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!