How Do I Leave My Class Bubble?

While looking for a job, the situation is not uncommon where knowing “the right person” may be considered as a catalyst for success. Suppose you have graduated fresh out of college and are looking for your first job. Or, perhaps, you never went to college, and, after being laid off, you are seeking yet another entry level position (a terrible situation, all the way round). In either of these cases, the difficulty of your job search is often dependent upon who you know. A single link may be the difference between a new job at Google or yet another year working at McDonald's some restaurant (a pretty big difference, if I may say so). However, while all of this talk of networking is fine and dandy, how does it happen in the first place? That is, how do people of varying social classes bridge their differences, in order to build such professional (or unprofessional) relationships? I find such questions quite interesting.

While in high school, I still recall many of my experiences at an internship I held. At this position, I maintained various roles as an assistant to an office administrator. From answering phones to filing customer documents, I was given an early glimpse of how business always requires a key component: human interaction.

And, after eventually starting my own business (mind you, it was a humble, one-person operation in web design), I became even more aware of the importance of networking (sales are very slow if you don't talk to anyone!). However, as I entered college, I realized that networking doesn't stop with business, it is just as important in academia.

Speaking outside your social circles expands possibilities (not to mention, if anything, friendships), and it is this perspective which makes me curious to research factors which allow (or disallow) you to obtain acceptance by members of other social classes.