When hiring managers take a chance

Two of the biggest career-altering jobs I ever landed were because the hiring manager took a chance on me. I knew I could do those jobs well and had a lot to offer, but from the hiring side there was absolutely some risk.

My work experience has always been weird and non-linear, so I rarely fit well to any given hiring profile. They more or less had to trust their gut and take a leap of faith by hiring me. I’m sure there had to be more obviously qualified candidates.

In both cases, my getting hired worked out, and both sides ultimately benefitted — I did good work for them, they took care of me, and we had fun doing it. And regardless of how those runs may have ended, I still think back fondly at those moments when those folks took a chance on me. I’m probably romanticizing it a bit, but it’s hard not to appreciate what they did for me.

I guess I would just say that if you’re a hiring manager, of course you have to consider all the objective measures — a diverse slate, interview performance, peer feedback, etc. But if you have someone in the running who might be a borderline or non-obvious choice, it might also be worth considering your gut feel. Yeah it comes with some risk, but it could also be great. 💙