Bring to the Job

When we hire staff, or even when we seek promotion for ourselves, skills are only one component of the final decision-making.  Inexperience can be overcome, and skill development is always possible.  What we must have to do a job well is energy, enthusiasm and drive.

• Some of us have more energy than others, and for everyone energy is finite.  At the time of starting a new job, our energy needs to be directed to the inevitable learning curve.  Unfortunately, illness can sap energy and reduce our ability to take on new challenges.  On a happier note, family responsibilities may impinge on the energy we can devote to work, resulting, for example, from the birth of a baby or when youngsters turn into teenagers.  If our energy is already tapped, perhaps it is best not to seek promotion yet.  Or, if job applicants talk about an excess of commitments, they may not be the best new hires.
• Seeking a job with high enthusiasm means that we are mentally prepared to be high performers.  We will quickly engage in new challenges and bring creativity to the achievements the organization demands.  On the other hand, we should question job applicants' enthusiasm if their reason given for seeking a new position is not liking their old one.
• Managerial jobs require drive, that is, a strong interest in change as the response to the marketplace and customers.  Management positions should not be places of safety where we can contribute our work while the rest of the organization struggles with the turmoil of the economy and technological innovations.  We need to identify where we can improve our organizations as the key to dealing with turmoil and change.  When hiring people into new positions, assess their ability to be an active player in innovative change.