Day 14: How I Landed a Job in Germany in 6 Months Without Knowing Anyone in Europe

In October 2019, I wanted to move to Germany, but I didn’t know anyone in Europe.

By April 2020, I signed a job offer with my first German employer.

How? Through “Project 100”.

I reviewed my LinkedIn connections and listed 100 people:

• 20 University of the Philippines alumni in Germany (my alma matter)
• 20 former co-workers and bosses, most of whom are in the Philippines or the U.S.
• 20 Filipino product managers, designers, and software engineers in Hamburg
• 20 product managers in Hamburg and Berlin
• 20 founders, Heads Of, and Directors of product management in Hamburg and Berlin

I messaged each person, asking for advice about moving to Germany.

Seems like a lot? If you message 20 people per week, that’s only 4 per day. In just 5 weeks, 100 people become aware that you’re looking for opportunities in Germany. Ideally, you also got on 20-30 phone calls, establishing you’re legit and getting introductions to people who might hire you.

The biggest challenge when starting something new is that nobody knows you exist. Project 100 solves this. It sets a clear goal, expands your network, and creates opportunities nobody else has access to. Certainly not the people just browsing LinkedIn Jobs!

The offer I accepted came from a connection made by my former manager who lives in Savannah, Georgia. He met the hiring manager — who now lives in Cologne, Germany — when they both lived in China in 2012.

I couldn’t have known any of that from scrolling LinkedIn. Talk to people!