365 Days of Advice

By Ross Owen Williams

Over the course of one calendar year, writer and business consultant Ross Owen Williams delivered daily advice posts on professional networking platform LinkedIn, covering an array of fascinating subjects that drew on two decades of international experience within the recruitment industry. Now, after millions upon millions of post views, all of these invaluable pearls of wisdom have been collected, revised, expanded, and presented in this compendium of motivational, educational, and highly engaging content.
Undoubtedly, you’ll agree with some points and disagree with others but, with 365 Days of Advice, you’ll never lack food for thought.
Perhaps one of the series’ readers put it best: “Some of this applies to you and some doesn’t. Some is ‘obvious’ and some is not. The key is that, whatever your experience level, this will absolutely offer some advice you can use somewhere in your personal or professional life.”

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amolibros
• Release date: Dec 31, 2019
• ISBN: 9781912335183

Ross Owen Williams

Ross Owen Williams is a writer and business consultant from Somerset with more than 20 years’ experience in the recruitment industry. After creating and growing a niche electronic engineering recruitment agency into a multi-million business, and its subsequent sale and integration into a worldwide organisation, Ross has forged a market-leading reputation as an elite recruitment trainer, delivering courses to delegates from hundreds of companies, across multiple continents. His written work includes The RecruitMentor series, three books covering the essential skills all recruiters need to know, as well as feature film Winter Ridge, and sports entertainment books Life is Short and So Am I, Self-Help, and The Hardcore Truth. Additionally, he is also a presenter on Somerset’s Radio Ninesprings, where he hosts a weekday business show, The Working Lunch.

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About this Book

Over the course of one calendar year, writer and business consultant Ross Owen Williams delivered daily advice posts on professional networking platform LinkedIn, covering an array of fascinating subjects that drew on two decades of international experience within the recruitment industry. Now, after millions upon millions of post views, all of these invaluable pearls of wisdom have been collected, revised, expanded, and presented in this compendium of motivational, educational, and highly engaging content.

Undoubtedly, you’ll agree with some points and disagree with others but, with 365 Days of Advice, you’ll never lack food for thought.

Perhaps one of the series’ readers put it best: Some of this applies to you and some doesn’t. Some is ‘obvious’ and some is not. The key is that, whatever your experience level, this will absolutely offer some advice you can use somewhere in your personal or professional life.

About the Author

Ross Owen Williams is a writer and business consultant from Somerset with more than 20 years’ experience in the recruitment industry. After creating and growing a niche electronic engineering recruitment agency into a multi-million business, and its subsequent sale and integration into a worldwide organisation, Ross has forged a market-leading reputation as an elite recruitment trainer, delivering courses to delegates from hundreds of companies, across multiple continents. His written work includes The RecruitMentor series, three books covering the essential skills all recruiters need to know, as well as feature film Winter Ridge, and sports entertainment books Life is Short and So Am I, Self-Help, and The Hardcore Truth. Additionally, he is also a presenter on Somerset’s Radio Ninesprings, where he hosts a weekday business show, The Working Lunch.

Notices

Copyright © Ross Owen Williams 2019

The RecruitMentor, www.therecruitmentor.com | [e-mail]

First published electronically by Amolibros 2019 | email: [e-mail] | website: http://www.amolibros.co.uk

The right of Ross Owen Williams to be identified as the author of the work has been asserted herein in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

This book production has been managed by Amolibros, http://www.amolibros.co.uk

The Beginning

It was the final day of 2018. I sat at the kitchen table, taking a breather from running around after my toddler, idly scrolling through LinkedIn. I’d become a semi-regular user of the platform over the previous year, finding some of the content highly insightful and informative. What I felt lacked, however, was advice – particularly about recruitment. There were countless opinion pieces, often by people with a dim view of the sector and a lot of bile to spill, and I thought this was a great shame. As much as any industry has its good and bad, so too does recruitment. Over my twenty-plus years in business, I’ve experienced both the exceptional and the exceptionally poor. I could tell numerous stories of shoddy performance by some of the now ex-recruiters I’ve seen along the way but this would only be adding unnecessary fuel to a fire that doesn’t need to be alight in the first place. In almost all of the cases where I’ve seen underperformance, it comes due to a lack of understanding rather than a lack of caring. The recruiters who damage the reputation of the industry do it unknowingly and because they’re pushed to quickly hit challenging targets with limited training.

