by Beth | Jan 26, 2015 | Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Interview Techniques, Selecting Good Candidates
Over Christmas my beloved grandmother sent us a 750 piece puzzle with a picture of puppies with different color bows and colorful wrapped presents in the background. Randy, Katy and I gathered around the coffee table and seriously didn’t get up for 3 straight days. We began with the outline of the puzzle, filled in the colorful gifts, the bows, and finally the puppies who were all tan. It was so satisfying when we were finished with it!
Completing a puzzle is like completing the interview process. You begin with an outline of what you are looking for, and as you interview more and more people the picture of your very best fit begins to fill in the middle. There are times that you get frustrated. There are times that you get a string of pieces that all fit in at once, and you are so proud! There are times that you look at the same piece a 1000 times before you actually are able to put it where it belongs. Overall, at the end of the interview process, you should feel like you won the lottery, not like you finished the puzzle but piece number 750 is missing.
The journey of putting your puzzle together is fraught with detours, bumps and bruises and in the end, it is so completely satisfying when it all comes together. This feeling is precisely why I do every day what I do. I LOVE it!!!
by Beth | Nov 3, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
Last summer when we were at the beach, my daughter left our condo and forgot her key. My husband threw on some flip flops, and ran out the door to catch up to her in order to give her the key. He got on the elevator, looked down and realized that he had one black flip flop on and one blue flip flop on… it was so funny!
What isn’t funny is when you rush through the hiring process, and you get a person who just doesn’t match your company’s culture. What is painful is when you know on someone’s first day that they just aren’t going to work out to your satisfaction. What doesn’t sit well is when you need one type of shoe, but you put on another.
There is a saying out there “Hire slow and Fire fast”, but nobody does that. We are in too much of a hurry to put a butt in a seat. We think the world will end if we don’t hire someone by the end week. Really though, what counts is making sure that your flip flops match and that you don’t put someone in a position for which they aren’t trained, aren’t passionate about, or don’t like.
Next time you hire someone, check in the mirror one last time and ensure that your flip flops match. You won’t be sorry that you took your time.
by Beth | Sep 12, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
When my poor clients have to hire someone, they have what I call the “Eds”:
“The interview I dread
My feet feel like lead
I want to go to bed and
Pull the covers over my head.”
Well, when you bring that type of energy to the interview process, guess what type of person you are going to hire? An “ed”.
My job is to get my clients to the “Ongs”:
“I feel powerful and strong
Even when the process is long
That I will find the one
That truly belongs.”
Are you ready for an “ong”? Then, you are singing my song!
by Beth | Aug 29, 2014 | Adventures in Interviewing, Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
My daughter once made a Christmas present for me that she didn’t want me to see. She had me bend down and she covered my eyes with her little hands. We stumbled along until we got to her room, and she pulled her hands away. My surprise was a diorama of Christmas at the Smith house, complete with the tree, presents, the stockings by the fireplace and my kid walking in on Santa going up the chimney. It is the cutest thing, and the detail was something that I never would have expected. It sits out on our bookshelf all year round, and I still remember covering my eyes and going blind in that great surprise.
When I begin working with a new client, I ask them to do something that they have never done before: I ask them to go into an interview with a candidate blind. Don’t read the resume. My client will know the candidate’s first name and that is it. Why? Because reading the resume before you meet the candidate gives you the ability to pre-judge. It feeds into our prejudices, and when you read a resume, you miss the surprise.
At A-list, we have a person in charge of screening resumes, and he is amazing at it! He developed a process for screening quickly and effectively, all the while, allowing my clients to be surprised by what the candidate brings to the table and checking their prejudices at the door. This process allows for more diversity, more ideas and more creativity in a company.
Next time you hire someone, have someone else screen for you. Don’t look at the resumes: be surprised by going blind into your next interview.
by Beth | Aug 14, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Leadership, Selecting Good Candidates
As most of you know, we foster dogs through a wonderful organization called PawsCo. Our job as fosters is to transition the dog from a shelter environment, an unfit home or an otherwise bad situation. Our last dog was an adorable little dachshund mix with a blond scruffy coat. She is a lap dog in the house, sweet and gentle, but outside? She turns into Devil Dog. She growls at cyclists, cars wheelchairs and strollers. She is aggressive and threatening when she is surprised by an oncoming object.
At PawsCo, we have access to a wonderful trainer named Megan Hill, who helped us train Chloe by what she calls a “waterfall of treats”. Being outside is very anxious for Chloe, because she was found on a highway wondering around. In order to survive, she had to be aggressive. Our job is to teach her that being outside is fun and safe. So, we go outside and start giving her treats for no reason…just for being outside. Then, we start tapering off, and give her treats any time that we see a car or anything else that makes her growl. All the while, we taper off the treats until she can walk outside without growling and feeling anxious.
The same process occurs when you bring a new employee into your organization. You don’t use treats, you use accessibility. Most of my clients think their job is over when we hire someone, but really, their job is just beginning. You have to teach your employee the job. NO ONE walks into a position and knows how to do it to your satisfaction without your guidance and input. Be available, be accessible, and check on your new employee often. As they become more confident in their role, then you can back off. Simply stick your head in their office and ask how they are. Ask how you can help. Ask what questions they have for you. Your commitment to their training will benefit you in ways that you can’t know right now, but in the future? You have just hired AND TRAINED your a-list candidate: the one that has your back and performs amazing things for you and your company.
As for Chloe, she got adopted last weekend by a wonderful couple in Evergreen. They go on walks with a lot of treats, while she is adapting well to her new environment and loving every minute of it.
And the Smiths are getting the house ready for our next beloved dog. Happy training!
by Beth | Jul 15, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
James “Doc” Counsilman, swim coach to the great Mark Spitz, was the oldest person to swim across the English Channel at the age of 58. What makes this story so remarkable? He had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease 4 years before that swim. In order to prepare for that amazing swim, he sat in ice cube baths to prepare for the cold water. When reporters asked about his pain level upon his completion, he said “it only hurt once… from beginning to end.”
Last week, I finished a job and hired a fabulous candidate for my client. We interviewed 38 people, had over 100 applicants, then we ran into wall after wall. We had multiple no-shows, offered the job to someone who couldn’t take it, and had someone walk out without shaking our out stretched hands. Upon our glorious candidate accepting the job, my client turned to me and said “Is there ANY way you can make this process less painful?”
The simple answer is no. I wish I could. Frankly, this process is not the most enjoyable business activity. Hence the reason businesses often put it off until the need for someone is so great that they have to begin the interview process. There will be days when you truly despise the process and even me as your interviewing coach. What you will get when you work with me is that I make your life so much easier after you go through this process and after we find the A-list new hire you are seeking. You WILL be able to take days off, you WILL be able to rest, you WILL be able to trust that things get done, and you WILL hurt a lot less once you swim that channel. And just like Doc said, “It will only hurt once…from beginning to end.”
Over Christmas my beloved grandmother sent us a 750 piece puzzle with a picture of puppies with different color bows and colorful wrapped presents in the background. Randy, Katy and I gathered around the coffee table and seriously didn’t get up for 3 straight days. We began with the outline of the puzzle, filled in the colorful gifts, the bows, and finally the puppies who were all tan. It was so satisfying when we were finished with it!