Close Only Counts in Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

I used to pass along candidates who were close enough.

Not bad candidates. Not unqualified candidates. Candidates who checked most of the boxes, had decent experience, interviewed reasonably well. Candidates I could justify with a straight face.

"They're not perfect, but they're worth a conversation."

I said that a lot. And for a while, I thought that was the job — source volume, present options, let the client decide. My job was to fill the pipeline. Their job was to pick.

I was wrong.

Here's what I've learned, and it took me longer than I'd like to admit: when you send a client someone who's "close enough," you're not being helpful. You're being lazy. You're shifting the burden of saying no from yourself to them. And worse — you're wasting everyone's time. The client's time. The candidate's time. Your own time.

This week, I declined four candidates for a single search. Four people who, on paper, had relevant experience. Four people I could have passed along and defended.

One had great experience but wouldn't pass the English test the hiring manager would give. I knew it. But part of me wanted to send them anyway — let the hiring manager be the bad guy. That's what the old Mike would have done.

Another withdrew on their own. A third no-showed for the interview. The fourth had the wrong functional background dressed up in the right keywords.

None of them were bad. None of them were stars.

And that's the thing nobody tells you about recruiting: the hardest part isn't finding people. The hardest part is having the discipline to say "not yet" when your pipeline is empty and your client is waiting.

Because when your pipeline is empty, every candidate starts looking better than they are. You start negotiating with yourself. "Well, they don't have the exact experience, but they're smart — they'll figure it out." "Their English isn't perfect, but the hiring manager might not care." "They've never worked in this industry, but they're a fast learner."

That's not judgment. That's hope. And hope is not a recruitment strategy.

The recruiters I respect the most are the ones who call the client and say: "I don't have anyone worth your time right now. Give me another week."

That takes guts. It feels like failure. It feels like you're not doing your job.

But it IS the job. The job isn't to present bodies. The job is to present conviction. When I put a candidate in front of a client, I want my reputation behind them. I want to be able to say: "Talk to this person. I believe in them."

Not "they're worth a look." Not "they tick most of the boxes." Not "they're the best of what's available."

"I believe in this person for this role."

If I can't say that honestly, I'm not sending them.

It took me years to get here. A younger version of me was so afraid of the empty pipeline that I'd fill it with volume and pray for a hit. I thought more candidates meant better odds. What it actually meant was more noise, more wasted interviews, and more clients wondering if I really understood what they needed.

Close doesn't count. Not in this work.

Close means someone goes through three rounds of interviews and gets declined. Close means a client spends two weeks evaluating someone who was never right. Close means a candidate gets their hopes up for a role that was never going to work.

That's not being thorough. That's being afraid to hold the line.

So if you're a hiring manager working with a recruiter and they tell you, "I don't have anyone this week" — don't fire them. That might be the most honest, most valuable thing they've ever said to you.

It means they're not sending you close enough.

They're waiting for the real thing.

And when they do send someone — pay attention. Because they're not filling a pipeline. They're staking their reputation.

Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. In recruitment, it's a waste of everyone's time.