Welcome to top five podcasts a recruiters podcast where professionals come to talk shop, gain insight, share stories and get down with tools and tricks on how to stay mindful and show up
authentically every day. Top Five is sponsored by DefineTalent a DefinedLogic service DefinedTalent is a recruiting agency that focuses on humanizing the process while also building partnerships, not just making transactions, our ambition and passionate top five is heavily focused on showing up authentically well, navigating the constant changing landscape of recruiting hiring the job market as well as trials and tribulations everyone is facing today through the use of
mindfulness technology and even some humor. Our mission through top five is to share knowledge and explore the reality that life is different now on this podcast, we are going to share how we go about it while also adapting to change and finding success. I'm Tara Thurber, Director of talent innovation and joining me to introduce ourselves through five questions. is Victoria right recruiter and business development partner at define talent. Hey, Victoria, how you doing today?
Hey, I'm doing well. How are you?
I am doing well. Thank you. It's a beautiful day out there a little chilly. But that's all right. So Victoria, I'm going to hop right into this what is your superpower?
I think my superpower when it comes to the workplace specifically is
definitely my work ethic. The one thing that I always like to pride myself on is I don't think work ethic is correlated to your age or your skill set or how much experience you have doing something, I think you either have a strong work ethic or you don't and it doesn't have to be mutually exclusive with any of those other things like you can just know how to work hard and have that hunger to want to be the hardest working person in the room at all times. And that
speaks for itself. Whether you know what you're doing or not, if you have a strong work ethic, you'll be able to figure it out. And I think that's something that I really pride myself on is I'm going to work really hard until I become really good at something. And even once I'm good at it, I'm going to continue to work really hard because I just want to win I want to succeed and I want to do well.
Awesome. I love that about you. And I love that you bring that to our team.
What would you say is your superpower?
My superpower is juggling, I'm gonna have to say I I love the craziness of multitasking and and juggling multiple projects. At any given time. I feel that being able to it keeps me more in focus when I have multiple projects that I'm working on at the same time. Because it's all related through DefinedTalent, every single project that I am working on whether it's really personal or professional, it becomes part of
who I am. So I feel that my superpower would definitely be juggling, and being able to manage multiple projects at any given time. Allowing us to really be exploring everything out there that we possibly can with DefineTalent, as a service and as a place for people to come and gain insight and and grow not only with us, but around us too.
Yeah, I think that's one thing that I've noticed you're incredibly great at, I feel like my head would spin if I had as much on my plate as you do at times. So I definitely think that's something that you just embody, being able to really do well is you have all these things on your plate, but they're all getting done at a efficient pace. And at a quality pace as well. Like you you have a great way of not letting anything fall through the cracks either.
Awesome. Thank you for that. I will accept that from you. So Victoria, what would you say your biggest weaknesses?
I think my biggest weakness is sometimes I just move too quickly. I definitely act with urgency. And I've learned that my sense of urgency is not always the same as somebody else's sense of urgency. And sometimes that urgency can cause me to make stupid mistakes, whether it's a typo or just forgetting to send an email or you know, having something fall through. Because I'm just so focused on doing as much as I can as quickly as I
can. And I also tend to want people to respond to me as quickly as I respond to them and I have to understand like not everybody is doing their emails.every second of the day, as long as they're doing everything else, so that is probably my biggest weakness, but I'm constantly just telling myself like, take a break, it's okay, relax, just because somebody doesn't get back to you in two seconds doesn't mean it's not important to them either.
And that's okay. And just constant reminders that even though I know it's a weakness of mine, I'm working on it, and I'm getting better at it. And that's the most important part of being aware of your weakness is just how you're going to overcome it.
Absolutely. And being aware is such a strength to have is to be aware of your weakness to grow within it and with it, right, absolutely.
What would you say is your biggest weakness?
My biggest weakness? is having a hard time ever saying no. Which I guess that kind of takes my superpower and multiplies that times 50 Oh, I again, I do have a lot on my plate. And there's multiple balls always in the air. And I would have to say, saying no. And setting boundaries has always been, it's always been a tough thing for me to do. I want to be helpful. I want to be doing as much as I possibly can.
