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 | 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.”
by Beth | Jun 30, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Firing Employees, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
I always find the hiring process fascinating, especially when I begin working with people who have had employees on staff for an extended period of time that are not a good fit. They almost always report to me “I knew it was not going to work out” after we get to a place where we are going to let go of an employee and begin searching for the perfect candidate to hire.
As many of my conversations with new clients go, I met with a potential new client who began the conversation with “You have to know that I am BAD at hiring.”
I said, “How do you know?”
He said, “Because I just fired the worst hire EVER.”
I asked, “When did you know that this employee was the worst hire ever?”
He said, “I knew the first day. I just KNEW it was not going to work out. And I have known that for 2 years.”
Now two years may be somewhat extreme, but I hear many of my clients report that they hired someone, knew they were not going to work out almost immediately, then left the person in the position for months if not years just to avoid having to interview again. Instead I challenge you fellow business owner to hire differently by really listening to the candidates during the interviews. They will tell you if they will not work out. You just have to listen.
For example, last week, I interviewed a candidate that my client really wanted to hire until we started talking about the language that this person used in the interview. It was always someone else’s fault, they didn’t get enough training, and the traffic was always terrible. The client looked at me with this hang dog look, like I had just burst his balloon. I commented “Do you know this one is a no?” He said “Yes. But I don’t want to know that it’s a no. I want a new employee!” This is the absolute most difficult part of the interview process. You are tired, you need help and you want this person to work out SO bad! But as another client of mine said, “When you shorten this process, you pay the piper.’ And he’s right. The price is an employee who you knew from the start would not work out. Then you have to go through the pain of firing and hiring all over again.
I encourage you to listen to yourself and the language of your potential new hires. You know when it’s a no. Wait until you know it’s a yes.
by Beth | Jun 12, 2014 | Adventures in Interviewing, Employee Hiring, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
Rejection is commonplace for business owners. We are often told that people are not interested in our products and services. Typically we shrug it off and begin the pursuit of someone else who may really need our offerings. Yet, when we are in a position to offer a new employment opportunity, we are shocked when we receive a no thank you from a candidate.
For example, I was so excited for one of my clients last week when we extended an offer to a candidate. I was equally excited for another client when we invited a different candidate back for a third interview! Both candidates declined which tossed both of my clients into a bit of depression. Imagine how disheartening it was for them both to be so excited about a potential new hire only to have the candidate demonstrate that they are not excited about the position.
Many of my business clients are stressed out, overworked, tired and sometimes completely panicked as they are hiring for a new or vacant position. My best advice is that Rejection is Protection and actually something to be very excited about. If someone does not want to work for you and they tell you that BEFORE you hire them, you win! You are protected from poor quality work, absenteeism, and unsatisfied clients, because when someone LOVES their job, they perform. They give it their all, and both of you are happy.
So, when you feel like you have been punched in the gut after a candidate rejects your position, learn to be grateful. Turn that negative into a positive. Turn lemons into lemonade and get ready to serve that lemonade to your new A-list candidate who is walking your way right this minute.
by Beth | Jan 6, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Employee Retention, Firing Employees, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates, Uncategorized
Last week, I met with a new client who suffers from what I call “the Hiring Hangover”. He had just fired a long time employee and had to hire someone else quickly. The whole experience left a really bad taste in his mouth and he was having a hard time getting over it. He kept trying to change his policies and procedures to make sure that he did not get into the same position with a new employee that he had experienced in the past. In other words, he wanted to punish the new employee for the sins of the old employee. While it is completely understandable, it will not work. When you hire a person while “hungover”, you will make a bad hiring decision. You have to feel good about bringing a new person onboard. You have to be excited.
So, how do you recover from a bad hire?
- You take a deep breath. Do not hire too quickly. If you need immediate help, hire a temp. Jumping in to a situation with a new hire when you are not ready sets you both up for failure.
- Create your ideal candidate list. Put your head in the clouds and dream BIG. And I mean really big, like roses and rainbows and unicorns. You cannot have what you want unless you know what it is and how to identify it. So until you are ready to write a list of what you want, then you are not ready for a new hire.
- Be patient. Do not start the interview process until you feel excited again.
Every manager has had a bad hire. It feels awful and firing someone should never feel good. So give yourself time to recover and breathe. Things will look better tomorrow. And your next amazing employee is right around the corner. I promise.
When my poor clients have to hire someone, they have what I call the “Eds”:
