Informational Interview

An informational interview is a short conversation with someone working in a field, role or company you are considering — to gather first-hand reality instead of job-ad marketing. No job is asked for and none is offered; the currency is honest information about what the work is actually like.

Done well, it is the cheapest research tool in a career change: twenty minutes with an insider tells you more about daily reality, entry paths and red flags than a week of reading. Most people agree to it more readily than expected — being asked for expertise is flattering.

The etiquette: ask for 20 minutes, prepare three specific questions, never pivot into asking for a job, and send a short thank-you with what you took away. If the conversation was good, the relationship often continues on its own.