5 Informational Interview Mistakes to Avoid!
About this video
Jeff Su outlines five mistakes that can hurt you in informational interviews or coffee chats, covering what to do before, during and after. Mistake one is not clarifying time and topic beforehand: ask for and stick to 30 minutes, and name specific topics in the request — for example asking about a move from management consulting to the sales team at Google and the thought process and challenges behind it — rather than asking generically, and phrase questions to elicit specific skills rather than broad answers. Mistake two is being too polite and letting lengthy, irrelevant answers consume the chat; he gives wording that acknowledges the story, notes time (‘I know you have to go in 10 minutes’), and transitions to the skills question you actually want answered. Mistake three is bringing only a smartphone for notes: a notepad signals you take the person seriously and holds your prepared questions; on phone calls say you are pausing to jot notes, and in person or on video ask to take notes 5 to 10 minutes in so it feels spontaneous rather than overly formal. Mistake four, which he calls the most common and most consequential, is not following up regularly. He shares a Google Sheets networking template with a snapshot tab — name, role, company, location, last contact date and comments — plus a separate tab per person for interaction notes, and advises focusing on just three people and contacting them monthly, quarterly or every six months with career updates, follow-through on their advice, or useful information. Mistake five is a weak ending: close by referencing one or two specific things from the conversation and your notes to show you were actively listening.
Key takeaways
- Before the chat, state a 30-minute limit and specific topics in your request, and frame questions around skills needed rather than broad experience questions
- Redirect long tangents politely: summarize and acknowledge their story, note the time remaining, then transition to the topic or skills you came to learn about
- Bring a notepad, not just a phone, to take notes and hold prepared questions; in person or on video, ask to start note-taking 5 to 10 minutes in
- Follow up consistently — Jeff’s biggest warning — using his Google Sheets tracker (snapshot tab plus a tab per person) but prioritizing just three contacts monthly, quarterly or every six months
- End strongly by thanking them and citing one or two specific points from the conversation to prove you were genuinely engaged and listening
Episode details: published November 18, 2020 · 8:35 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Jeff Su’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.
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