Recruitment, like any sales role, can bring about a rollercoaster of emotions. When you’re up, you are UP; the jobs are rolling in, you’re billing and making a healthy amount of commission. But when you’re down, you’re unmotivated and consciously aware of your name on the board without a dollar sign next to it. Working in an environment like this, it’s important that you are well equipped to deal with these changes.
Having only been in agency recruitment since April 2019, I can confidently say that I have already experienced the ups and downs. The feeling of making my first placement within two weeks was fantastic. I felt a real buzz, and it felt even better the more placements that I made. But, it’s not always like this. Searching through LinkedIn for my next candidate can sometimes be relentless. Sending messages that often attract no response at all can sometimes be disheartening. But, what I keep in mind is that feeling that I know I will get, the excitement, when I speak to a candidate and instantly know that they will be fantastic for Ambition. The smile on the managers face when they meet them and are even more excited than I am. The reaction from the candidate when I offer them the role. These are the reasons that I work in recruitment and what keeps me motivated each day.
Although my role focuses on recruiting Consultants internally and is therefore different to a Consultant who is recruiting externally for a client, it still comes with the same challenges and high points. At times, recruitment can be completely unpredictable. This is because we are dealing with people, who are complicated and driven by emotion. You might find the perfect candidate for a role who the client loves and you’re pretty confident that they will accept the offer. You reach out to the candidate, but they don’t pick up. You leave them a message and by the end of the day they still haven’t got back to you. Your mind is racing with thoughts; why haven’t they rung me back? Have they changed their mind? Have they been offered another role? Have they completely lost the use of their hands?! You become consumed with your thoughts and despite further phone calls and messages when they still don’t get back to you the realisation hits. You have been ghosted. And it hurts because you have invested so much more time in the candidate, you feel like you have let the client down and ultimately this may mean you don’t hit your target that month.
So, what do you do? There is only one way to recover from this situation. You throw yourself into finding a replacement, and again the search continues. Does this make you feel deflated? Yes. Does this make you evaluate why you work in recruitment? Maybe. But, because you are resilient and determined you know you can do it. And when you find that perfect candidate, the feel-good feeling kicks in as you write the placement on the board, you know it was worth it. And when the commission hits your bank account, it’s even more worth it!
Although money won't be the only reason that you work in recruitment, it will certainly be a factor. The capability is often uncapped, and endless. If you work hard and put the hours in, you are able to make a pretty penny. But, money is not the be-all and end-all. Working in recruitment can also provide you with accelerated career progression which is something you might not be able to achieve so easily in other industries. Along with the opportunity to directly contribute to a company’s bottom line, you will be constantly challenged and stimulated.
People say that without the bad days, you wouldn’t appreciate the good ones, and I believe there is a lot of truth in that. If you are motivated by a different day every day, are resilient and undeterred by rejection, you could be a fantastic recruiter. And if you want to work for an agency that is forward-thinking, dynamic and in an exciting period of growth – Ambition may be the one for you.
Get in touch to learn more about your potential future at Ambition here.
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