u/Critical_Fondant3309

I’m a 25M with about 2 years of experience in the Mechanical/Marine industry. I was recently laid off due to the war, so I’m back on the market earlier than I expected.

I’ve been proactive, I’ve spoken to a bunch of people from different companies and even some of my old clients here in the UAE. But I’m realizing I don’t actually know how to build a network that actively supports you. My current "network" feels more like a list of acquaintances than people who can actually help me land a role.

For those of you with 5-10+ years of experience: How did you transition from "knowing people" to having a network that opens doors?

There was a recent opening at TotalEnergies that was practically a direct copy of my last role. I thought, "This is it." But I couldn't figure out how to connect with the right people internally. I sent in my application, but I’m stuck in the void, no rejection email yet, but no interview either. I don’t even know who to call to follow up.

My main question for you all is about the mechanics of follow-up:

1. When you find a job that’s a perfect fit, who do you actually reach out to on LinkedIn? The Hiring Manager? The Recruiter? A random Senior Engineer on the team?

2. What does your follow-up sequence look like? Do you send a connection request, wait for acceptance, then send a message? Or do you use InMail + email simultaneously?

3. How do you follow up without sounding desperate or annoying? I'm sure I’ll crush the interview if I get one, but I’m exhausted just trying to get to that first conversation.

I’d love to hear your specific scripts, templates, or even "hacks" for getting noticed when you don't have a massive network yet.

A few weeks ago I 24M got laid off, and honestly it hit harder than I expected.

After getting over the initial shock, I realized sitting around feeling bad wasn’t going to change anything.
So now I’m putting all my energy into finding the right opportunity.

I’m a Mechanical Engineer with experience in technical sales, working with industrial equipment like pumps, valves, blowers, pressure testing, and project support. I’ve spent time speaking with clients, solving technical problems, coordinating with suppliers, and making sure things actually gets done instead of just talking about it.

I’m not pretending I know everything. But I learn fast, I take feedback seriously, and I’m someone who genuinely wants to become better every single day.
Right now I’m looking for opportunities in the UAE, especially in technical sales, sales engineering, project engineering, or application engineering. If your company is hiring, or you know someone who is, I’d really appreciate a connection.

Even if you only have advice or know a company thats worth applying to, I’d love to hear it.

Thanks for reading. Hoping this post reaches the right person.