Mavenology.

So you decided to pursue a role in Recruiting, or maybe you just fell into it like most of us did? Whatever the case, great choice! There’s nothing quite like the feeling of joy that you get after finding a person their next “work home” or connecting a brand-new CEO with their first and soon-to-be-indispensable Executive Assistant.

Although we try as we might to keep work and personal lives in their own lanes (or maybe that’s just me?), here are some of the unexpected ways that your skills as a Recruiter will inevitably impact your personal life:

1. Everyone sounds familiar and you can't remember why you know anyone— it’s the curse of an enormous network that continues to grow each and every day (thanks, LinkedIn!)

2. You never take off your interviewer hat—you do not mess around when it comes to questioning people you hardly know, including any date that a friend brings to a party

3. Your sleuthing skills are on-point—if your fiancé gives you the first name and the company of a new friend he met on the train, you know what sports he played in college and what mutual friends you have in less than 5 minutes

4. You play matchmaker for everyone and everything—your barista says he is looking for a new apartment? You immediately connect him to the Facebook group where you found your last roommate, and follow-up with him about his progress over your daily latte

5. Words are confusing—every 2-syllable word mash-up, or alliterative animal reference sounds like a start-up you work with, want to work with, or want to source from. SiFive, Parking Panda, Rocksbox. . . what’s next?

6. You expect prompt feedback and follow-up—when you’re working through a contract with a wedding vendor and their responses are less-than immediate, you automatically judge their abilities

7. You’re emboldened to ask for what you want—your lease-terms aren’t what you’re looking for? Who cares that you’re in an incredibly competitive housing market... you ask for the dream scenario anyway so you have room to negotiate

8. You can fake it till you make it— you walk fearlessly into a group of new people, and can confidently hold conversations on revolutionary blockchain technology and the complicated nature of copyright law in the digital age . . . and anything else you have 5-10 minutes to research

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Written by: Jenna Defabio