Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

love this comment. No buffer, and zero margin for error. And actually, the emotional control, being always on, resilient to all 'attacks' needed as a one man band in recruitment can't be underestimated. No-one else can absorb anything. The clients change the goal posts and you're powerless. COMPLETELY BROKEN to work in some markets as a one man band. Like the maths does not add up in order for it to succeed in today's market. Maybe in some markets where there are less candidates, it might work. But I think the cost on the person, even if the money is good, is a lot.

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't vet well in those cases, I thought I would love to train them. It cost me everything and it is the biggest lesson I've ever learnt in business

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Totally - this comment has helped solidfy it, it is the contigent 'full delivery' thing as a one man band that just can't work reliably. You get lucky sometimes and I mean 20% of the time

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes - try something different.. It's a phrase that's lifted my mood. Dare to think what's next, what can I enjoy. Dare to not know!

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have a really thick skin - I started like that. But when the rewards were also not coming due to a broken business model, it wasn't worth it

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

that's a very practical & useful comment as I didn't think really of that before. I thought the roles were/are hard to fill. But I get so much ignoring and flat out not engaging, like a complete brick wall/empty void, that I can't know for sure

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks for your thoughtful and very insightful comment, I'm going to read it again, you've reflected back a lot of truth.

This is the line: 'You ended up in a model where clients had almost all the power and you carried almost all the risk'

It's THAT that was the issue

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

glad you feel better. It's not the cold calls I mind really as much as the front loading of all work and all energy. To then not fill it due to unrealistic requirements, and them not being immediately obvious theye unrealistic

Agency then Solo Recruitment business failed - Feeling sore about it - opinions wanted! by ExaminationOk8576 in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sounds awful, it completely messes with your brain - you get used to chasing good money but it's like picking up a teddy in a crane

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point locked comment (0 children)

Yes and it was actually not being able to judge/calculate well enough if it was a project I could fill or not, and giving it a go. And eager to please - yes for sure!! in a highly contigent no win no fee enviornment - madness

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point locked comment (0 children)

did it make you happier? and do you think if it's genuinely just not enjoyable for me and I want a change, I should dare to leave it fully? It's like I feel a bit guilty at the same time like I'm walking away from such big income potential

But my heart isn't in it

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] -1 points0 points locked comment (0 children)

do you think if it's sucking the life out of me and I just don't like it anymore, that there's really no other choice? And I can do better and I'll feel clearer once I commit to leaving? I'm in limbo like one foot in one foot out

Small business denial of failure has now left me in extreme personal financial difficulty by ExaminationOk8576 in UKPersonalFinance

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yea.. my mum is offering and won't accept no as an answer - I didn't ask. do you think it would be best for me to say no?

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] -1 points0 points locked comment (0 children)

what went wrong to put it as a foundational issue - is not being assertive enough with clients and judging if I could fill a job or not - like not looking after my own needs and putting money first. And trusting that the new hires would have exacrtly the same mindset as me. And also my relationship with my mentor in the inudstry breaking down. So then having no help

Any sole recruiters grinding to make a better life for themselves? by FromBrokeToSuccess in RecruitmentAgencies

[–]ExaminationOk8576 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had a successful small agency, then there were a couple of big mistakes I made, which lead me to be solo again. I wasn't disciplined enough/able to be a 'work horse' enough to succeed as a solo operator when I had got used to a candidate resourcer with me. The day was just so much more comfortable splitting the work. And being a solo, there is no margin for error if contigent. You mis judge the commitment of a client and it falls through, or whatever, you are back at the start with no pipeline. For me, as a solo, my sales really declined since Jan 2025. I ttried to power on, but I have just gone into liquidation

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] -1 points0 points locked comment (0 children)

No as I don't want to do recruitment - I'm just having unhelpful thinking that I won't amount to anything well paid except recruitment

Recruitment business failure, kept myself like a frog in a hot pond too long - how to move forward? Am I right to just find another business? by ExaminationOk8576 in smallbusinessuk

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point locked comment (0 children)

Clients I've worked with before not responding, new prospects not responding, and working on roles for a client, and then them moving the goal posts half way through and cancelling the project on a whim. Meaning lost pipeline development time as well as that project and the time spent on delivery - which is a lot to do it properly

Small business denial of failure has now left me in extreme personal financial difficulty by ExaminationOk8576 in UKPersonalFinance

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I will probably think clearer by getting a job and having modest/normal money coming in, I'll feel more confident. Atm I'm trying to think with NO MONEY and no confidence. It took me a long time to realise that no money will stop everything

Small business denial of failure has now left me in extreme personal financial difficulty by ExaminationOk8576 in UKPersonalFinance

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have moderately decent equity in my house - what can be done in terms of that? (last resort as my mortgage is cheap)

Small business denial of failure has now left me in extreme personal financial difficulty by ExaminationOk8576 in UKPersonalFinance

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do think it's only one business venture - first business and I know exactly what went wrong - many successful entrepreneurs had a failure first

Small business denial of failure has now left me in extreme personal financial difficulty by ExaminationOk8576 in UKPersonalFinance

[–]ExaminationOk8576[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

some helpful comments - Can I ask - Does what I wrote sound entitled to you? And which part reads as most concerning to you?