But I think at times being able to set boundaries and saying no, is even more important than saying yes. So just like you I acknowledged that it is my biggest weakness. There is a running joke that is constant in my world. Where Yep, right on top of that, Rose, I've got it. Yep. Okay, yes, I'll do it, you know, and to be able to pull back a little bit and acknowledge when there's too much on my plate, and to acknowledge when enough is enough for any given moment is really hard to do, especially
when I am a people pleaser. But, um, knowing that saying no, is very difficult for me.When I do say no, it says really, it feels really good. Soat least acknowledging it's my biggest weakness, but also really trying to overcome that and feel comfortable being uncomfortable at times, saying no, is something that I continue to work on daily.
That's awesome. And I think even if it's just saying not right now, yeah, I'm not I can do it. I just can't do it right now. But here's when I can do it. Sometimes, just pivoting it that way, still mediates that feeling of I didn't really say no, I just am allocating my time better so that I can focus on that task when I have the effort to do so
Totally. And it's funny, because I've got different to do lists. And so it's like the present to do list the next day to do list and then in a couple of weeks to do list. So yeah, I couldn't agree more and being able to write out and get it all, at least up on my dry erase board or something of the sort, at least, it's a reminder that it's there too. So I don't let anything fall through the cracks. So Victoria, tell me, how do you overcome
rejection? I know, you know, through recruiting, we deal with a lot of rejection. How do you overcome rejection?
It depends on the day, I'll be honest, I think sometimes you just wake up in a bad mood. And so if something goes wrong, it's going to affect you a little bit more that day. But I try to remind myself in life, but especially in the world of recruiting and and the professional setting, as well. There's only so much that you can control. There are so many other variables out there that are going to happen that just have absolutely nothing to do with how well or unwell you did
your job. So I try to ask myself, when a situation does not go the way that I wanted, was there anything I could have done differently? Could I have had an extra conversation with somebody that maybe would have given me more clarity or would have given them more clarity? Could I have done more research on something, maybe I should have spent more time on a task that I maybe finished too
quickly, right? If I can finish that day, knowing that I did everything I absolutely could to control the situation as best as possible. And it still didn't work out. I can go to sleep feeling a little bit better at night knowing I did my absolute best. If there's something that I can learn from it and say, Hey, in this situation, maybe I did drop the ball somewhere, mental note next time, don't drop the ball there and move
forward. Because at the end of the day, you can't just harbor it all in and beat yourself up over it like it's gonna continue to happen. If it can go wrong, it usually will go wrong at some point. It's a self fulfilling prophecies. So you just have to keep that positive mindset of control what you can control.
Absolutely. And I think you do a really awesome job at that. I mean, we've had some ups and downs with you know, starting a brand new business and we've had you know, we've had rejection, we've faced rejection, right right in its face. And I think that by constantly learning, you're right, you're we're going to learn from rejection, we're going to learn from failure, because if we're not failing, and if we're not getting rejected, then we're not going to be learning and growing.
Exactly. And I think that's, it sounds so cliche, but that's all you can really do. But what about you? How would you say, what's your go to strategy? In that moment?
My biggest go to strategy is to listen, rather than react, I think that that's something that a lot of people, including myself, in the past I, I would react immediately to rejection and criticism and get defensive, you know, because I feel that I am constantly doing
my best. But at times, it's good to really look yourself in the mirror and be like, okay, you know, that we have to grow, we have to continue to keep growing by listening to rejection, or listening to something that's failed, it allows me to internally go through it all go through the steps. And really, not only hear it, but feel it. And therefore, by getting rid of the reaction, the reaction part of it, it really opens up the doors to learning and communicating even in a better way.
Yeah, I think that's so important. It's hard. And it's a skill that takes some time to develop, but a lot of us just listen to respond, not listen to understand.
Yeah
I think that's a big part of growth, both personally and professionally, when somebody is maybe giving you some hard feedback, or just telling you, hey, Thanks, but no thanks. understanding why they're saying that and not just jumping to, well, you're wrong for X, Y, and Z. And this is how it makes me feel for you to react that way. That might all
be fine and good. But really getting to the root of it and taking in why it is that they're saying what they're saying, diagnose that, collect your thoughts, and then move forward from a place of understanding and not just trying to get your next point across to prove them wrong, or to justify yourself.
That's exactly it. And I think, too, we need I think people in general really need to listen a lot more and to really do some self growth and some self some self care in regards to that, because we're all moving so many miles a minute. And we can only do so much. So to be able to take that step back, I feel is very important for for everybody, whether it's personal or professional.
Absolutely. I would agree. I think it's just something that's going to make the world rotate a little bit easier on its axis, if we just communicated better at the end of the day.
I agree with you. I agree. Victoria, how do you show up authentically? For me, I think it just comes down to owning it at the end of the day like I am a flawed human just as we all are. And I think when I make a mistake, or when I'm unaware of something because I just don't know it not being afraid to own that I don't know it. And I'm not good at it is the the easiest way to do that.
And the same goes for when I am really good at something not being overly boastful about it, you don't have to be braggadocious and make it some big moment of look at me I'm so great. It really can just be this is something I'm good at. I know it's my strength, I'm going to continue to use that as a strength. But also on the other side of the coin. This is my weakness. This is something that I'm not so great at. But here's
how I'm working on it. And if you have any advice on how I can fix it or improve, that'd be great. But I'm going to lean on you in these moments because they know it's something that I'm probably going to need extra support with. It's just coming down to owning it. And if you eff up or make a mistake, like it's okay, we all do that. And we're human beings and no one should hold that over your head because sometimes you just have a day and you just need someone to understand.
I love that and I feel that you know define talent that is something that we pride ourself on but it's also something to, to share and to help others figure out how to show up authentically so to speak. Not only in their work life, but in their their personal life.
Yeah, I think, again, it's just a skill that is so important and it's hard. Sometimes you want to pretend you didn't make the mistake and cover your own butt bu what's the worst that can happen from owning your mistake or owning your strengths on the other side of that, too, right? Like, there, there's really not a whole lot that can go wrong there. What do you do that that separates you in that way to keep yourself authentic?
I think for me, you know, authenticity and being authentic or showing up authentic, really is, is deeply rooted in who I am. And, I don't think I realized it when I was younger. But as I've, I've really gotten into my own personal self care routines, and I've really kind of looked within over the past couple of years, especially, I would have to say, I show up authentically, by really trusting myself, I show up authentically, by bringing my whole self 100%, to
my day to my night. And I surrender, I surrender to things that are without, without, or I should say, out of my control, and I'm genuine, and I want the very best for others just as much as I want the very best for myself showing up authentically I feel can be pretty tough. People hide behind masks, people hide behind a piece of paper or a screen or, you know, but being able to really show up and be like, this is who I am, my
strengths, my weaknesses. and everything in between, I think is probably the most real somebody could be and the most authentic somebody could be. So I feel for myself on a daily basis, I'm constantly reminding myself to be real, to trust my intuition to trust my gut, and to get rid of judgments, to release judgments, and to really be kind and genuine in any and all situations.
And I think that's something that is really important for somebody like yourself, who is in a leadership role to be able to do because having that safe space to be fully authentic is so rare in the workplace, I think, to your point, a lot of us show up with masks, and especially if you're coming into somewhere new and you don't really know anyone there yet, and you're trying to prove yourself, you feel like you have a chip on your shoulder because you have to make a good
impression. It can be really hard to come into a new environment and be really authentic if you're testing the waters. And so as a leader, I think it's important to create a really authentic genuine space because those that you're leading will mirror that. And so if you create an honest, authentic, safe place, for your team members, they'll be able to do the same. And that becomes a
chain reaction. So when the next new person joins the team, or you go out to some sort of client meeting, or what have you, that environments tangible, and everybody else feeds off of that. So I think it's important to make sure you not only are you authentic for yourself, but you can be authentic for other people so that they feel comfortable taking their mask off too, and just being themselves. And that creates a lot of great collaboration and
discussion. And it allows for more of that free flowing work to get done. And sometimes the best ideas and the best conversations come from that safe space. But if you don't have a safe space to begin with, it's gonna make it a lot harder for you to feel like you're truly authentic, for whatever reason.
