Either have a friend working in a lab, or find a lab you like and ask to volunteer for a bit, if they become reliant upon your work (and if you become an author

Either have a friend working in a lab, or find a lab you like and ask to volunteer for a bit, if they become reliant upon your work (and if you become an author on a paper), you have leverage to ask for a position. You can always leave, and if your lab was particularly known for something, then other labs will want you to work for them as well. This is what I did (although I wasn't particularly looking for a job, I just found the work they were doing interesting and I wanted to get my hands dirty, I also dont have a degree so maybe if you do it will be easier to navigate the academia bs), and YMMV.