So you want to be a VC? Here’s how…

Originally published with Front Row Ventures (here)

This is not a post about career paths on getting into VC. This topic has been written about extensively and would recommend checking out John Gannon Blog for more info on that topic. This is about the logistics of setting up interviews and finding job opportunities. If I’m being honest, these techniques apply to anyone looking for a job right now.

People mostly search through job websites like Indeed, ZipRecruiter, LinkedIn or John Gannon blog (VC specific) looking for job postings. These can be really helpful for the average person, but if you’re looking for a job as a VC or in a specialized industry, you need another way to get in.

The reason I wanted to write this is to create a guide for students and anyone looking to find a job outside of their current field.

Why should you trust me?

If I’m being honest, you shouldn’t. What worked for me won’t work for you. But I can tell you that using the techniques below, I was able to go from graduating as a doctor to a venture capital internship to a full time job in the healthcare VC industry all within the span of a year. This stuff worked for me and it could work for you.

Firstly, I’d recommend buying and reading the 2 hour Job Search. I was introduced to it by a former boss and it’s the single greatest resource on finding a job in today’s world that I’ve ever seen.

I’m going to walk through my process as an example of how I applied the techniques below to my own situation. If you take away anything from this article, remember this: prioritize, contact and recruit.

Prioritize:

First thing you need to do is sit down and think about what you want. Where do you want to live? What kind of industry are you interested in? What role are you looking for? What kind of company do you want to work for? Why do you want to work in VC? All of these questions are important for you to answer because they’ll help guide your search.

When I was looking for a job in VC, I was very agnostic. I was fortunate to not have any responsibilities tying me down to a specific place so I didn’t care where I went. I knew I wanted a job at a healthcare venture capital firm but I was willing to move anywhere if possible.

Once you’ve answered a few of these questions, you want to make a list of the companies you want to work at or the places you want to live. I’d also recommend including companies that may not be on your radar initially but could be a great learning opportunity. Although smaller firms may not have the pedigree that large firms do, you’ll gain a lot more experience working in smaller teams. This list can be as long as you want but recommend you keep it to around 20–40 at the initial stages.

Contact:

LinkedIn way:

Once you have your list, you need to set up a LinkedIn page. Everyone in the business world is on LinkedIn and it’s the greatest job resource you could ask for because you can potentially connect with anyone you want.

Most people don’t spend enough time on their LinkedIn pages but you want to do a good job as it’s the first thing people are going to see when you’ve messaged them. To build a good LinkedIn page, I’d recommend checking out these resources: here, here, here, and here, but you can find so many through Google.

Once your LinkedIn page is set up and you’ve made your list, start ‘social media stalking’ these companies. Almost every single company has a ‘Company page’ on LinkedIn so search the company you want a job at and look at the list of employees. Take a look at their backgrounds and see if any of them have a job you want or work in a department you want. I’ve also used the company’s website to learn about their team to see who I wanted to speak to.

Once you’ve decided who you want to talk to, you want to send them a message. First thing, DO NOT ASK FOR A JOB IN THIS MESSAGE. You want to send them a message about setting up a conversation. Something along the lines of:

‘Hey x. Hope you’re well. I was going through your company and found your profile. I’m really interested in learning about xyz space and given your background, I’d love to get some advice. Please let me know if you’re available for a conversation. Thanks.’

Obviously craft your own message but the point of this is to make the message about the other person, not about you. Too many times when students or people network, they make it about themselves. Most people are put off by that because people are taking time out of their busy day to help you. The main point of the opening message should be about connecting and getting advice from them on their career.

The reason this works well is because people love talking about themselves. Some people think their jobs are boring but as soon as a random person talks about how interested they are in their job, they love having conversations about it. People love talking about their own journeys because it makes them feel nostalgic.

