I’m sure at one time or another you’ve been in the self-questioning thought of “I should have my head examined doing this type of work as a profession”. But then you realize you have a ‘knack” for this sort of challenge. You actually…dare I say it here, “enjoy” it to some extent. That very self-question highlights the topic I wish to discuss, as “that” is, the “It” factor in our work. More importantly, the “It” factor in the candidates we ultimately want to hire.

But how do we capture that information in the search/review process? How do we know we actually possess this attribute in order to do our part in our profession, and recognize the It factor in the candidates within the search/review process? Here we sit at the center of the problem…do we need to have the It factor ourselves before we can identify it in anyone else? The answer is Yes. So let’s move farther into this interesting and challenging truth within the core of the hiring process.

I have years of experience in spotting a trend as to the “how” of this very element of the search formula, and the trend is intangible in its very nature. “It” is a refined, innate, intuitive, intellectual level of the “gut feeling”. Gut feeling response rather than reaction. By human nature, gut feeling reaction is part of the fight/flight instinct that triggers survival actions for protection. But to only rely on this lower level of gut feeling as a reaction, people never move beyond the primal/baseline react/thinking level. We see an example of this playing out in the workplace as people restricting choices so as to stay in a “safe zone”. Basically not standing out one way or the other.

This unfortunately does not make for great career satisfaction, nor does it help anyone during performance reviews. People can learn to stay in this zone of self-limiting apprehension in an attempt to reduce stress in the workplace. Yet, inevitably, doing so creates stress, because people seek self-validation that comes directly from career satisfaction and performance reviews that recognize one’s efforts and abilities. Lower level gut feeling reaction can’t ultimately help us feel accomplished, because self-limiting apprehension has not been conquered.

Gut feeling reaction/response is also tied to our level of competency. It indicates to us our connection to our common sense (or lack of common sense), and also our ability to confidently take charge of situations we know we can handle, but we get stuck in apprehension so can not make the choice, and raise the value of our position within the process of our career. By raising our level of gut feeling from reaction to one of response and innate intellectual connection, we raise our level of common sense-ability, and conquer self-limiting apprehension. We also raise our level of response-ability, because we are working from a higher level of responsive information rather than reactive information.

Here is the magic of empowerment. This refined, heightened level of innate gut feeling response is the “It” factor. This “It” factor is not related to any vocation, but is an innate ability that is acquired and applied to any vocation. In general, this is perceived as a greater level of common sense, or strategic ability. Yet the ability is not because of any academic education, or training. Which is why it is an innate ability that is learned, not taught. This goes to the core of our ability to succeed or fail, or remain apprehensive.

With these varying levels of ability to communicate with/understand our gut feeling reaction/response on any subject, we begin to understand our ability to listen/gather insight/respond to the information shared from our gut feeling. We then have the opportunity to raise to a higher level of innate/intuitive response/action, in a practical application within our chosen vocation. This is the power behind any and every business leader that has gone the extra mile and taken steps to greater success with no reservations—for that heightened level of gut feeling has been so refined, it has ingrained itself into a way of thinking that surpasses linear evaluation processes.

This is where the ability to gain access to wavelength thinking begins, which is where true leaders in any given vocation tap into (knowingly or unknowingly). We can begin to understand where the “it” factor originates. For without raising to the gut feeling of “response”, we would not have a connection to our innate intellectual sense. We would not have a greater degree of ability to respond. In raising the gut feeling we can take that instinctive sense and give it a practical connection and a practical application. Which then shifts gut feeling to become a more intuitive form of thinking which is between instinctive and intellectual in our very mind-set of creative thinkers. That practical connection of intuiting is to begin to apply it to our everyday work environment.

In doing this one simple shift in how we perceive our projects, and our own awareness to how we actually perceive information, we can begin to learn how to use the value of the raised gut feeling in regards to our innate intellectual level of thinking. We begin to experience a greater sense of confirmation in our process of choice—which is to say, our final selection of not just the “right” candidate for the position, but the “best” candidate for the position. The raised gut feeling brings information to us that is more subliminal than tangible forms of evaluation, yet this subliminal information can be applied within the tangible process.

This raised gut feeling tells us more than the categorization of skill sets. It tells us the unmeasureable attributes of the candidate. It also tells us about our own unmeasureable attributes each time we go into this heightened level of communication. It’s how we get a “feeling” about something and just ‘know” it’s not just right (vs. wrong), but actually correct. We could say even perfect. Which then empowers us to make more valuable choices. Knowing we are making the final best choice—knowing “it” when we see “it”. Increasing our value of choice.