I knew I couldn’t change an industry or reverse its reputation – but I surmised I could be the change I wanted to see. I could take some time to offer whatever advice I could, sharing some of what I’ve learned and experienced from being involved with hundreds of recruitment businesses over the last two decades. Perhaps my musings would help some managers find a way to illustrate a sticking point to their team, perhaps they would give hope to a newcomer struggling in the early days of business development. Whether my posts offered a thinking point to ponder and discuss with colleagues, a new trick to try at work, or simply an interesting diversion for a coffee break, doing something constructive in an attempt to raise standards, no matter how little, seemed a good use of my time.

On January 1st 2019, I posted a piece of advice on LinkedIn with the intention of it becoming the first of three hundred and sixty-five. Quite a challenge, and one I wasn’t initially certain I’d be able to see through but I was determined to give it a damn good go. Initially, the posts drew a few hundred views, a handful of reactions and maybe the odd comment (some odder than others). As time went on, the initiative built momentum and the posts began to get thousands, then tens of thousands of views, dozens and hundreds of likes and comments… it was hugely motivating to see that my words were having an impact and, for the most part, being received in the spirit in which they were offered.

And now, here we are, three hundred and sixty-five days later, after millions upon millions of views, and tens of thousands of reactions and comments, with a compendium of all of the work – plus a little extra. LinkedIn has a 1300-word limit per post but no such restrictions apply here, so I’ve expanded a number of the pieces of writing to better explain my points. Also, when looking back through my posts in putting this book together, I felt there were several pieces that made more or less the same point, as well as others that didn’t resonate as much as I’d like. I’ve removed those and written entirely new pieces to go in their place, so if you’ve been an avid reader of the online series and find yourself thinking I must have missed this one…, don’t worry, you didn’t – it’s brand new and exclusive to this book.

One of the subjects I cover in this book is showing appreciation, and I’ll lay mine out right here – I’m incredibly humbled by how much interaction there has been over the course of this project. I’m grateful to everyone who took the time to read any of my writing, and especially grateful to those who felt strongly enough to react to it, whether it was the good ol’ thumbs up, sharing to their network, or commenting with their own perspective on the point. As one would expect, there was a mixture of positive and negative commentary, with the occasional post drawing more detractors than supporters, but overall it was encouraging to see the response was overwhelmingly positive – and that, more often than not, even those who did disagree did it in a constructive, polite manner.

And now, here it is, revised, remastered, and in full. I’m sure you won’t agree with everything I lay out. That’s to be expected – as the saying goes, you can’t please all of the people all of the time, and I’d be amazed if anyone managed to have 365 consecutive pieces of advice accepted without question. Hopefully, though, you’ll be on board with a majority. As for those you’re not so sure about, I hope they’ll offer pause for thought and a useful counterpoint, perhaps acting as the starting point for discussion or reflection.

When sharing some of my work to his network, one of the LinkedIn readers surmised this project so well I simply had to cite him here, so I’ll turn to Cole Goodland’s words: Some of this applies to you and some doesn’t. Some is obvious and some is not. The key is that whatever your experience level, this will absolutely offer some advice you can use somewhere in your personal or professional life.

That’s precisely what I aimed to do. I hope you’ll find this book motivating and inspirational, engaging and educational, and – above all else – a worthwhile investment of your valuable time.

My thanks and very best wishes for your ongoing professional development and success.

—Ross Owen Williams

January

1st – Strategy is the first step

2nd – Accept reality

3rd – You know, they don’t

4th – Take two

5th – Listen for the alarm

6th – Words of caution – avoid negative constructions

7th – Do your job

8th – Show what you know

9th – Align the stars yourself

10th – Overpay (sometimes)

11th – Remember where you started

12th – Learn to write

13th – The no phone zone

14th – Spend more to spend less

15th – Check your work

16th – Get the ball rolling

17th – Explore the unknown

18th – Words of caution – middle-management speak

19th – Respect referrals

20th – Know where…

21st – Your mess, your responsibility

22nd – Please

23rd – Look beyond money

24th – CV no-no – generic personal statements

25th – Learn from your elders

26th – Learn from your juniors

27th – Accept resignations

28th – Learn from leavers

29th – Words of caution – I’ve been busy…

30th – Understand negativity before judging

31st – Don’t give up

January 1st

Strategy is the First Step

Set out on your path knowing not just where you want to end up but the route you need to travel to get there.

