An essential (but sometimes scary) tool for your career journey

Get over your fear and schedule that informational interview

Informational interviews are an essential tool throughout your career journey. They help you gather insights, guidance, connections, and recommendations to advance your career. These conversations are the key to discovering how you can apply your talents, where you can do meaningful work, and figuring out how to get there.

The benefits that you stand to gain from an informational interview are vast, but that doesn't mean that reaching out is easy.

The title of “informational interview” lends itself to a high stakes situation. For most of us, the word interview sparks sweaty thoughts of performing under pressure to spontaneously spout out polished answers that impress.

If reaching out to talk with a stranger (or even someone from your own network) about developing your career feels daunting to you, you’re in good company. As a career coach, I work with clients across ages and professional stages, and I’ve found that asking for career guidance is equally nerve-wracking for young professionals and my most experienced clients.

Before you prepare your questions or draft your introductory email, you need to gather up the courage to reach out for help.

Here are three new mindsets that will help embolden you to reach out for career guidance.

1. You don’t need to have all the answers, just the questions.

I once asked a client if he was nervous about reaching out to an established professional in his field for an informational interview. He replied, “I’m not nervous—I’m not the one being interviewed!” His perspective flipped what I most commonly hear from clients on its head, and opened up a new approach to the conversation.

An informational interview isn’t about how much you know—it’s about creating a space to learn things that you don’t yet know. While it might feel vulnerable to admit that you don’t have all the answers, it’s actually an opportunity to demonstrate two essential professional skills: curiosity and resourcefulness.

Any professional needs to be able to seek out information on behalf of their company and role (What’s on the horizon in our industry? Who can we talk to in order to find out what our customers truly need? What resources can we call on to help with this project?).

When you reach out for a career conversation, it shows that you’re the kind of person who is ready to ask questions and draw upon your resources to get things done and do them well. If you’re just starting out in your career, that shows that you’ll take initiative and responsibility for your own learning; if you’re more established, it shows that you’re driven by curiosity, you’re adaptable, and you’re not set in your ways.

2. It’s a conversation, not an imposition.

The number one reason my clients give for not reaching out for an informational interview is that they don’t want to be a bother. One client wondered out loud, “Why would this incredible and busy person want to spend their time helping me?”

Many people view an informational interview as though they are a lowly commoner kneeling before a wise ruler and groveling for their time and attention. This sets up an uneven dynamic where the person giving the guidance has all of the power and value and the person asking for help has nothing.

Lower the pressure by reframing the meeting as simply a career conversation—an informal exchange between two professionals.

Just like any professional interaction, you’ll show up on time, engaged, and prepared to make the most of the conversation. You’ll follow up with a brief message of gratitude so that they know that you got a lot out of the time they shared with you.

It would only be an imposition if you disrespected or wasted their time. You’ll show up to your time together with the thoughtfulness and preparation that makes it a professional conversation.

3. You bring value to the table.

Contrary to what you might think, you're not the only one who stands to benefit from an informational interview. Whether you’re the greenest of the green or have an illustrious CV, you bring a variety of types of value to the person sharing guidance and insight:

Fresh Perspective. After being in the weeds day in and day out, your questions will prompt them to zoom out and take a look at the bigger picture. They'll likely head back to the office refreshed and refocused.

Renewed Engagement. Your interest in their work will offer a reminder of why their job is important, impressive, and appealing.

New Insights. The conversation will bring out the ways in which you view their work from your unique perspective. Your questions and comments will spark new understandings of how or why they do what they do.

Deeper Self-Awareness. Your questions will prompt them to shape the narrative of their career through formative experiences, insights, and lessons learned. Putting those key moments into words will help them to more deeply understand their own path.

Access to Solutions. You never know, you could offer the answer to one of their challenges. You might be the right fit for a role, be able to make a needed connection, or offer a resource that is just the thing to help them further their own goals.

Warm Fuzzies. Doesn't it feel great to truly help someone? We underestimate the value of gratitude. In a day of craziness and endless to-do lists, helping you could be the small win that they need.

Reaching out for an informational interview requires courage. You need to give yourself permission to be curious, resourceful, and trust that you bring value to the career conversation.

Informational interviews are part of your ongoing, lifelong career discovery process. You never know where one of these conversations might lead—to further connections, greater knowledge, more informed decisions, new collaborations, and even job opportunities. So the sooner you overcome your hesitations about reaching out, the sooner you can get started in honing this essential tool in your toolbox.

Your Turn:

What questions do you have about your career journey? These are your unknowns, and they're a great place to start for setting up informational interviews.

Usually career unknowns start with "I'm not sure if..." or "I don't know how/what..."

For example:

• I'm not sure if I'd be qualified for that kind of role...

• I'm not sure if working there would give me the same flexibility I have now...

• I don't know what kind of credentials or skills I would need...

• I don't know how I would break into that field...

Write down your questions. Circle one. Ask yourself: who do I know who might be able to help me turn this unknown into a known?

From there, my Informational Interview Guide will help you every step of the way.