I've been going to tech meetups and talking to people there for, well, many years. It has never made any difference whatsoever in my job search. It hasn't surfa

I've been going to tech meetups and talking to people there for, well, many years. It has never made any difference whatsoever in my job search. It hasn't surfaced any companies for me to apply to, it hasn't introduced me to any hiring managers, and it certainly didn't give me any behind-the-scenes insight into what working somewhere is like. I've been going to events in the SF Bay area. Maybe you meant something different by "professional events," or maybe you're in an area with a higher concentration of tech than San Francisco.