Quote of the week (that doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the column): “So often times it happens that we live our lives in chains / And we never even know we have the key” - The Eagles, “Already Gone” (1974)

Gratitude is defined as the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness. In the Recruiting/HR World (herein known as People Operations) there is an expectation that interactions with individuals in this profession will give you a similar, if not exact, feeling. You should feel gratitude after each and every interaction with a professional in my industry. After all, we are here to HELP people.

However, it is well known that the world of People Operations is far from lollipops and sunshine. There a far too many documentations of organizations with slow and outdated recruiting process that lead to terrible candidate experiences. And for every good recruiter, there are probably twenty bad ones. Greed, or “following the dollar”, has made the industry uber competitive while simultaneously sucking the good values People Operation professionals used to follow right out of the equation. In simpler terms, the industry has become robotic. Candidates don’t feel they are interacting with people, they feel as if they are fighting a senseless battle with machines. As a result, the PEOPLE Operations industry isn’t doing the one thing that it was created to do.

I could go on about some of the issues facing the People Operations world - and don’t worry I will cover the topic at some point. But today’s column is about trying to get back to a time when people could trust other people and the candidate experience wasn’t something to be dreaded by fellow job seekers. We are all humans beings. We all have the same desires in life: to find our purpose, to love and be loved, to laugh, and to be treated equally and fairly. I always try and remember that when I am interacting with someone, especially if it’s in the midst of a difficult situation or conversation. I am no better than my fellow person, and they are no better than I am.

We can all help each other, even if you aren’t a People Operations professional. I remember once when I was going through a tough time career-wise that a friend of mine offered for me to help him sort his products for his sales line. He did this for no other reason than because he wanted to help me and knew I could use some extra cash. He certainly didn’t need the help, but he still offered a helping hand in my time of need. I’m sure somewhere along the line someone lent him a helping hand when he was in a tough situation. My friend was expressing gratitude because he appreciated our friendship. Years later I returned the gratitude after Hurricane Harvey devastated his hometown area of Texas and he was looking for money/donations to help people in need.

It’s really that simple, folks. We can be good to each other even in a professional setting. We should be good to each other because you know what? It’s the RIGHT thing to be.

One way I am going to express gratitude more often is to follow up with ALL of my LinkedIn messages from fellow professionals looking for advice. Because I am in People Operations I naturally get many requests for advice. It is probably the expectation of these people that I respond to their messages. I’ll be frank in saying that I often have picked and chosen which messages to reply to. But I am going to make a sincere effort once a week to go through all of my messages and offer the advice that I can, even if that means passing the buck and referring that person to another.

I am lucky enough to work in a profession that is so closely tied to other people’s professional and personal lives. It’s up to me to earn the unconditioned trust of all for whatever their situation may be. Follow me on my journey to express more gratitude and let’s make the People Operations world something we can all be proud to be a part of. I’m sick of seeing all the articles circulating about what’s “wrong” with our industry and I’m sure you are too.

Gratitude starts with me and it continues with you.