A candidate told me I saved her life

About two months ago, a nursing director was referred to me. She had been out of work for a few months. I liked her and I wanted to help.

Over the next couple of months, whenever I reached out to my network looking for Directors of Nursing for openings I was working, she always responded. She wanted to work. She just wasn't the best fit for those particular roles.

Then a client close to her home reached out needing an interim Director of Nursing for a contract assignment.

I immediately thought of her.

I felt she would be perfect for it, and the client's Chief Clinical Officer already knew her. She was interested, so I presented her to the client. They moved forward with her, and she got the job.

When I called to confirm everything, she broke down crying and told me I saved her life.

She had been out of work, was running out of money, her roof needed repairs, and she didn't know how she was going to make it. This contract changed that.

That's some powerful stuff. When done right, recruiting changes lives for the better.

A candidate accepted the job and then went dark

A candidate at the top of his field verbally accepted an offer. Before the signed offer letter came back, he asked for three weeks off in July of 2027. He hadn't mentioned it once during the interviews.

My client would have granted it without a second thought if he'd raised it up front. Asking after the offer didn't sit well with either of us.  But because the candidate was so good at what he does, the client approved it anyway.

When I reached him to let him know the client approved the time off, he said he wanted the job and would send the signed offer letter by end of business that day. My client never received it, and the candidate stopped answering texts and calls. When I finally got him on the phone, he said he hadn't signed because he was worried he wouldn't live up to expectations.

In 25 years, that's the first time I've heard that one. I don't buy it. He told me there was no counteroffer. But when someone accepts, adds a condition, gets it, promises a signature and then disappears, the simplest explanation is usually the right one. I've been around long enough to know when I've been used.

My client and I have moved on to another candidate, and that's the part that matters. It happens sometimes, and it's part of the business no matter how long you've been in it.

Here's what to take from it. Keep your other candidates warm until the signed offer letter is in hand, so if things go south you have a backup. And when a candidate who was responsive suddenly goes quiet, that silence is often telling you something.

The pipeline work nobody posts about

Most of the week was the steady work that pays the bills six months from now.

I cold called and met 12 new people in my niche. None of them are deals yet. Some will be.

Twelve new people in a week isn't a lot for someone just starting out. A new recruiter should be adding at least 12 new contacts a day. But I still cold call and build my network. It's still a vital part of my workflow.

I'm working to find the right seats for a couple of outstanding candidates. Great people don't always fit an open search, so sometimes you go find the opportunity for them.

A client came back from vacation and is now reviewing three excellent candidates I presented.

I sent a W-9 for a referral fee that comes due at the end of the month.

I'm always working deals while I golf. This week a client called to let me know an interview went great and an offer was coming once senior management signed off. The next day, the offer was extended and accepted.

That's the part of running your own desk I wouldn't trade. The work follows you, but you decide where you are when it does.

Look at that list again. Contract placements, direct hire searches, candidate submittals, marketing great candidates, paying out a referral fee and a closed perm deal. 

The takeaway

That's the job. You can't control how people act. That's why having a deep pipeline matters. You can control whether you keep doing the work every week: the calls, the follow-ups, the relationships. The wheel is always turning. Some things turn in your favor and some don't, often at the same time. Keep doing the work and you're in position when it turns your way.

If you want to build a desk like this, that's what The Search Standard teaches.

Related reading 

What to Do When a Candidate Backs Out After Accepting a Job Offer

How to Get More Referrals in Recruiting: Build a Network that Compounds

Can you Build a Recruiting Business Without Cold Calling