by Beth | Mar 22, 2023 | Recruiting
When I was in college a gazillion years ago, I had a great friend named Beth Bratton. She and I were connected at the hip and 2 peas in a pod. Beth was Head Cheerleader at her huge Dallas high school, great GPA and cute, darling and precious. In my opinion, she was the total package.
When Beth started looking at colleges, her father told her that whatever money she received from scholarships, he would put that amount of money towards a new car. Beth immediately responded with “Game. ON!” She applied to every scholarship that she could get her hands on and had several formal interviews. She was rejected time after time after time.
She was super frustrated, because she had her eye on this hot car called the Chrysler LeBaron convertible. She was determined to be driving that car around Austin!
Finally, she had an interview with Wells Fargo. She just knew that she wouldn’t get the scholarship, because she hadn’t received any of the others. She just didn’t care anymore. She made peace with the fact that she wouldn’t get the car, and she walked into that interview and nailed it. The bank gave her a 50k scholarship, and she promptly purchased her dream car.
She and I drove all over Austin in that car, and in one particularly memorable trip, we drove to South Padre for spring break. (That is all I will say about that trip. 😊)
What does this have to do with hiring? Just about the time that you are ready to give up, your dream job or dream employee will show up. When you are so frustrated that you don’t care anymore, your ideal candidate walks in your door. When you are sick and tired of waiting, your wildest dreams come true.
It is called letting go. And it is the hardest part of your search.
What I tell my clients is when they are tired of working with me, their amazing employee will walk through their door, and all that hard work will have been worth it. And when they do, you will have more time to take off driving down the highway in your dream car.
POWER THOUGHT: Dream of yourself in a convertible with the top down and not a care in the world. Hold out until you get it.
by Beth | Mar 8, 2023 | Company Culture
If you have ever watched YouTube videos, you might have seen one about a bunch of crabs in a bucket. The crabs scramble to get out by crawling on top of each other to get to the top. Fascinatingly enough, once one crab gets to the top, the other crabs pull them back in! The group keeps all members in the bucket, instead of focusing on getting out. Instead of improving their surroundings, the group of crabs keep everyone stuck in the muck.
Turtles, on the other hand… if there is a turtle who has gotten turned over onto its back, and is scrambling to turn back over, other turtles will rush to its rescue. They, as a group, will help that turtle turn back over and land on their feet. The success of one equals the success of all.
If you want to create a thriving, synergistic and productive culture in your organization, you must fire the crabs and find more turtles. No one gets to the top without a lot of help and support, and getting to the next level isn’t easy. Having just one crab on your team can make the difference between success and failure.
POWER THOUGHT: Ask yourself this question: does your company culture revolve around turtles or crabs?
by Beth | Feb 22, 2023 | Interview Process
Last week, I was having dinner with a friend, and we were discussing how hard it was to meet new people. I turned to my friend, and I said, “It’s funny: I spend 5-7 hours a week in the gym, and I don’t know anyone there.”
She said, alarmed, “WHY?”
I said, “I think it’s because I wear headphones.”
“Well, take those headphones off!” she said.
Take your headphones off. What a concept. And this applies to recruiting, also. We put up so many roadblocks for applicants to even apply for a job and then complain that our applicant pool is so low. We keep doing what we’ve always done and expect different results.
Take your headphones off and look at your application process from a potential candidate’s point of view. Do they have to retype their whole resume into your applicant tracking system? Do they have to copy and paste their references in 3 different places? Are you making them jump through insane hoops to even be considered for the job? Are you using Artificial Intelligence to interview your candidates? Are your candidates not even talking to a real person for weeks in the hiring process?
If you want to change the quality of your candidates, maybe it is time for an audit of your hiring process. Take your headphones off and encourage people to talk to you. I am so happy to report that I have made some really great friends and connections at the gym, simply because I allowed myself to be available.
POWER THOUGHT: Take off your headphones and open the door to new opportunities. You never know who you may meet!
by Beth | Feb 8, 2023 | Employee Hiring
When I bought my house several years ago, I hung a Texas Longhorn flag over my garage. It has become a marker!
My friend, Meryem, came over on Sunday and said, “Your flag needs to be re-hung.”
“It tore from the wind. I need to order a new one,” I responded.
“Well, whatever you do, don’t get rid of it! That flag is how I know your house,” she exclaimed.
She isn’t the only friend to tell me this.
So, what does my Longhorn flag have to do with hiring and recruiting?
It is your job as a business leader to lead your candidates through the hiring process with signposts. Your process should be clearly marked, so your candidates know where they are and where they are headed. In other words, don’t make your candidates jump through so many hoops that they get lost. Your ad should be short, sweet and to the point. Your website should have a button that says apply here. Your applicant tracking system (ATS) shouldn’t make your candidate input all of the data that is written on their resume. It should NEVER take a candidate HOURS to apply. They will get frustrated and rightly so. Tell them in the interview when they will have answers from you and meet that deadline.
Lead your potential candidates through the process with a clearly marked trail. They will be so grateful, and you will have your pick of great staff.
POWER THOUGHT: Flag great candidates with a clearly marked hiring process.
by Beth | Jan 25, 2023 | Leadership
For the past several weeks, I have had a really cranky client. When he snapped at an employee in front of me, I followed him into his office to gently confront him.
“What is going on with you?” I asked him.
After a while, he finally confessed to me the issue… “I am afraid of the recession.”
Who can blame him? Every news outlet for months has been hitting us over the head with the looming recession, and it is freaking people out. No wonder people are panicking!
So, let’s shift the conversation by changing the “r” word to something more proactive… like “re-set” or “re-fresh”. What a slow-down in business does is give us a minute to “re-organize” and “re-direct.” Let’s be proactive, not reactive! Here are 3 tips:
1. Perform an audit of your current staff. Who is great? Who needs more training? Who needs to go?
2. Look at your processes for sales, inventory, and production. Where are the holes? Where are the issues? What are your clients reporting?
3. Finally, look at your leadership style. Are you negative? Are you snapping at employees? If so, you may also need a re-set.
Whatever you are going through, you can do this. I’ve got your back.
POWER THOUGHT: The “r” word doesn’t have to be repulsive. It can be rejuvenating!
