Don't Worry About a Thing!

Sources of inspiration for a bi-weekly blog often come from first-hand accounts of dealing with candidates/clients in the weeks preceding. But, rather than moan about candidates' reluctance to look at more than one option at a time or, the art of lowballing offers, I’ve decided that a collective smile needs to be put on the dial of our industry. There’s been entirely too much doom and gloom lately. Anyone who’s been in the industry long enough knows the cyclical nature of recruitment and that things are often darkest before the dawn. I’m in a bit of a privileged position as a one-man band. The biggest expense any recruitment leader will have is staff. This has its upsides when the market is hissing as you’ve got more fingers to dial the phones. However, when the market takes a turn, it worries all concerned. This doesn’t mean I’m any less stressed but at least the cause and effect of this stress starts and ends with me. So, I thought I would give some advice, from my perspective, on what has helped combat being a negative Nelly and hopefully help us creep closer toward the light on the horizon.

Travel/Camping.

This isn’t a Molly May “we all have the same 24 hours” or Kim K “nobody wants to work” tone-deaf advice ignoring the obvious. Swanning off to some Island retreat would be ideal but it would also cost a bomb. Thankfully we live in an awesome country, the City is pretty mean too! I camped out in Whatipu a couple of weeks ago, only an hour West of Auckland CBD but what feels like a slice of O’ahu. About the same distance out East is Maraetai Beach. Being an East-Sider I’m dismayed by how Jaffa’s don’t go East, it’s beautiful. The point is, go outside, get some sand in your shoes, and connect with NZ.

Tim.Naki/Entertainment

This has brought me no end of joy recently. I’m proud to say that I started following the big guy around the Day 10 mark, hats off to Tim Cairns of TradeMe fame, he was in there before me. For those who don’t know, the other Tim is a Kiwi fella living out in Canada and is into his Blackjack. Tim.Naki places a bet daily, ten cents for every follower. I don't think he came up with that engagement model but it’s genius. I’ve felt that I am there with him, when he wins, I win. Hats off to him, he wins more than he loses as he’s currently sitting at $450,497 in profit! He’ll be sticking a $66,000 bet on the felt today. The way he nonchalantly bets the average NZ annual income serves to remind us that money comes and goes and fortune favors the brave.

Sport/Exercise…Footy Fantasy.

We all know the science behind exercise and mental health but it’s going into winter and if I’m honest, I’ve been slack on the ol gym front. I have been all over is the title race for the Premier League though. Nice for another horse to finally enter the race. I’ve made peace with nothing I do affects the result but what I do have control over is FPL. For those involved in Island Recruitments RAFFL (the Recruitment Agency Footy Fantasy League), it’s squeaky bum time. It’s round of 64 in the newly formed RAFFL Cup! The inaugural tourney came into existence as it was too good an opportunity to miss, pitting recruiter vs recruiter plus, Alex Stones kept winning the league. Check out who you’re playing this week, Sam Kenning please go easy on me!

Family/Friends

Spending time with loved ones puts everything into perspective. I’ve been super lucky that during the downtime I’ve got to hang out with my son, this morning I'm off to his graduation from Baby Sensory and I assume it’s going to be as cute as it sounds. Connecting with the source of your motivation or cutting about with the people who get you brings its own peace. For those of you who are a little removed from the whānau, get in touch. In the words of the immortal Labi Siffre -  “Strange how a phone call can change your day, take you away, away, from the feeling of being alone, bless the telephone”

Food

Probably a good idea to say not to excess. I’m not the foodie in our household and I don’t derive a lot of joy from cooking, but some people do. Due to my Scottish roots, I do find a lot of pleasure in a bargain and value for money. Going out and finding a great bakery like Ashby Pies who do an unreal pork, cream cheese, and jalapeno sausage roll for an alright price ignites my soul. On the topic of great food for reasonable prices, I couldn’t recommend Broke Boy Taco in Mt Albert more! A good example of when you do something with passion and hard work things can happen.  

These are just some things that help me but you’ll have your own methods of recharging. What we do is pretty stressful, and it’s made harder but forces that are often out of our control. It’s worth reminding ourselves that it’s not all bad and like a bi-weekly recruitment blog, you don’t have to take it too seriously. Also, apologies for the readership out of Auckland as it’s pretty Tamaki-Makaurau-centric. I’m down in the Windy City next week so shout me if you want to buy me one of these ‘much better than’ Auckland coffees.