Ahh. Now that is a statement that says it all doesn't it. Sometimes we wish life would come with an instruction manual, or for that matter a staffing manual? We wish at times we had all the clues, all the instructions we would need, but that would make for a boring life. This statement hangs on a wall at Moss Landing at the Lighthouse Harbor Grill on the way to Monterey Bay along the CA 1 Pacific Coast Highway. On June 19th, 2010, around 12 noon I stopped and snapped this picture at the restaurant (which by the way has fabulous food). I was in a mood, a traveling mood, you see my wife is in Utah this month visiting family and well, I just needed to get out and about and think about my life for a bit. I find when I get into one of those reflective moves that I just need to drive the car and get out on the open highway, out in nature and along a journey where I just let myself find where I need to be. It was a few years ago at West Valley College while a student that I had a great professor Randy Fujishin who was particularly inspiring, he said in so many words: "Just drive and see what discoveries you uncover. In fact you should just go to Big Sir." Well, I had that on my mind as my car flew towards Big Sir, and the sites and sounds of that very day propelled me to where I belonged. So while eating at this restaurant:

I found that this statement just seemed to kind of say it all at that moment. How many times would we like for an instruction manual on how to find that missing candidate, that opportunity we are seeking, or that deal that we know we can get. But alas, we must learn as we go. And so after eating here I continued on my journey. I passed by Monterey where the US Open Championships were taking place at Pebble Beach and above me I could see hang gliders, the Good Year Blimp, and a plane flying by with an advertising banner. It all was quite amazing to behold. On my way, I thought about the past few months of my recruiting experience, in a short time frame I had been having very successful placements as a sourcer with my partner recruiters, and I felt that I was at home once more. What a wonderful thing.

I passed the restaurant where my wife and I had come on our 2nd anniversary to celebrate that momentous time in our lives. It was in 2005 and I had just graduated. It was on the morning of a beautiful summer day, when we sat overlooking the ocean:

Truly, the stunning beauty and the memories of that special time came back into my mind. I just had to think - WOW, since that time I have been through so much. And I have been blessed. As I continued my journey I rounded a bend and what should greet me but Point Sir Light Station, the main reason I had undertaken this journey reliving past memories of an earlier part of my marriage, before life became more complicated, more rich and full of blessings, and knowledge of why I went into recruiting in the first place. This was it, for moments such as this, feeling grateful for my 6 placements, which would soon become 7 sealing my place among a stellar staffing function of a 3rd party agency staffing firm powerhouse - netPolarity. Along the journey of my career I have found great moments, moments of frustration as the economy took me away from where I wanted to be only to supplant me in a couple of new industries in temporary roles, and then back into staffing where I can now stay for a good while. The volcanic rock face is a natural wonder, it rises 300 feet high and over a football field in length it houses a lighthouse station: Point Sir, which was set up to help with the dangers of this giant rock face which juts out at the end of a beautiful beach. Today the lighthouse still functions, and it is a CA National Park and Historic Site. It still offers light to ships to help them find safe passage, and avoid the pitfalls of boating blind near a rock face. Just think if the lighthouse wasn't there? What then, there may be more accidents. Rounding the bend I just couldn't believe the breath-taking site that greeted me:

So with one part of my journey complete I headed forward to Pigeon Point Lighthouse, Ano Nuevo the Elephant Seal Preserve, and ate dinner in Pescadero, after passing through Santa Cruz. As I approached, several beautiful opportunitities for pictures emerged:

By the time I had arrived at Pigeon Point it was dark, and overcast, the lighthouse, turned on it's lights later in the day during sunset, and I couldn't help but be in awe:

It was at this lighthouse, where as a young boy in 5th grade on a field trip and having had the opportunity to spend the night there with my classmates at the hostel that I felt a twinge of happiness to know that I was able to see a part of history. Pigeon Point was named after a boat that lost it's way and hit the rocks by Pigeon Point. The boat was called Carrier Pigeon, and therefore this name emerged for the rocky point, the Coast Guard authorized the construction of a lighthouse to provide some important light for lost ships when the fog came in. During the darkness, the Pigeon Point Lighthouse saved many lives as it pointed the way where it was needed to go.

And so we have similarities in our lives: we have as our recruiting "light house" social networks, job boards, effective boolean strings, well written job descriptions, reference checks and such that are all important parts of the recruiting matching process. Without an effective lighthouse inspired HR or Staffing Strategy with well written job descriptions, or no-nonsence feedback from the hiring manager, we find ourselves reduced to a paper pusher status, in the efforts to make a fill, we have to remember to go above and beyond the paper pushing to substantive, and very important business partnerships. In that vien it is key that talent must be sought and retained, and that each part plays a role in the "Lighthouse" of virtual or well defined parameters.

As I came and left for home after these pictures were taken, I felt at peace, having come full circle in my staffing journey. The "Light House" of my life in staffing came to be cleared when I joined netPolarity, back in the direct path to success. We all need light houses in our most intimate relations, that means patience, and the knowledge that as a "Lighthouse" we protect other "ships" from crashing and provide ideas for a past req we worked on or a new perspective on staffing.

The Light House as it relates to life is always having the right attitude and perspective and knowledge that we can make a difference. We can and we should.

That day my light house just happened to be at one of the most gorgeous regions in the world. And the trip I undertook like our lives is full of needs for a "Light House". In so many words we make a difference by helping the process move. Web 2.0 is solid interaction, and for this purpose the Light House of recruiting will always be a natural progression. The LightHouse in providing it's light made for some potential success as we look at the Light House Tools we have: LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

It is this Light House and positive forward thinking attitude that is the core of success in staffing. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Amen.