Chase Connectors, Not the Hire
Don't hunt for the person you need — find the people who lead you to them.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 82%
Chase Connectors, Not the Hire is Vinnie's casting philosophy grounded in the law of abundance. Rather than going out to find the exact person he was supposed to cast, he went out to find connectors — the well-networked people who could point him toward the answer. He'd call radio VJs and DJs and describe the opening, letting them bring him closer to the right person. This removes the pressure of a direct hunt and produces a better search experience because you're responsible for spreading the opportunity, not personally locating one individual.
Origin
Vinnie developed this as a reality casting director at MTV who, unusually, didn't know many people in the industry when he started. He leaned on quickly explaining his value and connecting to trusted people, and calling connectors like Funkmaster Flex at Hot 97 to source candidates.
Core principles
- 01Searching directly for the exact person puts pressure on you and narrows your options.
- 02Well-connected people are a faster path to the right person than a direct hunt.
- 03Your job is to make sure everyone who could lead you to the answer knows the opportunity exists.
- 04Removing the pressure to find them yourself improves the finding experience.
- 05Manifestation and abundance beat scarcity-driven searching.
How to run it
- 1
Name the opportunity clearly
Define the opening or role so you can explain it crisply to anyone who might know the right person.
- 2
Find the connectors, not the candidates
Identify the well-networked people who sit close to the answer rather than trying to locate the target person directly.
Pro tip Think about who already knows everyone in the space you're searching.
- 3
Broadcast the opening to connectors
Reach out and make sure everyone who could lead you to the right hire knows the opportunity exists.
Pro tip Explain your value and proposition quickly so people want to help.
- 4
Let the referrals converge
Allow the connectors to bring you closer to the answer instead of forcing the find yourself.
Watch out Putting pressure on yourself to find the exact person degrades both the search and the experience.
In the wild
Facing a casting opening, Vinnie didn't go looking for the people he was supposed to cast. He called Hot 97 and VJ Funkmaster Flex and asked who they should be casting and looking at, trusting those connectors to bring him closer to the answer.
→ He had a better finding experience without the pressure of a direct hunt, because everyone who could lead him to the right hire knew the opportunity existed.
Common mistakes
Hunting the individual directly
Going out to find the exact person puts pressure on you and limits you to who you can personally reach, producing a worse search.
Is it for you?
Best for
Casting directors, recruiters, community builders, and anyone sourcing rare talent or connections.
Not ideal for
Situations with no existing network of connectors to activate.
From the transcript
“i didn't go out looking for the people i was supposed to be casting i went out and looked for connectors”
“those people are going to bring me closer to the answer for what i'm looking for”
From the episode
Vinnie Potestivo: How To Shine
Vinnie Potestivo