Are you still randomly applying to jobs? Alan Stein reveals the networking strategy that actually works

It begins with a familiar scene. A job-seeker sits in front of a glowing laptop screen, submitting yet another online application, number forty-three this week, with little hope and even less response. In the digital age, where job portals overflow and inboxes remain stubbornly empty, career experts say the key to professional success may not lie in the number of applications sent, but in the number of conversations had.

Alan Stein, former hiring manager and CEO of professional coaching company Kadima Careers, told Business Insider that networking should take precedence over applying. “Go in there with an intent to learn about them,” he said, adding that the goal is to leverage relationships and create new connections, not to ask outright for a job.

Stein’s philosophy is simple yet transformative: stop chasing algorithms, start building human bridges.


The ‘five chats’ principle: Redefining career strategy
Stein proposes what he calls the “Five Chats Rule,” a commitment to having five genuine conversations every week with professionals in companies where one hopes to work. These are not transactional meetings, but opportunities to learn, listen, and engage.

Each conversation, he says, increases visibility within the hidden job market , the vast ecosystem of roles that never make it to public job boards but are filled through internal referrals and word-of-mouth recommendations. Such referrals not only fast-track candidates to interviews but also give them a human edge that no résumé keyword can replicate.

“Networking isn’t about asking for favors,” Stein explained. “It’s about building trust through curiosity.”


Why networking beats endless applications

Career experts argue that the traditional method of firing off applications into the digital void is a poor investment of time. The return, as one expert puts it, is “vanishingly small.” It is an ongoing career maintenance tool, one that sustains relevance and opportunity. Even for those comfortably employed, speaking with “one or two people a week” about their professional journeys keeps their network warm and their perspectives fresh.


The hidden dividend: Learning, not just landing

Beyond the tactical benefits, the act of networking cultivates intellectual and emotional dividends. Talking to professionals across industries provides an education in itself, revealing new technologies, evolving trends, and unspoken norms of success.


In a world where job markets shift faster than résumés can be updated, this habit of curiosity becomes a form of professional insurance. Every conversation is an insight, every connection a potential ally.


From cold emails to warm connections
Experts agree that meaningful networking is not about volume but authentic engagement. A cold email asking for a job rarely yields results, but a well-crafted note that expresses genuine interest in learning about someone’s work can open unexpected doors.

This is the subtle art Stein advocates: Approaching professionals not as gatekeepers but as guides.


In the end, people hire people
The future of job-hunting, as experts like Stein suggest, belongs to the conversationalist, the one who listens, learns, and builds bridges before they need them.

In an era ruled by AI filters and automated screening, the most powerful algorithm remains the human connection.

The “five chats” rule may sound deceptively simple, but for those willing to trade job boards for conversations, it could be the difference between getting lost in the crowd and being remembered.