My daughter, Katy, will be 17 this fall. Recently, she was sitting around with her two BFF’s when one girl asked, “Katy, how many boyfriends do you have?” The other girl jumped in with a reply: “I know! She has 3 full-time and 2 part-time boyfriends!”
When the first girl looked puzzled, Katy replied, “Well, I get different things from each of them!” She explained that boyfriend #1 provides freedom and challenges her intellectually, boyfriend #2 brings flowers and is fiercely loyal, and boyfriend #3 is the perfect group date as his best friends are dating Katy’s best friends. As for the other two, part-time boyfriend #1 provides companionship and reliability, while part-time boyfriend #2: is convenient as she sees him every day.
My husband Randy (Katy’s father) said to her, “Katy, do not settle for someone who doesn’t meet ALL of your criteria. You shouldn’t settle, because you deserve the best of the best.”
In hiring, we often see similar situations with candidates. One will possess the experience the employer feels is vital, another will be a proven team player, yet another exudes enthusiasm. Just this past week, one of my clients exclaimed, “Beth, if we could just combine these two candidates, we’d have the perfect employee!”
Since combining two people into one is only possible in science fiction (and those stories almost always end up badly anyway), many people in this position will try to convince themselves to hire Candidate A because he or she is a BETTER fit than any of the other candidates. This path almost always ends up badly as well, except the result isn’t fiction – it’s your business reality.
If you find yourself in this situation, the better plan of action is to re-read your vision for the ideal candidate, redouble your efforts and hold out for the right fit! Remember what Randy said to Katy: “You shouldn’t settle, because you deserve the best of the best.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself.