Headhunters Understand Your Anxieties
No one has ever told me they loved being broke or homeless. During the winter months, our church family provides for a Saturday night sleep-over for 12 folks down on their luck. Meals for Saturday evening and Sunday morning breakfast are provided at no cost. A lunch sack is given to each guest with toiletries, washcloth, underwear, etc. Sometimes we have families with children, mom and dad, which is saddest of all situations.
Unfortunately, we’re simply meeting an immediate need, not a fix for the long-term. An old story is about teaching a person to fish rather than giving them a fish for the day. Headhunters and personnel executives look for skills and talent of value to their employers. It’s very easy to look the other way when folks are lost and jobless rather than seeking solutions. Education and very specific knowledge is a major key to most successful searches for employment.
To say the least, it’s not good, often feeling hopeless and helpless with few offers of a job for the untrained or folks with no basic profit value to an employer. Most have few skills and limited education which is not very conducive to finding another job quickly, if at all. Transportation is usually another problem with children, legal issues, etc. clouding their future. Money for bus fares or rail is very limited. With everything closing in around us it seems almost overwhelming and gets bigger every day.
Every city in America has a similar problem with little success. In our city we have over 5,000 on the homeless rolls every day and night. Our jails are full but we can spend over $100 daily to put the criminals behind bars, feed, clothe, house and build more if necessary. Not so for the homeless person, they have to become a criminal before they get personal attention and housing.
Frustration, anxiety, lack of motivation is a problem. Headhunters, staffing services, agencies are not miracle workers. Without skills and/or talent needed by the workforce it’s exceedingly difficult to find work today. Education, technology skills, engineering, legal talent along with many other skills are prerequisites for employment.
Temptation is easy to allow into our struggles. Why not? Let’s wait until tomorrow then we’ll go look for something, even a job maybe. Watch TV, play video games if you have them or hang out with the corner junkies. Shouldn’t do it but it’s better than rejection on a rainy day.
“Anything” job is not helpful to a staffing service or personnel agency. What you’ve done in the past is very important to anyone trying to be helpful. Big gaps in your work history will not be seen as a positive on your resume. Don’t lie! These folks can spot a loser quickly and waste little time. Understand, in the private sector, the consultants are not government employees who get paid for non-performance.
Know the types of jobs you are looking for, salary too. If you don’t know, then you can be sure that the agency staff will have no clue either. Decide then ACT is very important. Most agency personnel are not experienced or trained to be your personal career advisor. Note also that some agencies, staffing services, headhunters specialize. Get outside their special niche and they have no way to help beyond their focused positions. This happens, so beware it’s not personal or a position against helping you. Most folks would love to help everyone seeking a new position in the workforce but it’s not possible in today’s jobs market. .
Let’s assume you, personally, specialize in a favorite niche which makes life much easier to know, focus on, and find out what’s going on within the industry. Search for an agency focused where you desire to go and they will delight in seeing you with your resume. Recruiters enjoy the easy money for the guy/gal with all the industry talents and skills. Only a specific industry depression or slow down in the hiring process will impact your future employment.
Even with a professional recruiter, don’t expect miracles. Diversity is a good thing. Be open to possibilities outside of your immediate profession. Surprisingly, new industries open every day and crossover talents and skills will meet the criteria for a position consideration.
Sometimes an agency provides new pathways to your goal for employment. After you visit the staffing service or agency, your name, skills, talents, resume details will be added to the database of the service for quick and easy retrieval. Maybe a week, two, a month can go by before a call comes seeking your expertise from the agency. Don’t lose heart or “bother” the consultant while he/she is at work trying to secure an interview with a prospective employer. That’s their job and direct link to making a living for themselves. Don’t waste their time or energy, be patient.
You’ll get all kinds of advice so be careful. Some may tell you to call the consultant every day of the week, even at night. True, you want them to remember you, but don’t become a nag or drive them crazy with call after call. They will drop you from the database and you’ll never hear from them again if you become a pest. Be creative and succeed.
Be the one job candidate who shows creativity in your follow-up system. First step is to think “How can I stay connected with my counselor?” Test it, see how well it works. Maybe a phone call in 3-5 days; a card at end of 2 weeks; and whatever it takes to “touch base” every 14 days confirming you are still an active candidate with your agency consultant.