You can use Twitter to connect to people at cool companies and gain a huge leg up on the job hunt. It’s not as hard as you think, and you don’t have to be weird or phony or pushy.

1. Follow your interests is how to network on Twitter

They say if you want to be interesting, be interested. The best tip for how to network on Twitter is to stir up your curiosity. What kinds of people, ideas, companies, and industries interest you? Go find some cool accounts, figure out who’s got interesting Tweets, and follow them. Create a habit of a few minutes a few times a day keeping up on happenings in your spheres of interest.

2. Create value

Don’t just be an observer! Participate in conversations. Don’t keep your thoughts private. Share information. You don’t have to do it in a forced way, just be genuine. When an article interests you, Tweet about why. When you have a question about someone’s tweet, ask it. And when people click your bio, hopefully they’ll find a tweet history that helps them see what you’re all about.

3. DM with questions

If you’ve been following someone for a while and know a bit about their area of expertise, don’t be afraid to DM them with questions. People are often flattered by being asked and enjoy helping if they can. Best is not to ask for favors like, “Can you send my resume to X”, but instead, ask about them. e.g. “As someone who’s trying to brake into X field, I’m curious what you think was most valuable to you when you first got started.”

4. Show your work

Once you’ve gotten familiar with some companies and accounts of interest, create something for them and share it publicly. Really! “I love Spotify so much, I went ahead and made this list of the top playlists for each season” is actually a really cool thing to do and lets people see your creativity and initiative. I’ve seen interviews won from this kind of thing (especially if you do it for smaller startups).

5. Follow the rabbit trails

As you start to do these things, you’ll find more and more people and connections. Follow them. They’ll lead you to new areas that may end up full of opportunity. Poke around on the accounts that like your Tweets. Go to the websites in their bio. See who else works their on LinkedIn, etc. You’ll expand your network bit by bit.

How to Network on Twitter

Repeat these steps for how to network on Twitter over and over. Your network will compound. You’ll increase the odds that you’ll come across opportunities, and that opportunities will come across you.