Can Dating Help you Professionally?
From an infographic from SparkHire, we’ve recently discovered the parallels between speed dating and interviewing —both activities seek to find “the one,” whether it be personally or professionally.
Yet, although Valentine’s Day has come and gone, we can still learn a thing or two from the romantic holiday, and Sparks is giving us the opportunity to do just that. Checkout what he had to tell Recruiter.com readers about the correlation between increasing your social skills, e.g. via a dating coach, and moving forward in your career:
Nick Sparks
1. How long have you been a social and dating coach? How long has Sparks of Attraction been in business?
I’ve been a dating coach now for just over 6 years and, after working jointly with business partners, have been focused of my own venture—Sparks of Attraction/Fearless Coaching for about 6 months.
2. About how many clients have you had since Sparks of Attraction opened?
Over the past six years I’ve worked with around 200 men.
3. Please briefly explain your process at Sparks of Attraction.
After a brief application process, my time with my clients begins with an intense four-day clinic in which I basically “reprogram” their brains when it comes to socializing and women. This involves classroom sessions, drills with our female assistants in which their conversational flaws are highlighted and removed, and monitored time at the bar in which they practice their newly budding skills on real live women. This clinic is then followed by a month of focused follow-up work and a lifetime of support.
4. Do you see a correlation between developing social skills (i.e. for dating) and advancing in your career?
Absolutely. Only a small percentage of what we teach is focused on communicating with women. Being a confident and charismatic man is universal, regardless of who you are interacting with. Because of this, it’s not surprising that many of my past clients report success in their professional life directly because of the program.
Some examples of clients who have experienced this correlation include:
- One client, a gentlemen in his 30’s who works in medical sales, reported a 50 percent increase in his business two months after beginning his work with me.
- Another past client, a recent college grad, told me that he would never have gotten his current job without putting these skills to work on the networking scene.
- Another past client, previously stuck in the same position at work for years, told me about a promotion he received to management in the month following his clinic. He told me people at work just started treating him differently. This list goes on and on.
5. Why is developing social skills important overall?
For better or worse, human beings evolved as a social species. There are very few aspects of your life, especially your professional life, that don’t directly involve social interaction. It’s impossible to be good at just about any job without being good with people.
6. Final thoughts?
Like it or not, your ability to get, maintain, and advance in your career is not solely dependent on your abilities related to that profession, it is also equally, if not more so tied to your social skills. When you interview for that position and are up against dozens of other applicants with similar qualifications; the decision will be made on who they like the most. Luckily, this is something that can be developed and improved like any other skill in your life. Have you given it proper priority?