A lot of New Year’s resolutions will be things like I’ll work harder. Although that’s an admirable aim and attitude, it’s unlikely to work because it’s not quantifiable. It’ll be purely down to your own judgement as to whether you are working harder or not, and self-opinion is rarely the measurement of success.

Other resolutions will be things like I’ll get that promotion. That’s better, since it’s clearly quantified (you either get the promotion or you don’t!) but, as a plan, the outcome is in the hands of others as, presumably, you don’t have the authority to make the final decision.

If you were, however, to list everything you need to achieve in order to get that promotion, and they are all elements you have a level of control over, now we’re knocking on the right door. Now we’ve got a gameplan.

Consider habit-forming resolutions around behaviour which will lead to greater success. Pledges like I’ll make sure I prep my next day’s work the night before or I will make (X) new business calls each week however long it takes involve things over which you can retain full control, can clearly quantify, and will likely lead to the desired overall result.

One year.

365 days of effort.

It could change your life.

January 2nd

Accept Reality

When it comes to target setting, there’s initially the usual ‘dream big’ thought and that’s not a bad thing. After all, what’s the point of dreaming small?

However, if we set goals that need a level of consistent performance only achievable in our dreams, the nightmares begin.

It’s imperative to strike the right balance so goals are challenging but not impossible. This will lead to performance that can be sustained.

Here’s a real-world example. Many will have started the year promising I’m going to get in better shape and decide much of this will come from going for a run every day. Yesterday, they realised that an easy 5k was pretty tough on rusty legs. Tomorrow, maybe they’ll call it a day at 2.5k because they’ve made a good start to the year. On Friday, they’ll take the day off because there’s a Parkrun on Saturday, so they need to rest up for that… and by the end of January, it’s all petered out.

Too much too soon.

The name of the Saturday morning gathering is a good reminder, as it happens – it’s called a Parkrun, not a Parkrace…

Don’t worry about anyone else – go at your own pace, having made sure the goals and activities you set are realistic for you.

January 3rd

You Know, They Don’t

Something obvious to some can be a real head scratcher for others – and yet, thanks to the Keyboard Bravado Effect, online communities are filled with snarky replies and ridicule which would likely be delivered far more tactfully and politely in person.

This has been particularly evident whenever I’ve written about language and linguistics, because it invariably leads to at least a few commenters stating this is obvious, everyone knows this.

But that’s not true.

People who speak English as a foreign language might not ‘get’ a lot of the technicalities because they’ve picked up a lot of their English as they’ve gone along rather than mastered it through a formal education.

It’s not just the EFL folks though – a lot of native English speakers just don’t pick up on some things which others think is obvious.

Maybe the that’s obvious brigade were fortunate enough to have a better education, more interest in reading as a youngster, or a support system willing to correct them.

It’s the same for sales skills.

There isn’t any excuse for demeaning those who don’t yet know what seems obvious to you.

Why do it?

To make them feel small?

To make yourself feel bigger?

That’s awful – and it’ll only last a moment.

The resentment it causes will last longer – and it makes you look terrible for the world to see.

Have patience with those who don’t know what you do. Some day, they may know something you don’t – and then, do you want them to help or ridicule you?

January 4th

Take Two

Gretchen Rubin hypothesised the ‘One Minute Rule’ as a way of cutting down on procrastination – it’s an excellent concept.

The practice encourages considering whether any task can be done in less than sixty seconds and, if so, it should be done right then and there. This way, all those fiddly little things that can get in the way are taken care of without overthinking.

In business, I’d suggest amending this approach to a ‘two-minute rule’, as there are many tasks throughout our day that sixty seconds can’t quite cover but can still be taken care of quickly. If we stick to sixty, a backlog of small but not tiny tasks may build up.

