You've built an impressive network on LinkedIn over the years—hundreds or even thousands of connections. But now you need to find specific people in your network, particularly those you haven't messaged yet. Perhaps you're launching a new product, searching for potential clients, or looking for introductions to key people at target companies.

The challenge? LinkedIn's native interface makes this surprisingly difficult, especially when you have a large network. Many professionals report spending hours manually scrolling through pages of connections trying to find the right people.

In this guide, we'll explore how to efficiently find and filter your 1st-degree connections on LinkedIn, with special emphasis on identifying those you haven't messaged yet—a capability LinkedIn doesn't natively offer but that can dramatically improve your networking efficiency.

Understanding LinkedIn Connection Degrees

Before diving into search methods, let's quickly review how LinkedIn categorizes connections:

• 1st-degree connections: People you're directly connected to. You can message them freely without restrictions. These connections are marked with a "1st" badge next to their name.

• 2nd-degree connections: People connected to your 1st-degree connections. You'll need to send a connection request before messaging them.

• 3rd-degree connections: People connected to your 2nd-degree connections.

Your 1st-degree connections are your most valuable network asset as you can communicate with them directly. LinkedIn caps these at 30,000 connections per user, which might seem like a lot, but for power networkers, this makes efficient navigation of your network even more crucial.

The Standard Method: Using LinkedIn's Native Search

LinkedIn does provide basic tools to browse your connections, though with significant limitations. Here's the standard process:

1. Click the My Network icon at the top of your LinkedIn homepage

2. Under Manage my network in the left sidebar, click on Connections

3. On the Connections page, you'll see a list of all your 1st-degree connections

From here, you can:

• Sort connections by recently added, first name, or last name

• Search by name using the search bar

• Apply filters by clicking "Search with filters" to narrow by location, current company, past company, and industry

While useful for basic searches, this method has major limitations. Most notably, LinkedIn only displays up to 1000 results (or 100 pages) of connections—problematic if you have thousands of connections. Additionally, there's no native way to filter for connections you haven't messaged yet, which brings us to our next section.

Finding Connections You Haven't Messaged Yet

One of the most valuable filtering capabilities for strategic networking would be identifying 1st-degree connections you haven't messaged yet. These represent untapped opportunities in your network—people you've connected with but haven't engaged.

Unfortunately, LinkedIn doesn't offer a native filter for "connections with no message history." This creates several problems:

• Lost opportunities: Valuable connections get buried and forgotten

• Inefficient outreach: You waste time manually checking who you've contacted

• Network neglect: A large portion of your hard-earned network remains untapped

This is where specialized tools can dramatically improve your LinkedIn networking efficiency.

The Power Move: Using Kondo to Find Unmessaged Connections

While LinkedIn's native interface lacks efficient ways to find unmessaged connections, tools like Kondo are specifically designed to solve this problem.

Kondo offers a dedicated Connections Tab that gives you a complete, searchable view of all your 1st-degree connections with powerful filtering capabilities:

1. Navigate to the Connections Tab in Kondo

2. Apply the filter to show connections who have not received a message yet

3. Use the keyword search feature to narrow down results even further

The keyword search in Kondo is particularly powerful as it performs a "fuzzy search" across the entire LinkedIn profile. You can enter multiple keywords separated by spaces (e.g., "founder San Francisco") to find exactly who you're looking for. Try searching by:

• Name: "John Smith"

• Company: "Acme Corp"

• Job Title: "Head of Sales"

• Location: "New York"

This approach instantly gives you a targeted list of connections to prioritize for outreach—something that would take hours to compile manually using LinkedIn's native interface.

Advanced Strategy: Find Key Influencers in Your Network

Beyond identifying unmessaged connections, you might want to find which of your 1st-degree connections have valuable relationships with people at specific companies. This is especially useful when you're trying to get introductions to potential clients or employers.

Here's a powerful technique recommended by LinkedIn power users:

1. On LinkedIn, go to My Network > Connections > Search with Filters

2. In the filters, select 2nd degree connections (this is the crucial step)

3. Under the Current Company filter, type in your target company (e.g., "Google")

4. Click All Filters to open the full panel and under the Title filter, add keywords for the roles you want to find (e.g., "recruiter," "hiring manager")

5. The search results will show you 2nd-degree connections at your target company, along with the shared 1st-degree connections you have in common

This technique essentially works backward—instead of starting with your connections and trying to figure out who they know, you start with the people you want to reach and discover which of your connections can introduce you.

