How to Get Recruited: Make the Right People Notice Your Work
Every one of my early career moves came from someone recruiting me. None of them came from a job board. They came from doing good work where the right people could see it.
To get recruited, do excellent work that people outside your role can see, build genuine relationships with the people you interact with, including vendors, clients and partners, and make it easy to find you with a clear professional profile. Be known for something specific, help others without expecting anything back and stay open to conversations. Recruiters and hiring managers notice people who make others’ lives easier.
Early in my career, while I was managing restaurants, a manager from a wine, liquor and beer distributor came in every week to take our bar order. Over time he got to know how I worked, and one day he recruited me to join them as a sales rep. That move led to another company and then to a sales and marketing director role at a local brewery. Every one of those moves came from being recruited.
I have spent the last decade in healthcare staffing, where recruiting is the business, and I have seen the same pattern from the other side. The people who get recruited are rarely the ones applying everywhere. They are the ones doing good work where others can see it.
Do work that people outside your role can see
The distributor rep did not recruit me because of my résumé. He recruited me because he saw how I ran a bar, treated people and handled problems every week. Think about who sees your work beyond your own manager: customers, vendors, partners, other departments. The way you treat them and the quality of what you deliver is your real résumé.
Build real relationships
Recruiting happens through people. Be the person vendors enjoy working with, the colleague other teams can count on, the client contact who is easy to reach. Relationships built on genuine help, not networking for its own sake, are the ones that turn into opportunities years later.
Habits that make people want to recruit you
- Do visible, excellent work. Especially for people outside your team.
- Make others’ jobs easier. Vendors, clients and partners remember.
- Be known for something. A clear strength people associate with you.
- Keep a clear profile. Up to date, specific and easy to find.
- Help without keeping score. Generosity builds a reputation.
- Take the call. Stay open to conversations, even when you are happy.
Be known for something specific
People recruit for a reason. Be clear about what you are great at, whether it is calming upset customers, building new accounts or training new hires, and let your work and your profile reflect it. When someone needs that strength, your name should come to mind.
Make it easy to find you
Keep a professional profile, such as LinkedIn, that is current and specific about what you do and what you have accomplished. Share an occasional insight from your work. Recruiters search for people, and a clear profile helps them find the right ones.
Stay open
Even when you are happy in your job, take the occasional conversation. You may learn something about your field, your value or a path you never considered. You never have to say yes, but you will never get recruited if you never pick up the phone.
Betting on yourself is part of my signature keynote, You Are Capable of More. See also How to Bet on Yourself, When to Leave a Comfortable Job and How to Get Promoted at Work.
People get recruited for work others can see. Do excellent, visible work, build real relationships with clients, vendors and partners, be known for something specific, keep a clear profile, help without keeping score and stay open to conversations.
Frequently asked questions
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You Are Capable of More
A No-Excuses Guide to Becoming Your Best Self. The bestselling book behind Chris’s keynotes and the 2026 Paris Book Festival winner in the How-To category. Many teams hand a copy to every seller at their kickoff.
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