And as we talked, I realized that this woman's job checked every single box on my wish list, which included:
- honest, one-on-one conversations with people (check!)
- making independent decisions (check!)
- a chance to make a lot more money (check!)
- and even my bonus wish for a job where being curious and maybe a little nosy is a good thing! (awesome!)
So I told her that her job looked really interesting and I asked her if they were hiring and she said yes, and introduced me to the owner, who talked to me for 45 minutes and offered me the job. I accepted.
Oh, I forgot to mention... after the first couple of months, the job would be 100% commission. And I had a family and needed to earn money, so I had to succeed. I was a little panicked.
But I knew I had done my thinking about what was important and I knew that job checked every box on my list.
And guess what?
I made a placement my first day. I'd found my calling.
I was a successful recruiter for decades, including more than 13 years doing executive search for early-stage startups.
My focus as a recruiter was always to serve the best interests of my candidates and to help get them clearer about where they want to go, while still also helping companies fill their job with the best possible person.
That's the essence of being a recruiter... asking the right questions to understand as many variables as possible from both the company's perspective and the candidate's needs.
Then you put it together and connect the dots so you can match the person with the job, team, boss, and company.
I transitioned into writing resumes full-time as The Job Search Guru organically.
I revamped resumes all the time before presenting candidates to my executive search clients (to make sure the resume was accurately reflecting all they could do), and I started taking projects from friends on the side, and when my referral-only resume practice snowballed with referrals, I decided to give up executive search and concentrate on it full time.
Through wildly optimistic boom times as well as disruptive busts, I've seen and learned a lot.
- I've reviewed tens of thousands of resumes (and am continually amazed at how ordinary and unimpressive most are).
- I've interviewed thousands of candidates, from CEOs to administrative staff, from mega-earning sales superstars to financial experts and brilliant scientists, all sharing their priorities and challenges (and have seen how often great people have no idea how to prepare for a job search).
- I've worked directly with hundreds of companies, from Fortune 500s to startups looking for employee #1 and from nonprofits to cutting-edge tech companies large and small.
- I've recruited for a wide range of different corporate cultures, and partnered with executives and hiring managers as well as recruiters at every level, all of whom have their own priorities and requirements.
- And in my resume practice, I've collaborated with hundreds of stellar people to create powerful branding materials that felt authentic to who they are and opened doors for them.