Applying a two minute rule to emails gives you a chance to consider, write, review and send but not creating the potential panic of only giving yourself a minute and cutting corners that lead to a messy result. Also, if you were to feel an email couldn’t be done in one and leave it for later, you may be tempted to take longer than it needs to be given as it didn’t qualify for the short-sharp approach.

A two minute phone call? You can get plenty done in that time without making it feel rushed.

If something is going to take more than 120 seconds, schedule it for later and give it the right amount of time to make sure it happens properly. If it’s a simpler task that can be removed from your to-do list right now, take two and get it done.

January 5th

Listen for the Alarm

Once upon a January, a client of mine called asking for advice.

He’d had an interview lined up for 10am on 2nd January – an entry level position in his company and he was open to considering people without prior sales experience but a great attitude who truly understood the opportunity on offer.

At 9.30am on that very day, the candidate texted to say he felt too ill to make the interview.

My client wanted to know if I thought he should reschedule the interview or just drop the candidate from consideration. I advised him to take the latter approach, observing that he needed people who were going to take the opportunity as seriously as he took their application.

Could the applicant have suddenly become so incredibly sick at the last minute that he could only make a last minute dash for the phone with half an hour to go and attempt to cancel? I suppose so.

But 10am isn’t the crack of dawn… and if the candidate was rolling out of bed at the last minute to rush in for an interview he’d known about for weeks, that wasn’t a promising start… nor was the lack of chutzpah to put best foot forward and show determination for what wouldn’t be more than a single hour’s interview… and the 1st January is often a day when folks might lift a drink or two…

In short, logic strongly pointed towards the candidate just not being particularly serious about the position, as well as wanting to interview when it suited him rather than showing the paying customer he was willing to do what it took to win the opportunity.

I suggested the client would do well to let this inexperienced worker sort his attitude out on someone else’s payroll.

The client did not take my advice and rescheduled the interview, subsequently hiring the person.

Two months later, after several last minute too ill days, the worker resigned with a vague it’s not for me.

Funny, that.

January 6th

Words of Caution – Avoid Negative Constructions

I’m talking about NO PROBLEM, NO WORRIES, NOT BAD and suchlike.

The psychology of using negative speech is that if people hear ‘bad’ words like no, problem, worry and even bad itself repeatedly, they can’t help but feel something’s amiss.

That’s not the subconscious impact you want to create.

Unintentionally making a customer feel negative will lead to them associating you with negativity – and you certainly don’t want them thinking, Oh no, what’s wrong now? whenever they see you’re calling.

It’s as important to observe in writing as it is verbally. A negative undertone to email can create problems where there once were none.

It took me a long time to do, but I made an effort to train myself out of using negative constructions even when writing emails – now no worries is all good or a similarly positive turn of phrase.

This level of retraining may not seem like much but the positive knock on effect has been huge.

It has led to me making an effort to phrase everything as positively as possible – and that has helped me come across to others, whether consciously or subconsciously, as a (generally!) positive person.

And that’s not just not bad – it’s great!

January 7th

Do YOUR Job

Unless you’re Phil Collins, the drummer in a band isn’t as good a vocalist as the lead singer.

Unless you’re Sting, the singer can’t play bass as well as the bass player.

A successful band takes what each component does best individually and pools those skills collectively for the best overall result.

This isn’t to say that a singer can’t become a great guitarist or that a virtuoso saxophonist can’t exchange the horn for a microphone, but if they’re in the group to fulfil a specific function, that’s what they need to do first and foremost.

If you’re a permanent recruiter, don’t take a contract job description for your temp counterpart. They’ll only have to requalify it their way later and the client won’t be impressed with having to explain the vacancy twice to the same agency.

If you’re a contract recruiter, don’t qualify a permanent candidate for your perm counterpart. They’ll only have to requalify later, and the candidate won’t be impressed with having to talk about the same things twice to the same agency.

If you recruit Javascript and you end up speaking to the head of accounting, don’t bluff. You might think you’re being helpful, but you’re not. It’s a waste of time for everyone involved.

Pass these things over to the relevant person and get on with your job.

If your job is to drum, stick to drumming (Phil Collins notwithstanding).