Absolutely. And I feel right there is our foundation have defined talent, and really what our values are, are showing up authentic, being kind, being empathetic being genuine. For and with our clients and for and with our talent that we work with.
Yeah, definitely. And it's important, I think if if you pass that on, even in the smallest way, it makes the biggest impact on somebody else. It really does.
Awesome. Awesome. I love making impacts. Big powerful impacts. Victoria, why are you here?
That is a great question. I can go a couple of different ways with that answer metaphysically emotionally, or what have you. But I'm in the business of recruiting I think just because I kind of fell in love with it accidentally in college, through my sorority through student government, I recruited heavily for those organizations and I realized, talking to people is something I'm really good at. If I could get paid to do that, I'd
probably be a sweet deal. So I dove head first into recruiting and I realized that I'm just really passionate about connecting with people and helping them find an opportunity that makes sense not only for them, but for their families and their future. And that's such a rare unique opportunity that we get to have and i willlove the fact that it's a legacy for me, somewhere along that person's story, I'm able to say, hey, because of me, they got this new
opportunity. And that led them to all of these great things. And that's just as much a part of my career as it is theirs, which excites me and keeps me motivated. And I might not be a doctor or anything, but it's a great way to help people. And I think it's just so unique that it doesn't always feel like I'm working, because I'm really just having conversations all day long.
Awesome, I love that about you, you really come to the team with a lot of passion behind what you do. And it's an extreme value to have. And we are extremely appreciative of, that aspect that you bring to the table.
Thank you. I mean, I feel lucky to be able to do something I love so much, so young, because I think so many people get stuck doing something that they're not that passionate about. And it's hard to undo that cycle. So I feel very, very grateful to be a part of this team where that is so important for everyone to be really excited about coming to work every day. But what about you, because you've had such an amazing career behind you like what brought you here? Why are you here every day?
I'm here because this is my passion, recruiting, helping people. You know, as a life coach and a career coach with a passion to connect people with one another to help fill needs or wants, it's been something that is been deeply rooted in who I am, ever since I was a little girl, I was always the person that people went to, to talk to, or ask questions on how to do something or who to ask if they needed something.
I'm a connector from my core and DefineTalent is really a dream come true of connecting my life coaching and passion to help others but also bringing forth my entrepreneurial, passion and, vibe that I just want to see something grow from the roots up, I think is what landed me at DefinedTalent, I'm bringing everything that I am as a person, my professional side, my personal side, my emotional side, everything's coming together with DefineTalent, my creativity gets to come through.
And it's a constant learning for me, because I don't know everything and being able to join forces with the DefineLogic team and build out to DefineTalent to make an impact, I really, I have this fire in me to just make an impact in the industry to make an impact in people's lives. And so being able to be here right now, on our very first podcast to share this with whoever wants to listen, just really drives motivation and me to help others become better versions of themselves.
I love that. And I think it's a very tangible aspect of you like that's one of the first things that I've noticed is how you are so passionate, but also the follow through on that passion, which is sometimes the hardest part is like I have all these great ideas and excitement behind me, what do I do with it. So you really embodied the the right process of formulating those ideas and actually putting them into action, which is the hardest part. But it's the most
exciting part. Because now you're kind of seeing the fruits of your labor. And I'm really excited to be a part of a team that fosters the environment to be able to do that.
We are very, very excited to have you on the team. And I'm looking forward to what comes of the next six months, the next nine months. The next couple of years.
Me as well. I think we're on an exciting journey and I'm really happy to be a part of it.
Awesome. Victoria, thank you so much for joining us today and being a part of DefineTalent team. Keep an eye out for our next podcast. Our special guest Krista Russo, a lifestyle designer and coach is going to bring to us her top five tools for cultivating an abundant mindset for 2021. We are DefinedTalent, a DefinedLogic service coming to you at top five. Make it a great day.