into an old contact at a coffee shop on South Congress and by the next week he had me talking to his boss about an opening. Online stuff just feels hollow compared to a handshake where someone can actually see you're not a bot. Has anyone else found that real conversations beat digital ones every time?

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dixon.willow4d ago

That part about "someone can actually see you're not a bot" really hit home for me. I used to be a big LinkedIn defender, thought you just had to work the algorithm right and put in the effort. But after a few years of trying to make connections through DMs and InMails, I honestly felt like I was shouting into a void. Then a casual chat at a local chamber of commerce mixer turned into a solid freelance gig that lasted two years. I still keep my profile updated for the occasional recruiter, but nothing beats that real time back and forth where you can just read a person's face and body language.