so when i am out of a job and i don't find a new one in my network, does that mean my networking efforts have failed and i should try networking elsewhere?

> abandoning every bit of your network [...] sounds like an extreme response, and probably not as wise as redoubling your existing efforts

i didn't mean abandoning the network i have, but abandoning my current attempts to build a network and trying different ways to build a network instead.

what i am trying to say is that whatever i have been trying to build a network has not lead to any meaningful connections. and what few connections i have been able to make, none have been helpful in finding work. so those connections are either not the right ones, or i am not connected well enough (connections don't know me well enough) or i simply do not have enough of them.

i have no idea how to measure that. how does a healthy network look like? are the 300 people i am connected to on linkedin but never talk to, and most of whom i barely know, enough? do i need to engage them more? or should i connect to more people instead? should i try to connect to different kinds of people? what level of friendship does it take for a connection to be helpful?

i have been doing this for more than two decades, and in that time a single job or client was the result of a referral from people i knew, one came directly from someone i have known years earlier, and a few early on came from being a member in a small community. but since then nothing. every other job was hustle and applying to open positions.

don't you think that after more than a decade of trying without success, i shouldn't question the approach? how long should i try doubling down? another 10 years?

> trying to build a network when you need work doesn't seem like a viable strategy.

Why not? If you need work, and connections are known to help get work, I'd argue building a network is exactly what you should be doing.

because building a connection to someone takes longer than the time i can afford to be out of work. i am not suggesting that i should stop with networking, but that spending more time on networking is not going to make enough of a difference when i need a job right away. i am in the lucky position that i saved enough money to actually be able to afford to be out of work for more than a few months. but even that money will run out if i don't find work eventually.

you'll never know where that next connection or job lead may come from

well if past performance is any indication, then it is not coming from my networking efforts.

connections are known to help get work

but my connections are not getting me any work.
something must be wrong with my network or with my efforts at networking. but i can't figure out what that is. can you see why i am confused?

Certainly, LinkedIn is very job-oriented, so that might be a good place

you are in a minority with that opinion. most comments on HN that i have seen over the years suggest that linkedin is useless. of course there may be survivorship bias there. i wager most of those people are not even trying to use linkedin. and neither was i. so that would be one of the things for me to change.

These days there is no shortage of ways to connect with people in ways that anybody but the most communication-adverse would find acceptable.

i'd like to dispute that statement. i can't think of more than half a dozen ways. maybe a dozen, but then half of those are out of my reach.

to be more practical, let's make an actual list. if you can think of any other ways, please add to the list:

in person:

1: go to tech and networking events and meetups. (only possible if you live in a big city with an active community).
2: go to conferences. (requires time and money)
3: speak at conferences (takes advanced preparation time as well as money)

online:

4: join online networking events. (there are some, but i feel they are hard to find. most online events are talks/workshops without any opportunity for the audience to connect to each other)
5: give talks at online conferences or participate in podcasts. (takes advanced preparation time)
6: participate in online communities/forums/mailinglists. (seems to work better in small communities. requires effort to help others in order to stand out as knowledgeable and helpful. standing out on HN or stackoverflow is difficult. not sure about linkedin)
7: write a blog (takes a very long time to build up an audience)

that's all that i can think of. i have tried all of those at some point. 1, 2 and 3 are out of reach for me right now. i am not having any success with 6 or 7, but i haven't tried linkedin yet. and i want to revisit 4 and possibly 5.

btw: i tried in person networking events when i had the opportunity. after a few years doing that in beijing i felt i was getting somewhere, and then we had to move. likewise in vienna, but there i felt that i was getting somewhere after a few months. but it took a lot of effort. i went out at least 2, sometimes 3 or 4 times a week. very taxing on my family. generally, i don't think more than once or twice a week is advisable if you want to keep your wife happy. if you are alone of course then have at it.