January 8th

Show What You Know

Within the opening thirty seconds of your first conversation with a new candidate, you should clearly demonstrate that you have read his or her CV/profile.

One thing I’ve never ceased to be amazed by is how many recruiters follow their introduction with … so where are you working right now?

In many cases, the recruiter is looking for confirmation that what is on the profile is still accurate but, upon hearing that question, many candidates roll their eyes and think yet another recruiter who didn’t bother to read my CV before calling. Just like that, the call’s off to a poor start.

Don’t simply say I’ve read your CV.

Prove it.

Tell them you were impressed by an achievement they’ve noted. Tell them you saw they’ve worked at ‘Company X’, where you have assorted connections they might know. Tell them you don’t see many candidates with a rare skill they possess.

Give them a reason to believe you might be that long-awaited conscientious recruiter who does more than just smile and dial.

January 9th

Align the Stars Yourself

We’ve all heard the phrase right person, right place, right time. That moment where everything fortuitously comes together and anything is possible, more apparently based on an incredible slice of interstellar luck than any culmination of effort and attitude.

Being the right person in the right place at the right time isn’t something to wait or hope for.

It’s something to work towards.

Start with simply being a person in a place at a time.

Having a great attitude, working hard, and developing your aptitude will make you the right person.

Being true to yourself and kind to others will lead you to be around like-minded people, and you’ll find yourself in the right place.

Once you’ve found the right place, and the right you, then and only then will it be the right time.

January 10th

Overpay (Sometimes)

At the beginning of my dealings with a rather prominent businessman a while back, we were discussing working together and he asked about my rate. After I’d told him, without prompting, he added a solid percentage on top of what I’d quoted and said that was what he would pay me.

A very shrewd move – he immediately won my appreciation and boosted himself way up my priority list.

The principle is similar when making a job offer to a permanent employee – if they are asking for less than you had anticipated paying, don’t think great, a saving! – instead, overpay on their asking price.

For example, an extra £2,000 per annum is £166.67 per month.

That’s a low price to guard against counteroffers and create immediate goodwill in a new employee.

Using a recruiter? Squeezing them down on money won’t get you the top candidates and the best service. That will all go to the client who either offers the commitment of exclusivity or pays asking price.

Even outside of the office, offering above asking price or simply not trying to haggle with them will get you to the front of the queue.

If the value is there… and if it won’t create a political challenge… and if you can afford to overpay – the return on investment will be worth it.

January 11th

Remember Where You Started

Believe it or not, you weren’t always as great as you are now.

Once upon a time, you were a newcomer to business who had to be patiently led through everything. You needed to be praised, disciplined, and supported.

The person who gave you your first job in business didn’t hire you for accomplishments because you didn’t have any. That person could only see you for what you might become – and felt you had enough potential to warrant financial and emotional investment.

Despite having probably been let down by a number of previous investments, that manager still took the plunge because they believed in you.

Just like parents, a lot of managers get things wrong – they’re only human and no one has all the answers, but always remember they brought you up in business to succeed, not to fail…

Work to keep that line of communication open with your first boss. However big of a deal you end up becoming, it’s good to have someone in your business life who you can call on for advice, someone who can remember you from day one, and keep you grounded.

No matter how old you get, you’ll always be their ‘kid’.

January 12th

Learn to Write

In a 2019 article, the CEO of Goldman Sachs said a skill he had found increasingly hard to locate in applicants was the ability to write well.

In an age of reduced quality control and TXTSPK, fewer and fewer people will naturally develop this aptitude.

Someone who can and does make the time and effort to write well will stand out as a professional.

Strong writing ability will help you communicate more clearly and encounter fewer misunderstandings.

Practise. Write regularly. Read plenty (and ingest quality) because paying attention to the words and style of others will help you develop your own capabilities.

I’m not talking about getting to a point where you can churn out novels or novellas, songs or sonnets, prose, poems or even pamphlets, I’m talking about just being able to sensibly string together articulate comments, posts, and perhaps even the odd blog or article.

Open yourself up to critique – don’t just bash away and click ‘post’. Review. Revise if necessary. If you find you have regular readers whose own work you respect, ask for their