Determination, Better Than Perseverance
I’m often asked what is the single most valuable feature a candidate brings to the table when competing for a job.
I remember when I was recruiting, a candidate that emerged with this wonderful intangible of wide eyed determination always jumped out and became a good prospect for me to present to my client. Not always the most polished perhaps, or educated, or experienced, but a candidate that showed dogged determination was hard to dismiss.
Don’t confuse determination with perseverance. While I ALWAYS applaud perseverance, the two are different. Perseverance has persistence as a fundamental element to it’s meaning… repeating behavior, doggedness. The act of a candidate simply doing nothing more than continuing to call me and ask if s/he got the job got monotonous. It turned from persistence into being pestiferous. Not always, but like Jimmy Buffet says, it’s a fine line between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, much like the fine line between persistence and being a pest.
Determination is a mindset. It’s a persona of it’s own. There is creativity in determination. There is inquisitive behavior and resilience when things go south. They gracefully help me, help them. There is focus from a determined candidate, a laser like interest impossible to ignore. Determination is not casual, it’s not taught in sales school. Determination comes from the gut. And it shows. It’s subtle, but it’s noticed. Determination isn’t always about winning. That’s not the issue. It’s about being the best. Winning is a byproduct of being the best.
I’m not saying that the determined candidate always got the job with my clients. Of course not. But the determined candidate was always in the hunt. S/he knew s/he had the goods or didn’t. But determination is a funny thing. They aren’t put off easily. There seemed to be a common denominator with them. They actually believed in themselves, and they knew they had the character, intent and credentials to do the job. A determined candidate, when they confided in me that perhaps they didn’t have all the job description match ups, it wasn’t a signal for them to retreat, or lessen their enthusiasm, or apologize. Rather it was a request for me to pull for them and me to push their case to the client because they knew in their hearts they were the best candidate for the job.
And you know, if they were close at all, I would do just that. I would always assemble a short list for my clients. In the short list ranking the client might have asked for 5 candidates. I would slip in the determined candidate as an addition to the top five, a wild card, the # 6, if you will. Well, it always didn’t work out for the less qualified but determined candidate. And if they fell short, the candidate took it with poise. And set their jaw to take that enthusiasm to their next encounter with another recruiter or HR or company.
And, if the determined candidate has the job description match up, I’d put my money on them everytime. And in the long run, I’d be money ahead.
I love the determined candidate and encourage anyone engaged with a struggle for a quality job to look in the mirror and see if the face looking back shows determination.
Comments?
Ive done walk-ins at all the dealerships in my area, asking to speak with the Managers and for the most part all of them have given me 15mins or more 1 on 1. I do like to walk in, not necessarily stating that I am applying for a job, but have questions. This seems to work with car dealers, but probably wouldn’t in most industries.
Question, how do I keep myself at the top of their minds when a position does open up? Ive set my calendar up to remind me to pop by every 3 weeks for each of the interested dealers. Ive had one round of these revisits, and one actually kicked me up the ladder to speak to the General manager very briefly. He gave me the “in these tough economic times”, and said that he would see what he could put together as they do have plans for expansion.
My question is, am I going to be a “pest” going by every 3 weeks? Is
there a better way to keep yourself in the minds of the management, or
should I assume I am already? My fear is that they just get so busy, time
passes by and when an opportunity comes up “I slip their mind”.
Do you have any advice for how one would stay in the mix, but not be
considered a pest? Ive always found that I do better in person, and that
is why I like to get my face in front of them so they can see me and see
how I handle myself?
John,
You’re on the right track by staying in front of them. How much is too much staying in front of them? It depends. And you’ll have to stay in touch with your perceptive side.
If you have the liberty of walking in to see them, as you mentioned, then you have the responsibility of not overdoing it or being a pest.
First of all. If they aren’t looking for anyone, it’s hard to stay on their minds. Dropping by every 3 weeks is not too much, in my opinion. That’s if you’re not the annoying type. By being professional, respecting their privacy, not staying too long after they’ve given you some time, will go a long way in them remembering you. Try to read the personalities of the people you’re meeting. If they’re the retiring kind, don’t go in over enthusiastically. And just the opposite, if they are bubbling over with personality, let your robust side come out. If they are the deliberate and controlled kind, you should try to come off as the same.
Another good way to stay in touch and be front and center when they do post a job, is by looking at their website, employment (or job) page. There’s a website that I highly recommend. It’s called http://www.changedetect.com. This is a webpage monitoring service for websites without RSS feeds. What it will do is alert you to when there is change in their job page. When there is a job added or removed, change detect will send you an email of the change. It saves you from having to monitor their sites continually everyday yourself.
Other ways to stay current in their mind is follow the lead of sales pros. A common practice for sales reps is to drop off something so that they are remembered by their customers. Sales people are always fighting the adage, that timing is everything. If they happen to be standing in front of a customer when the customer decides they need a product or service, that sales person will get the order. If they’ve just been by yesterday with a bag of donuts or cookies for the department, chances they will be remembered as well. Also if you have something in your hands that smells like donuts, you won’t be kicked out when you show up.
And when you get “kicked up” to the GM, as you say you did, I hope you followed up with a “Thank You Card,” via snail mail. This is better than an email, since it shows initiative on your part.
Keep at it, if you have identified the niche you want to work in. Continue to build your list and continue to get face time with them. It will pay off.
After all, if you are the pest kind or you seem to be overly perseverant(pestiferous), then they will give you a signal that you’re wasting your time. But what do you have to lose?
Better to be on the determined side than the retiring side and in the cattle car with all the other job seekers who don’t have the nerves to show up in person.
Cudos for your efforts. It’ll pay off.