Books every recruiting professional should read
Steal Like An Artist, written by Austin Kleon, is the quickest book you’ll read this year (and also happens to be a New York Times bestseller). Austin is an artist and writer based in Austin, TX. He’s known for his “Newspaper Blackout” collection and several books on creativity and branding (you should read them all). You can watch his TED Talk on the book here.
Steal Like an Artist is a creative manifesto. It challenges the notion of “original ideas”, and suggests many of the great works of art, literature, etc. were actually built on a diverse web of muses that inspired the work. It challenges assumptions that creativity is an individual endeavor, and makes a case for surrounding yourself with a diverse and eclectic mix to broaden your perspective and inspiration. Austin demystifies the notion of creativity being some magic genius that’s only in the DNA of a chosen few and provides tangible examples of how to develop a creative process. “You don’t need to be a genius, you just need to be yourself.“
Inspiration for the creative areas of recruiting
I think this is particularly relevant in recruiting, particularly for those who work in creative areas like employer brand. It will inspire you to seek perspectives and information outside of your niche. It teaches you the difference between “good theft” (honor, credit, steal from many) and “bad theft” (degrade, plagiarize, steal from one). Most importantly it will challenge and inspire your thinking around injecting more creativity into your work.
