Like so many of my generation of recruiters (god, I have just made myself sound ancient and I am only 3*something), I fell into recruitment in the 1990s – as opposed to by design (as is the case of many generation Y now because “it’s very lucrative” apparently). I often chat to my contacts, as I build a relationship with them (and of course away from work too), as to what my alternative career would have been – had I not stumbled across a random advert in The Grocer that fateful day in October 1998, which led me to the R2R (who placed me into my first role) – and so history tells the rest….
Well, I guess it depends what day you ask me :
I could have been:
I think I could have been a barrister. After all, a lot of the skills I use could be comparable – listening, negotiating, persuading, advocating – if only I had tried harder at my A levels! I was destined for this career path and most days I am actually relieved I failed to get the grades I needed to do law (much to the horror of my parents who had funded me through private school for 7 yrs, oh dear!)…so, maybe not.
I should have been:
Anyone who knows me personally will agree with this. I should have been a politician or public speaker of some sort. Give me a microphone and an audience and I am in my element. I think that you have to be so confident as a recruiter, putting yourself “out there” – whether it’s cold calling, challenging clients, to giving bad news to candidates – I think you lose your inhibitions pretty quickly (if you had any to begin with – I didn’t!) Trouble is, I never know when to stop – just ask the hecklers at my recent wedding vow renewals (the worst culprits were my own father and dear husband – huh!)
I wanted to be:
Obviously Wonder Woman! Which girl (born in the 70s) didn’t want her amazing outfit (and figure!) and to have super powers? Having been in R2R for 10 yrs now, some would say I do have “super” powers although I haven’t figured out yet how to jump as high as her….or fly….
I could still be:
A party planner! I know…don’t laugh, but once again, I think it uses very similar skills to recruitment. Organisation, planning, negotiating, targets and goals. And, let’s face it – if booze and fun is involved how can it NOT be a good career choice?! (Although it is only fun if it is your OWN party, so we can leave that one out too…)
We could all be:
Matchmakers. I have said it for years. Set up a dating agency in the same way you run a recruitment business – meeting all the parties involved face to face and matching up on personality and instinct and surely that’s a winning formula? And yet, what has stopped me? Matters of the heart are so personal and based on one episode many moons ago where I tried to play Cupid and it ended in total heartbreak (he was a right “you-know-what”). But I have the resilience! So maybe we could set up Qui Cupid Services? <3
So now over to you – what would your alter ego career be? Have you read my alternative career aspirations and thought, “no way, I would be a pilot, bridal shop owner, author”? So let’s see whether it is normal or should I stick to the day job instead of the daydream?
Author: Signing out, Diana Prince aka WonderWoman…oops! I mean Lysha Holmes, Qui Recruitment.
