Recruitment: Why you sometimes feel like a superhero in this job

Let’s be honest, Stan Lee had the BEST superhero characters. It’s the depth and complexity of his Marvel comic characters that ensure they remain, and will probably always remain, fan favourites across the world.

Recruiters don’t have a lot of super powers.

And most of us don’t have Wolverine’s abs and Black Widow’s legs. But there are days when the universe seems to come together, and we feel like superheroes. Like the lives of the Marvel characters Stan Lee created, a day in the life of a Recruiter is filled with ups, downs, dramas and sometimes, the most glorious outcomes.

It’s a great feeling when you meet a job seeker, who with your guidance and support, goes on to land the job of their dreams. Their elation is palpable, and we love knowing that we made a real difference in their lives. Just maybe we have set them on the first step of their path to greatness! In that small moment, we feel like a superhero.

Then there are the challenges, and sometimes overwhelming odds, that we must overcome to achieve a good result. Whether it’s job seekers not showing up for an interview, or not making it through their first week on the job, or line managers who disappear into the ether and don’t return calls – no day is without its challenges. When you work through all of this and assist a job seeker across the line and into a job, you definitely feel like a superhero.

Like all superheroes, we make mistakes.

Our reputation is sometimes only as good as the last ‘placement’ and there are times when no matter what we do, we are let down by job seekers or hiring managers. On those days when everything goes wrong, when people don’t show up for work, or get drunk and stab someone in the eye (don’t laugh, one of my temps did this!), we are superheroes for not giving up. Honestly, you have to have a hide like The Hulk some days.

But when you meet a target, when sometimes it feels like achieving a target is as easy as climbing Mount Everest blindfolded and in the nude – when you make that magic number, you absolutely feel like a superhero. A great recruitment consultant will always take pride in meeting and exceeding targets. It’s their superpower!

Whilst I am so glad that we don’t have to wear lycra or capes, I can tell you this, every successful recruiter has moments of greatness. Where they save the day, uplift those around them and deserve every accolade that they get!

Vale Stan Lee.

May your characters live on to battle evil, champion the poor, the needy, the lonely and the disenfranchised. Thank you for reminding us that true heroes don’t always come from outer space or are born into limitless wealth. Heroes can be working class kids brought up by elderly relatives, and jaded scientists who are searching for the truth and doctors with broken hands who change their selfish ways to become protectors of the earth. It doesn’t surprise me that there isn’t a recruiter in the Marvel warehouse of heroes, but this doesn’t matter – some days we just feel like we can be heroes!