Managing the Conversations You Start

Once you've identified the right connections and begun reaching out, you'll face a new challenge: managing the resulting conversations. As one LinkedIn user put it, "Everyday I get tonnes of valuable LinkedIn messages, and it's a nightmare to manage!"

Without a system, important conversations get buried, follow-ups are forgotten, and opportunities slip through the cracks. This is where an organized approach to inbox management becomes crucial.

Kondo offers several features designed to transform your LinkedIn inbox from a chaotic feed into an organized communication hub:

• Labels & Split Inboxes: Categorize conversations with custom labels like 'Hot Lead,' 'Candidate,' or 'Client' and view them in separate, prioritized inboxes. Use the 'L' shortcut to quickly apply labels to any conversation.

• Reminders (Snooze): Set follow-up reminders by using the 'H' shortcut. The message disappears and reappears at the top of your inbox at the specified time, ensuring you never forget to follow up with important connections.

• Snippets: Save frequently used replies as templates and insert them with the ';' shortcut. Snippets can include variables like {firstName} for personalization, saving significant time on repetitive messages.

By implementing an "Inbox Zero" approach to your LinkedIn messages, you can ensure no opportunities are missed and that your outreach efforts actually convert into meaningful relationships.

Conclusion: Transform Your Network from Messy to Strategic

Your LinkedIn network is only as valuable as your ability to navigate and engage with it. The methods we've covered can help transform your approach:

1. Use LinkedIn's native tools for basic connection searches

2. Leverage specialized tools like Kondo to precisely find unmessaged connections

3. Implement a systematic approach to inbox management

4. Use advanced filter combinations to map your network strategically

Moving from a passive, cluttered approach to an active, organized one unlocks the true potential of your LinkedIn network—turning it from an overwhelming list of names into a strategic asset that drives real professional opportunities.

Whether you're in sales, recruiting, business development, or simply looking to make the most of your professional relationships, these techniques will help you extract maximum value from the connections you've worked so hard to build.

Ready to take control of your LinkedIn network? Try these methods today, and consider tools like Kondo if you're serious about transforming your LinkedIn productivity and networking effectiveness.

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I find LinkedIn connections I haven't messaged yet?

The most efficient way to find connections you haven't messaged is by using a specialized tool like Kondo, as LinkedIn does not offer this filter natively. LinkedIn's standard connection search doesn't let you filter by message history, forcing you to manually check profiles. Productivity tools designed for LinkedIn can instantly filter your 1st-degree connections to show only those you haven't contacted, revealing untapped opportunities in your network.

Why can't I see all my connections when I search on LinkedIn?

LinkedIn's native connection search has a display limit and typically only shows up to 1,000 results (or the first 100 pages). This is a significant problem for users with large networks, as it prevents them from viewing or filtering their entire list of connections. To access your full network, you need to use more advanced search methods or third-party tools.

What is the best way to filter my 1st-degree connections on LinkedIn?

The best way to filter 1st-degree connections is by using the "Search with filters" option on your Connections page for basic criteria, and a specialized tool for advanced filters. For basic filtering by location, company, or industry, navigate to My Network > Connections. For more powerful filtering—like finding unmessaged connections or searching profiles with multiple keywords—tools like Kondo offer superior capabilities that save time and yield more targeted results.

How do I find out which of my connections know someone at a target company?

You can find shared connections at a target company by filtering your search for 2nd-degree connections and then adding the company's name as a filter. This "reverse" search technique is very effective. Instead of looking through your 1st-degree connections, search for people at your target company (e.g., "Google") and filter by "2nd-degree" connections. LinkedIn will then show you the people you have in common, giving you a path for an introduction.

What is the difference between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-degree connections?

Your 1st-degree connections are people you are directly connected to, 2nd-degree are connections of your connections, and 3rd-degree are connections of your 2nd-degree connections. You can message 1st-degree connections for free, while contacting 2nd and 3rd-degree connections typically requires a connection request or InMail. Your 1st-degree network is your most direct and valuable asset.

How can I efficiently manage new conversations on LinkedIn?

Efficiently manage new conversations by using an organizational system with labels, reminders, and templates to prioritize your inbox and ensure timely follow-ups. A chaotic inbox leads to missed opportunities. Tools like Kondo help you implement an "Inbox Zero" strategy for LinkedIn, using labels to categorize chats (e.g., 'Hot Lead'), setting reminders to follow up, and using snippets (templates) to respond quickly.

This article was published on Kondo's blog. Kondo is a productivity tool that transforms LinkedIn messaging into a streamlined, high-speed communication hub with features like labels, reminders, keyboard shortcuts, and CRM integration.