Planning for Your Best Year Ever in 2026
The ‘Atomic’ Approach
–A Six Part Series–
Part Six
by
Bob Marshall
December 30th, 2025
The Central Theme Behind What We Do
At TBMG, International, we live by a simple philosophy: the classics of recruitment success never change. They may evolve with the times, but the core principles remain. If you share that belief, you’ll fit right in.
We follow the Golden Circle:
We treat this business as a Process, not a Series of Events
Why we do what we do:
We believe timeless recruitment principles drive consistent results. Those who embrace these principles achieve more, and we encourage you to do the same.
How we do what we do:
We repeat and reinforce these classic principles regularly until they become second nature for the recruiters we coach.
What we do:
We provide expert, affordable coaching, training, and proven recruitment tools—and we make sure our recruiters know how to use them consistently.
We believe in the Partnership Approach:
We focus on the Knowledge Deficiencies
You focus on the Execution Deficiencies
Part Six – The Yearly Six Essentials
These are the six daily disciplines that separate average recruiters from consistent billers. When you set your goals for 2026, anchor them to these essentials. They are not new—but they are proven.
They were handed down to you by generations of Big Billers who learned, sometimes the hard way, what actually works.
1. Focus on Activities That Lead to Money
Robocruiter—one of the best producers I’ve ever known—put it this way:
“When I come into the office in the morning, I ask myself: What is the first thing I must do to make money—not just the first thing I must do? Who do I need to call to get my first Send Out? And after that, where is my second Send Out coming from?”
Robocruiter understood a fundamental truth:
Send Outs create placements. Everything else is secondary.
Years ago, when I served as Critical Care Trainer for a large franchise organization, I kept seeing the same pattern in struggling offices. They had immaculate Job Orders—beautifully written, spell-checked, indexed—and no Send Outs.
Those owners genuinely believed they were in the business of writing Job Orders. They weren’t.
We failed them if we didn’t make this clear:
We are in the business of arranging Send Outs.
Everything else is ancillary.
Send Outs are King.
2. Your Value Is Your Ability to Pick Up the Phone and Speak into It
We live in an age of unlimited information—and unlimited distraction.
The computer is a compulsive tool. It calls to us the moment we sit down. Email, dashboards, LinkedIn, CRM updates—it all feels productive. Often, it isn’t.
Robert Heinlein said it best:
“In the absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily trivia—until ultimately we become enslaved by it.”
Top producers understand this:
Their value lies in their ability to communicate with other human beings—live.
As the great Cavett Roberts taught:
“People buy from those they like, believe, trust, and understand.”
Those elements of rapport cannot be created through keystrokes alone.
Rapport is built through conversation.
3. Make Scintillating Presentations
I am a firm believer in what I call scintillating presentations—especially when presenting candidates.
One of the most effective formats is FAB:
- Feature – What the candidate does or has done
- Accomplishment – How well they did it (in concrete, measurable terms)
- Benefit – How those accomplishments will benefit the hiring company
When you present a candidate as an MPC (Most Placeable Candidate) using FAB, you immediately answer the hiring manager’s unspoken question:
“What can this person do for me?”
FAB presentations also generate enthusiasm—and enthusiasm is contagious.
Remember Cavett Roberts’ insight:
“People are more moved by the depth of your conviction than by the height of your logic.”
FAB an MPC—and watch what happens.
4. And Make a Lot of Them
If you haven’t yet delimited your marketplace, now is the time.
To be successful in any economy, you must be able to make enough daily marketing presentations to sustain momentum.
I typically coach:
- 10–25 live marketing connects per day
At the high end:
- 25 per day
- 125 per week
- 500 per month
- 1,500 per quarter
That means you need a marketplace of roughly 1,500 company contacts.
In large organizations, each hiring manager counts as a separate contact—so this is more attainable than it sounds.
Recycle your marketplace quarterly—some contacts more frequently, some less—based on urgency and relevance.
Exposure creates familiarity.
Familiarity creates trust.
Trust creates business.
And one guarantee still holds true:
You will never place with a company you don’t call.
5. All Job Orders Are Not Created Equal
One of the most misunderstood realities in recruiting is this:
Out of 15 Job Orders written by an experienced recruiter:
- 0–1 will be true Search Assignment quality
- 4–5 will be Matching quality
- 10 will be Can’t Help orders
All 15 are Job Orders. They are just not equal.
If you were never taught this, you may think:
- Decisions take too long
- Hiring managers can’t commit
- The market has “changed”
The truth is simpler—and more uncomfortable:
The issue isn’t the market. It’s what you’re choosing to work.
Qualify your Job Orders properly, and the fog lifts quickly.
6. Inspect What You Expect
Recruiting is difficult to monitor—but monitoring is non-negotiable.
That’s why I’ve long believed in the 100-Point Sheet.
At the end of the day:
- 100+ points = placements will follow
- Below 100 points = they won’t
It really is that straightforward.
Years ago, while training a firm with offices in London, I introduced the 100-Point concept. The manager liked it—but insisted we call it a 200-Point Sheet and require 200 points per day.
We did.
The London office hit 200 points daily—and became the top-producing office in the entire organization, both overseas and in the U.S.
Raise expectations.
Inspect performance.
Results follow.
Final Thoughts
So, there you have it—the Six Essentials to anchor your planning for 2026.
If you consistently apply these principles while setting your goals, it is very difficult not to succeed.
I’ll leave you with a powerful reminder from Stephen Covey:
“We are the creative force of our lives, and through our own decisions—rather than our conditions—if we carefully learn to do certain things, we can accomplish our goals.”
Conclusion
That brings this six-part series to a close.
My wish for you is simple:
Clarity in your goals.
Discipline in your execution.
And your best year yet—2026.
Next week, we begin a brand-new series.
Stay tuned.
Pointed in Approach. Precise in Delivery.