Purpose

You just never know where a path might lead.

When I was younger I embarked on a Human Resources path when I went to school at Seneca College for Human Resources Management. After graduating it was time to find a job and eventually I landed in the HR department at three companies: Johnson Matthey Limited, CCH Canadian Limited and Combined Insurance. I was a recruiter at CCH and Combined Insurance and tried to be the best recruiter that I could be. I’ve had 24 years of human resources experience.

There have been two extended periods when I was looking for work. Most recently I was looking for a job for a year before landing a contract with the Ontario Society of Senior Citizens Organizations (OSSCO).   In the other instance, I was looking for a job for 2 years before landing a contract with Marberg Staffing. During my transition I took to subscribing to blogs and newsletters on subjects that interested me like the job search and future of work. To this day I continue to read articles and listen to podcasts on these subjects.    

Having recruiter experience and being a job seeker seem like disparate paths.

But I was able to tie both these experiences together when I had the opportunity at OSSCO to facilitate a 2-day job search workshop for older workers. 

I shared a recruiter’s perspective at the workshop.

I told participants to try to see things from a recruiter’s perspective. Pay attention to body language in interviews because a recruiter notices such things. Go for a firm handshake. Sit upright and lean forward slightly to show a confident and interested you.

I shared a job seeker’s perspective at the workshop.

From a job seeker perspective, disrupt your job search and think of something different that you can do that you haven’t considered doing before. Just take one small step to take you out of your comfort zone. For me I wanted to meet people in the technology industry. I decided to attend a technology meet-up.  I had to really force myself to go, because I was intimidated to go to an event where I didn’t know anyone. When I arrived at the event, there were a lot of people (over 400), but I persevered. I stayed and I talked to a few people. After taking that one small step, I’ve gone on and attended other networking events. I discovered that I like meeting new people and am curious to learn more about them!  Identify something that you would like to do, take one small step and just do it.

You just never know where a path might lead and that two seemingly disparate paths may one day converge.

When I facilitate a job search workshop, I feel exhilarated that I can serve participants who attend the workshop.

It’s funny that two paths on their own (recruiter experience and being a job seeker) don’t seem to serve a purpose, but for one particular moment, when I facilitate a job search workshop, two paths converge, and I find a purpose.

   “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” - Howard Thurman

Also Published on LinkedIn on January 20, 2017
Image Credit: Pixabay