Category: Creative

Rejection.

Rejection is the most common human emotional wound that we feel on a daily basis according to Guy Winch, a qualified Psychologist.

Apparently it’s always been a thing – back in the day, we couldn’t survive alone, so being ostracised by a tribe was as good as being shot. Bloody caveman’s insecurities causing us modern-day problems.

Being swiped left to on Tinder. Asking a friend to spend time with you. Calling a company to offer your businesses services or receiving a rejection email from an evil recruiter (me) telling them I would not like to continue with their application – it hurts all the same.

This is a tough part of my job.

I feel like the Grim Reaper. Bringing misery to a candidates day.

I remember being on the job searchers side before – drafting up numerous copies of my CV, interrupting my families TV time asking them to proofread it multiple times (which probably tops the list of most boring things to do btw).

‘Yes Dom, it looks reeeeeallly good’ my overly supportive Mum tells me as she skim reads it. I’m well aware she hasn’t read much of it, and is far more interested in Molly and Tommy’s theatrical (and probably fake) relationship.

Her enthusiastic tone still fills me with excitement as I skip back to the laptop, and hover over the second button.

Application sent.

Every email. Call. Text – any noise my phone would make, is now ridiculously important and would need checking immediately… WHAT IF IT’S THEM?!

60seconds later, my rejection email comes through (I am often quite efficient at processing applications, especially if a Business Analyst has applied for my Senior Graphic Designer role)

At OX Seven, we do our absolute best to respond to every single application, whatever the outcome.

Because we’ve been there. We understand.

We encourage you to get in touch, in case there is anything we’ve missed (and because I like a good phone conversation). But, sadly, I can’t help everyone, and I really wish I could.

One of my most recent roles has had 148 applications, and I’m still yet to find the right candidate (if you’re an in-house fashion photographer,  in Banbury, stop reading and message me now – seriously….please).

That is a lot of rejection emails, and as a result, also a lot of disappointed people. By the responses I get to the email, I can tell, they’ve taken it personally.

I’m just doing my job.

And to all those I have rejected and will have to reject in the future, I am sorry.

Have a great weekend.

The end of the calendar year is a great time to reflect on the previous 12 months, both in your personal life and on your career.

I’ve had an interesting year, with lots of change happening. Two house moves, a career change, and I passed two exams which I studied very hard for.

It’s really difficult to classify whether it’s been a ‘successful’ year because for me there’s no clear definition of success.

There are a few things I probably should’ve done more of, and a few things I probably should’ve done less of.

So, I thought it would be a great time to write a short article on the small changes that I’d like to make moving into the next year.

Writing down and sharing my goals definitely makes me feel more accountable, so here goes!

Learn Spanish – I’ve always wanted to learn a second language. A few of my housemates are bilingual, and a good friend of mine is German, so speaking to her in English motivates me to want to learn a second language. English people are typically quite lazy because most other countries can speak English. My method to learning Spanish will be using a podcast called ‘CoffeeBreak Spanish’ which I’d highly reccomend, alongside taking lessons weekly with a tutor. I’ve found Skype lessons to work out considerably cheaper, and you don’t need to leave the comfort of your own home.

Travel more – With a change in careers, it’s allowed me to have a lot more flexibility in terms of taking holiday. In my previous job role I worked every Saturday, making it very difficult to plan any sort of ‘weekend away’. I took the bulk of my holiday in the off-season, which had it benefits as once it came round I could travel for an extended period of time. My most recent journey this summer was a 25 day trip around Mexico. Since then, and starting my new role I really haven’t utilised the flexibility as well as I could’ve, and there’s lots of the world I’d still love to see. We live in an age that travelling is very accessible. Our grandparents could only have imagined quickly hopping on a plane and being in a different country within an hour. In 2019, I’d like to visit lots of the world which I haven’t been to yet. Visting Five different countries would be great.

Drink more water – This should be a really easy one, but by 6 pm most evenings, I find I’m ridiculously thirsty. As I work in an office, we have access to fluids at all times, so there really is no excuse.  With the body being made up of 60% water there are numerous negative physical and cognitive implications of dehydration, so hopefully, this should leave me springing around the office.

Mollie and I went through a phase where we’d both bring a big bottle of water in each day and aimed to finish it before we left, so bringing this strategy back in could be a good start.

Read more  – I used to commute to work via train, and found this a great time to read a few pages of a book a day.  Now I either drive or car share, so I really need to use this time more productively when I’m getting a lift with a colleague, or schedule time to read before bed rather than using my phone. A book a month is a reasonable target. All book recommendations are welcomed!

I’d be really interested in hearing your targets for next year.

This is a bit of an on-going list which I’ll update as I continue to reflect over the Christmas period!

Happy Christmas to you all.

There are numerous highs and lows in a single day as a recruiter.

I thoroughly enjoy speaking to candidates to the phone – hearing peoples stories, their hobbies, their journey, and how they made it to where they are now.

You naturally build relationships with your candidates. I’ve experienced interview processes that have lasted as long as three months. The frequency of contact with your candidate throughout this process results in you really getting to know each other.

You also become invested in their application, and you really want them to do well, as you know how much securing this role means to them.

Recruitment sounds amazing, right?

 

One of the lows as a recruiter is receiving the bad news. Finding out that a candidate you’ve invested a lot of time with and are rooting for, has been unsuccessful. ‘Not for us, thanks’ – their hopes ended in an e-mail containing four words.

Not only that but as the recruiter, you have to be the one to inform the candidate of the bad news.

So, what advice do I give to candidates that aren’t successful?

 

I always encourage candidates to be themselves during any type of interview. Candidates are hired based on their personalities just as much as their CV, hence the reason for the interview. To meet the person behind the experiences.

Just because you didn’t get the job doesn’t mean you’re not an exceptional candidate. You just weren’t the right person for that company.

 

Maybe, they saw you as somebody that was too ambitious for the role you were applying for and as they knew progression was limited, you wouldn’t be the right fit.

You shouldn’t change that.

Maybe you had too much personality for their corporate environment.

You shouldn’t change that.

Maybe you were a bit too quiet for their laddish culture.

You shouldn’t change that.

Maybe you came across as very knowledgeable, and they felt the role was too junior for you.

You did nothing wrong.

 

These qualities are what makes you, you, and you should never mask them in an interview in the hope of saying what you want them to hear.

There is a company out there that are in search of what you can bring to the team. Think of it as being similar to a relationship – there’s someone out there for everyone.

 

As tough as it is, don’t take rejection in the form of an unsuccessful application personally.

As a wise man once said, you can’t be everyone’s cup of tea, because if you’re, you’d be a mug (Will Grashoff, 2018).