I’m spending part of my holiday working on a “where do I fit in” document to help me prep for another interview. One of the questions I have on my list is, “what is your biggest regret, and what did you learn from it?” What a great question and one I had to really think about. It took a while, but it finally came to me, while I was in the shower of all places.
Many years back, when I was a tech support manager for a CRM company, we had a couple of strong reps (contractors) that we wanted to bring on full time. I was working diligently with management and our HR dept to hire one of the contractors more quickly because her contract was expiring soon.
I let her know of our plans, and on a couple additional occasions I told tell her not to worry, the offer was forthcoming. Imagine my surprise when, on one fine Friday afternoon, she notified me that she had accepted an offer from another company. I don’t recall if she gave two weeks notice, but I’d like to think so even though contractors are not required to do so. Whatever the case, I learned a number of things from that experience, but here are the most important:
– Do a better job of building trust
Make sure you take time time to use terms that garner trust. Clearly, saying “don’t worry, I got you!” didn’t work for her. Of course I didn’t say that specifically, but if I’d spent more time giving her the details, she might have had more faith that it would become a reality.
– Be sure to know your audience
Had I known she needed more substantial words of encouragement, I could’ve perhaps saved her from leaving. Because I hadn’t spent the time investing in getting to know her, I didn’t realize she didn’t trust that I was working to bring her onboard. And, since I found out later she really wanted the other job because it was closer to home, I could’ve avoided spending my time on something that wasn’t going to pay off in the end. Yes, another lesson.
– Do better job when following up
This is a big one. People want … no, they NEED to feel that they’re important. So had I spent more time going over the details, listening and understanding her needs, and then checked in with her more frequently, the outcome might have been different. (Maybe. Sometimes money can make a difference in a decision like that.)
While I say this is a regret, because it had direct impact on a person other than myself, in the end, it was a great learning opportunity with lessons that I carry with me to this day.
Never Regret
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