As a recruiter, your time is your most valuable asset. While a packed calendar might seem like a badge of productivity, it can actually hinder your effectiveness in sourcing and meeting client needs. Here’s how to craft a schedule that maximizes your recruiting prowess and drives results.
Master the Art of Selective Commitment
A day filled with non-stop candidate screenings, client calls, and team meetings can spread your focus thin and compromise the quality of your work. Instead, aim to commit to only 80% of potential tasks and opportunities. This strategic approach forces you to prioritize high-impact activities that truly move the needle for your clients and candidates. We all know burnout comes with consistently having 5+ hours of phone time a day. Manage up, but not too far up.
Deliberately incorporate buffer time between appointments. These intervals are crucial for synthesizing candidate information, refining your search strategies, and maintaining the mental acuity needed to be successful. Breaks increase our productivity, don’t treat them like they do the opposite.
Align Your Schedule with Your Recruiting Rhythm
Take charge of your calendar to support your peak performance. Identify when you’re at your sharpest—perhaps early mornings for sourcing or midday for candidate interviews—and schedule your most demanding tasks accordingly. Don’t hesitate to communicate your optimal hours to clients and colleagues.
By tailoring your schedule to your natural productivity cycles, you’ll enhance the quality of your interactions, improve your decision-making, and ultimately place better candidates faster. This approach not only boosts your efficiency but also elevates your reputation as a recruiter who consistently delivers exceptional results.
If you are finding your productive peaks to be unaligned with your market, don’t forget about time zones! You can always recruit somewhere else while it is someWHEN else. (Jason did his calls to Dubai at 3am because a candidate could only do a full interview over lunch.)
Implementing these strategies will help you create a sustainable workflow that not only protects your energy but also positions you for long-term success in the competitive world of recruiting. Your refined schedule becomes a powerful tool, enabling you to build stronger relationships, close positions more effectively, and establish yourself as an indispensable asset to both clients and candidates.
Stop working in a silo! Get the support you need from expert coaches and a group of high performing peers. Learn more below.
Tricia Tamkin, headhunter, advisor, coach, and gladiator. Tricia has spoken at over 50 recruiting events, been quoted in multiple national publications, and her name is often dropped in groups as the solution to any recruiters’ challenges. She brings over 30 years of deep recruiting experience and offers counsel in a way which is perspective changing and entertaining.
