Vox

Everyone tells you it’s who you know. But what do you do if you don’t know anyone? Marshall Kosloff is really good at building genuine connections, and it’s really paid off for his career. And when he first moved to DC, he didn’t know a single person. Marshall says his job is to "throw parties." Officially, he is the host of the political podcast The Realignment, and Senior Fellow and Director of Special Projects at the Niskanen Center, a think tank in DC. In this episode: how to start a conversation that turns into a professional connection, why your cold emails aren’t getting answered, and how to de-risk your big career leap. 00:00 Marshall is the best networker I’ve met 00:48 A message brought to you by AlphaSpace 01:36 Remember Abercrombie models? 05:57 How to network as a nobody 10:06 A message brought to you by AlphaSpace 11:18 Just be confident! On taking action 14:33 #1 career tip: just show interest 16:25 How to write a good cold email 22:05 Rethink risk in your career 24:37 Your manager’s feedback might be wrong 31:34 Grad school is a trap 32:18 Do you take an unpaid internship? 36:30 Applying to be Gandalf 39:56 Luck questionnaire Follow Best of Luck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bestofluckpodcast Follow Kyla Scanlon on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kylascan This interview was taped at ⁠Aspen Ideas: Economy⁠: https://www.aspenideas.org/attend/economy Our theme song is "Frolic" by Jake Xerxes Fussell. Discover more of his music and tour dates here: https://www.jakexerxesfussell.com/ Produced by: Megan Cunnane, Wendy Mullin, Devan Joseph, Garrett Williams, Coby Weiss