1: The Past, Present, and Future of Recruitment

The three of us have been fascinated by the study of recruitment for some time now. The reason is simple: humans spend a big proportion of their adult life at work, and the difference between picking the right or the wrong career has significant financial, emotional, and health consequences (Laspita, Breugst, Heblich, & Patzelt, 2012). When we make good career choices we thrive, find meaning, and not only apply our natural talents and skills, but also develop our full potential (Lu, Wang, Lu, Du, & Bakker, 2014). In contrast, when we make poor career decisions, we end up bored, alienated, and stressed, and our talents will simply go to waste (Maslach, Schaufeli, & Leiter, 2001). J.K. Rowling was on unemployment benefits after a lackluster career as a teacher when she finally found her niche as a children's author – to become the most successful author of all time. Brad Pitt was a limo driver, Pope Francis a nightclub bouncer, and Whoopi Goldberg a funeral make-up artist. These are just famous examples of people who started their lives in the wrong careers, but were at least lucky, courageous, and persistent enough to change. In contrast, many people end up stuck in unfulfilling or meaningless jobs, highlighting the importance of picking the right career to begin with. Unsurprisingly, there are obvious parallels between a happy career and a happy relationship, just like there are clear parallels between an unhappy career and an unhappy relationship (Ahmetoglu, Swami, & Chamorro-Premuzic, 2010), but it is likely that people are more likely to put up with a bad career than a bad relationship, and not for lack of choices.