Take your time and ponder on this article. This insight goes deeper than ‘how to’. Let this information seep into your own thought process regarding your own position in your career, and your own formula for candidate search/review/hire. This approach is a better way to raise into the knowing level of wavelength thinking, and the practical application of one’s own “it” factor. Trust your process—you’ll know you’ve got it when you see it. You will sense your own increased value of choice.

Steve Diedrick
Search Entrepreneur
“It’s what I do – It’s in my DNA”

© 2008 SearchInsight, All rights reserved.

To focus on a frustrating common denominator in the business of search, let’s use the job description as the item of discussion. We could ask a simple question such as: “What role should a job description play in perfecting a search?” but that would not help anyone really understand the confusion that is involved in this one simple collection of information. So it would be better for us to ask, “What are the challenges in conceptualizing a job description that includes the function objectives, as well as subjective and subtle attributes necessary that can be difficult to define, and lead us to the best talent?” Adding the frustration factor to the equation, we then also need to focus on the hiring manager’s contribution, and the internal recruiting staffing professional’s input. These individuals are responsible for generating this information, and many times are restricted by internal protocols, and/or time restraints that can cause the project to become a stressful situation. Here is where the triad of power comes into play to help remove the baseline thinking process and can enable the project to complete itself with a better success rate by having an external recruiting/search professional have input into the job description by being an external review of an internal process. The external search professional can, and should have, as part of their expertise, a view of the marketplace that is not only objective in nature, but also subjective because they are not bound by a corporate internal protocol, nor are they loaded with other non-related job responsibilities that can hinder timeframes and turnaround of the very documentation that is necessary to launch a hiring project in the first place.

So, how can I be of assistance to the hiring managers and the internal staffing professionals to help bring a new perspective to this continuous challenge? From the perspective of the true search professional, the question is, “Does the job description data drive the recruitment process, or does the market data reconceptualize the job description that then drives the recruitment process? This reconceptualization of the job description in relation to the market data brings in a shift into what I have identified as the integrative search. Here lies the exponential power of the ultimate search—search taken to the next level of understanding. Ultimately, it’s the market place that defines the role as it should be, and the hiring manager and internal recruiting professional alike should find this to be the best way to achieve [their] ultimate aim—the best hire for the position. Recruiting is by nature a constantly evolving process of reconceptualization through the large amount of data information and in-depth research that is applied to each project. This newly developing information will shift and bring about new understanding that will help the hiring manager increase [their] success rate in finding a candidate that will bring added value to [their] corporate division.

I have found in my years in this business that search provides one of the greatest outlets for creative expression. In many ways search is a true art form, much like the artist who begins with a blank canvas and evolves their original ideas to their highest form of expression. Often through the elimination of those ideas and first impressions that do not best align with their idealized goal, they create a fabulous piece of art. Like the blank canvas, our initial job description may look totally different because of the process it takes to create a dynamic piece of work that sells. When that “click” happens, like the artists click, when we get that click the information just seems to stream in, connecting all of the unknown dots that formulate the information in it’s most complete form for the job description. It’s our job to be open to what that information is telling us.

Ultimately, the “formulating” of this new data becomes an almost adventurous undertaking, thereby injecting a new heightened interest into what is usually seen as the dreaded task of a job description. We learn to enjoy this because we accomplish the challenge. It’s within this challenge that people stay interested in their work, and apply themselves to something that becomes more and more effortless. Even though it is frustrating and confusing and always a time consuming challenge – we like it!

© 2008 SearchInsight, All rights reserved.

The Art of Zen Recruitment^© and The Ultimate Recruitment Warrior

As recruiters, how many of us actually understand the true function in our position in the corporate battlefield known as recruitment? How many of us are properly prepared to take the challenge and make an impact in the process of success? As Shakespeare so eloquently wrote, “to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them”, bottom line—it means results, results, results! Recruiters are often told that they are only as good as the last assignment. Hard judgement, high standards, yet recruitment is a professional career we choose. Recruitment is a unique industry that we serve and have great opportunity to excel within. In our work, we impact many professional lives on a daily basis, and at the same time provide so many personal opportunities to shine, for ourselves and those we recruit, by challenging ourselves to higher levels of accomplishment. Bottom line—it means success, success, success. That is the way of the ultimate recruitment warrior.

The Art of Zen Recruitment^© is for the ultimate recruitment warrior to be a willing leader, having no fear of taking others along into the battlefield. Knowing that others also can excel to levels they have only imagined, and therefore have the opportunity to achieve success through accomplishments they may have thought impossible. By providing a greater sense of purpose, the ultimate recruitment warrior takes recruitment to it’s highest level. There is a ‘zone’ that can be reached. Our ultimate goal is to become one with that zone, for that is the essence of Zen.

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