The Pastry Chef Paradox: Why Your Job Ads Repel the People You Want

It is a familiar frustration. You post what you consider to be a comprehensive job advert, yet find yourself sifting through applications from people who are either under-qualified or simply not the right fit.

So why do your adverts not attract the people you'd hoped?

The uncomfortable truth is that the people you want to hire are often looking at your ads, but they're just not hitting 'Apply'.

This happens because most "adverts" are actually internal job descriptions copy-pasted onto the internet. They list tasks and requirements, usually in bullet points, and tell the reader exactly what to do. Their only impact is to portray your needs and demands, and none of the appeal you offer.

Imagine you own a high-end bakery and need a new Head Pastry Chef.

If your job ads simply lists tasks like "Ice doughnuts," "Mix flour," and "Order ingredients," you are wasting your time. A Pastry Chef already knows all of this. Telling them how to do their job isn't an incentive to come and do it for you.

To attract the best chefs, don't tell them how to bake. Help them understand why your kitchen is better than the one they are currently cooking in.

This is the Pastry Chef Paradox: By focusing on the mechanics of the job, you fail to sell the job itself.

The Engineering Equivalent of "Mixing Flour"

While the bakery example sounds ridiculous, this happens in Engineering every day. Companies publish functional lists of duties hoping to catch a skilled professional's eye.

Here's some snippets from recent job adverts for Electronics and Embedded Software Engineers:

• Design and develop embedded software solutions

• Developing embedded software in C/C++

• Design schematics & perform circuit simulations

You might argue that these points are factually correct, but does a Senior Engineer need to be told this? Or perhaps more to the point, should they need telling? If you were hiring a lorry driver, you wouldn't expect to tell them they'd need to "change gear" and "check the mirrors." You would tell them something appealing such as the brand new air-conditioned truck being delivered next week.

When an engineer reads "Developing embedded software in C/C++," they don't feel inspired. They simply see a description of the work they are already doing, likely for a competitor.

The "More of the Same" Trap

Consider a Senior Engineer who is currently employed. They read your advert asking them to "Design schematics."

Since they already design schematics every day, your advert suggests that moving to your company means doing the exact same things, just at a different desk. There is no hook, no promise of a better environment, and no interesting product.

Would a Michelin-star pastry chef apply to an advert demanding they "make pastry" and "Ice Doughnuts"? Doubtful. You haven't told them about the challenging projects, the autonomy, or the impact their work will have. You have only listed the ingredients.

Incidentally, this is just as damaging for junior talent. While a senior engineer finds a list of demands uninspiring, a junior engineer can find them intimidating if they aren't coupled with a description of support and mentorship.

Job Ads - Stop Telling, Start Selling

The purpose of an advert is to generate curiosity and encourage action. It is a sales pitch, not an instruction manual.

If you want to avoid the Pastry Chef Paradox, Stop Telling, Start Selling.

Instead of telling them what you want from them, sell them the idea of why doing what they do would be better with you. You need to provide a reason for someone to leave their current comfort zone.

Don't tell them how to bake the cake. Tell them how good it is going to taste.