5 reasons why recruiting is downright awesome

If you’re in recruiting, my guess is you didn't grow up seeking to join the profession (I sure didn't). Like most youths, you probably dreamed of space travel, dancing, acting, singing or playing professional sports.

If those dreams didn't come true, don’t fret. Recruiting is a great profession – one that offers a wealth of career development and growth opportunities, unmatched talent expertise, relationship building and consultative action.

Here are 5 reasons why recruiting is a fun and fulfilling career:

1. You continuously expand your knowledge set

It’s trivia night at the local pub, and the host asks for the scientific term for extracting metals from their ores and modifying them for professional use (metallurgy!). Luckily, you recruited a heat-treating engineer a few weeks back, giving you the edge in launching your team to victory. Get ready to learn something new every day thanks to the wide range of people you’ll interact with in your role.

2. You have better conversations

In my pre-recruiting life, I struggled to hold even a mildly interesting conversation with a stranger. Life as a recruiter – continuously training, studying and growing in talent acquisition – has made engaging in conversation with engineers, scientists, executives and other professionals as natural as tying my shoe.

3. You change lives for the better

Each career has a pinnacle. For athletes, it’s a championship. For business leaders, it may be exceeding major goals. For recruiters, the fate of a candidate’s future often rests in your hands. You get to tell the individual on the other end of the line, “We’d like to make an offer.” Knowing you’ve made a positive difference in someone’s life is an exceptional feeling.

4. You can find anything on the internet

Life as a recruiter makes finding information online a breeze. And it’s not just reserved for uncovering quality candidates. When you need to dig up a long-lost family recipe, the name of that one person who attended that one event – if the information is available online, recruiters can track it down. Expertise in Boolean, Facebook Graph Search, data analytics, social media, and an unnatural ability to stay organized are just some attributes that become second nature to recruitment professionals.

5. You can help friends and family perfect their job searches

There’s a terrifying amount of misinformation about job hunting. As a recruiter, you know what’s trending, what’s accurate and what should be avoided. You know what resumes should look like, how to write effective cover letters, and the skills companies want. You’re an expert interviewer who knows what questions to ask and how to answer. Recruiters are brimming with valuable knowledge; loved ones can benefit from your insider information.

Recruiters represent their organizations as brand ambassadors, truth seekers and talent identifiers. The amount of work they put into making sure employers hire the best individual is an art form never fully understood by those outside the profession. So, when someone asks, “Why recruiting?” share with them all the amazing benefits associated with life as a recruiter.