Once you’ve crafted a perfect message, do this for the 20–40 companies you had in your original list. It’s risky to message multiple people at the company at the same time depending on how big the firm is and if they’re in different departments, but you definitely can. The way I’d do it is message one person at the company, wait a few days, and if they don’t respond, message someone else.

When you do this exercise, expect to get a lot of non-answers. People are busy and sometimes won’t make time for students so don’t worry about those people. Focus on the ones that message you back. People want to help young folks who are looking to get into their own industry. If they don’t message you back initially, you could always send another follow-up message within the next week, but don’t overdo it.

Now, let’s say you’ve messaged your 40 companies and 10 people responded. Ask to have a half hour conversation at some point in the next few weeks as per the other person’s schedule just to get advice. Again, DO NOT MENTION YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A JOB OR INTERNSHIP AT THIS POINT. We will get to that.

Email way:

Instead of LinkedIn, you can also access people through their emails. You may be thinking ‘how do I find said person’s email if it’s not listed on their website?’ This is a great resource to check out (here). There are multiple chrome extensions but my favourite is Hunter.IO. You can go to any website and click the extension and it’ll show people’s emails from that company. Whichever person you want to speak to, copy the structure of the email signature with their name and voila, you have their email.

As you’re searching through LinkedIn, see if you have any mutual connections with the employees there. If you do and you know the connection well, then ask for an email introduction. These go a much longer way than a cold email. Warm introductions do wonders for your credibility and meeting new people.

If you can’t get an intro, you’ll need to send a cold email. For a good cold email structure, I’d recommend checking this out (here). 2 hour Job Search also has a great way to structure a cold email. You want it to be short, succinct and to the point. The points to remember are:

· Fewer than 100 words

· No mention of jobs anywhere (in subject/body)

· Connection goes first

· Generalize your interest and ask for advice

· Maintain control of follow-up

Recruit

Hopefully by now some people have responded to you and you’re ready to have your conversation. Now you need to prepare. You need to learn everything you can about the person and the company they work for. What department do they work in? What’s their background? Where did they go to school? What are their LinkedIn interests?

All of these are important to note because when you have your conversation, you want to make it about them. There’s a concept in psychology from Influence by Robert Cialdini called the Principle of Liking. Persuasion science tells us there are three important factors that get people to like us: we like people who are similar to us, we like people who pay us compliments and we like people who cooperate with us towards mutual goals. You’re going to use the first two in your conversation. Don’t overdo it though because most people can smell BS from a mile away.

Once you’re ready for the conversation, remember TIARA. TIARA stands for

· T — Trends: what are the trends impacting their business? Future problems?

· I — insights: surprises from their work, most enjoyed about their job, most valuable experience?

· A — advice: what to do to break into the industry?

· R — resources: what next steps would you recommend?

· A — assignments: what would they recommend you do next

The way I structured my conversations was I asked insightful questions about them and their thoughts on their industry for the first 25 minutes of the 30-minute discussion. Make it about them. Towards the end, I’d say ‘I’m currently looking to enter the industry and was wondering if you knew of any jobs or internships in the field?’ Once they answer that, ask them if they know anyone else that would be helpful. Oftentimes, if you’ve had a great conversation with someone, they’re happy to pay it forward and put you in touch with other people in their network.

Now you’ve had 10 conversations. It’s likely you’ll be able to talk to a few more people and a job opportunity may present itself.

If after all of this work you don’t find anything, don’t get discouraged. Rejection is a part of life. Remember that even if you’ve messaged 50 people, all you need is one person to take a chance on you. Luck is definitely a part of finding a job, but you also need to do the work to put yourself in a position to get lucky.

I told my brother to use parts of this technique, specifically through LinkedIn, and he’s had conversations with over 20 people in the consulting industry just in the last month. This technique works, no matter what industry you’re looking to break into. Best case scenario you end up with a job. Worst case scenario you end up exactly where you are with a broad network of people and a great learning experience.

Hope this was helpful and best of luck with your job search.

Remember, all it takes is one yes.

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