Step 7: TIARA

Sure enough, within three days of sending me my initial emails, the boosters were coming out of the woodwork - and I had informational interviews set-up at Google, EA, and LucasArts. Normally, I'm a total doofus when it comes to chit-chat, but using the TIARA approach, I was able to ask the right questions at the right times, leading to an interview invitation from the Big G.

Key Insights: Don't freak out with informationals - instead, see them as an opportunity to learn things you could never find online. The TIARA approach recognizes that people love to talk about themselves and their opinions, so the key is just giving them a platform to do so.

Time Savings: Getting the kind of insider insight that comes from boosters would probably take about 20 hours of trolling other sources (newspapers, blogs, etc.).

Stress Reduction: Actually getting an interview offer from a firm that wouldn't give me the time of day before this method was a huge ego boost - and stress reliever. -20 mm HG!