Side gig vs full time job networking - the difference was huge

I spent 3 months going to industry mixers and LinkedIn coffee chats for my 9 to 5 and got almost nothing out of it. Then I tried the same approach for my freelance graphic design work on the side. I got 4 real clients in one month just from being more casual and actually showing my portfolio instead of handing out business cards. Has anyone else noticed networking works way better for side hustles than main jobs?

3 comments

3 Comments

walker.julia17d ago

Right, the corporate networking thing is such a performance. You're basically reading a script and handing out cardstock. With freelance, you're just a person showing what you can actually do, which is way more real. Did your portfolio itself change between the two, or was it more about how you talked about the work and yourself in each setting?

richard_young8017d ago

Just a person showing what you can actually do" - yeah that's spot on. Had a buddy who went freelance after years in a big agency. He told me his portfolio barely changed, it was all about how he told the stories behind the work. In meetings he'd just chat about what went wrong and how he fixed it, instead of reciting the official timeline. Made everything feel more human, you know? @walker.julia did you find yourself ditching the corporate speak right away or did it take some practice?

young.thomas17d ago

Took me about three years and a burned-out Prius to finally drop the script.