Attracting the Right Candidates

Letting the Right People Self-Select

Samantha Newton is a senior HR consultant specialising in employee relations, leadership, and team alignment. She works closely with values-led and wellness-focused business owners to help them hire well, protect culture, and build sustainable practices that support both people and performance.

I’ve worked with many business owners who felt frustrated by recruitment, not because no one applied, but because the wrong people kept coming through. In my experience, that’s rarely about the market. It’s almost always about how clearly the role and the culture are being communicated from the outset.

Once you’re clear on who you want to hire, the next challenge is finding them.

Many wellness business owners say the same thing when they come to this stage:

“We get applicants, just not the right ones.”

On paper, people look capable. They have the qualifications, the experience, and often a genuine interest in the work. But once conversations begin, it becomes clear that expectations don’t quite match. Values feel misaligned. The role turns out to be very different from what the candidate imagined.

This isn’t usually because there’s a shortage of good people.
More often, it’s because the hiring message hasn’t done enough of the filtering upfront.

“Attracting the right candidates starts with being clear enough for the wrong ones to opt out.”

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Why more applicants isn’t the goal

When you’re busy and stretched, it’s tempting to think that success in recruitment means volume. More applications must mean better chances of finding the right person.

In practice, the opposite is often true.

Generic job adverts tend to attract people who are looking for any role that fits their skill set, not people who are actively choosing your business because they resonate with how you work. In wellness settings, that distinction matters.

Hiring someone who is technically capable, but values misaligned can cost far more time and energy than waiting a little longer for the right fit. Culture drift, boundary issues, and emotional mismatch don’t usually show up immediately, but they almost always surface later.

“The costliest hires are rarely the obviously wrong ones, they’re the almost-right ones.”

Let candidates self-select

Self-selection is one of the most effective, and underused, tools in hiring.

When your job advert clearly communicates what matters in your business, candidates begin to filter themselves. Those who feel aligned lean in. Those who don’t quietly move on.

This can feel uncomfortable at first. Many owners worry that being too honest will put people off. In reality, it builds trust and saves time.

Self-selection works best when your advert answers three unspoken questions candidates are always asking:

• What will it really be like to work here?
• What’s expected of me beyond my job description?
• Will I be supported, and held to clear standards?

If those questions aren’t answered, people fill in the gaps themselves.

Language shapes alignment

The language you use in your job advert does far more than describe a role. It signals how your business thinks, feels, and operates.

If your advert focuses solely on tasks and outputs, you’ll attract people who focus solely on tasks and outputs. If it’s overly aspirational or vague, candidates may project their own assumptions onto the role, often incorrectly.

In a wellness business, clarity beats polish every time.

Plain, grounded language that reflects how you actually work will attract people who are comfortable in that environment. You don’t need to sound corporate. You don’t need to oversell the role. You just need to be honest.

“People don’t need convincing, they need clarity.”

Be explicit about boundaries

One of the most important, and often avoided, aspects of recruitment in wellness businesses is boundaries.

Wellness work attracts caring people. That’s a strength, but it can become a problem if boundaries aren’t clearly communicated. If a role is described in a way that implies constant flexibility, emotional over-extension, or blurred responsibilities, you may attract people who struggle to sustain themselves in the work.

Clear boundaries don’t make a role less appealing to the right people. They make it safer.

Being explicit about:

• availability
• decision-making authority
• how emotional labour is managed
• how wellbeing is supported realistically

helps emotionally mature candidates recognise that your business is one where care is balanced with professionalism.

“Clear boundaries attract people who can care without burning out.”

Show values in action, not as slogans

Many job adverts list values as abstract words: compassion, integrity, professionalism. While well-intended, these mean different things to different people.

Values are far more powerful when they’re shown in practice.

Instead of saying “we value compassion”, describe how compassion shows up in client work or team interactions. Instead of saying “we value professionalism”, explain what that looks like day to day, in communication, boundaries, and accountability.

This gives candidates something real to connect with, rather than something to interpret.

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Honesty protects everyone

One of the kindest things you can do in recruitment is to be honest about what the role is and isn’t.

If a role involves emotional intensity, say so.
If it requires autonomy and self-management, be clear.
If it won’t suit someone who needs constant reassurance or direction, name that gently but clearly.

This isn’t about discouraging applicants. It’s about ensuring the people who do apply understand what they’re stepping into.

“Honesty at the start prevents disappointment on both sides.”

A moment to pause

Before you publish your next job advert, take a few minutes to reflect on this:

• Who do you most want to attract, and who would struggle here?
• What assumptions might someone make if they skim this advert?
• If you read it as a candidate, would you feel clarity or uncertainty?

The clearer the message, the lighter the recruitment process becomes.

Why this matters for sustainability

Wellness businesses are built on trust, safety, and consistency. The people you bring into your team shape that experience every day.

Attracting the right candidates isn’t about marketing the role. It’s about alignment. When people join your business already understanding how you work and what you value, onboarding becomes smoother, relationships are healthier, and retention improves naturally.

“The right people don’t need persuading, they need recognising.”

 Reflection for the week

Look at your most recent job advert and ask yourself:

• What does this say about how we really work?
• Who would feel excited reading this, and who might feel uneasy?
• What one sentence could I add that would make expectations clearer?

That one sentence can change the quality of your entire hiring process.