These 5 Traits Differentiate Impressive From Average Hires

When you're seeking employment, standing out from the rest of the applicants can be tough. Even if you're highly qualified, there's always a strong chance that other job seekers are as well. To impress selective hiring managers, you need to exhibit exceptional traits that make you more desirable than the rest of the candidate pool. Here are five characteristics of successful employees for you to adopt and refine.

1. Resilience and Persistence

It's no secret that seeking employment can be a frustrating, time-consuming process. In fact, applying for work is often an unpaid, thankless full-time job. After spending hours tweaking and sending out resumes and cover letters, it can be easy to lose morale. Or, even worse, after multiple job interviews, you may start to lose that spark and charm that make you special. It's critical that you remain optimistic and rise to your full potential, even when you really don't feel like it. Resilience and persistence improve your chances of landing the job drastically, and they'll also make you a better employee when you start.

2. Strong Teamwork Skills

While seeking employment, you're going to find that most positions require you to work well with others. That doesn't mean just tolerating the person in the cubicle beside yours. You need to be able to engage with your co-workers in a way that's beneficial to your team and the organization as a whole. Ideally, you'll have some experience that proves you're a team player, but if not, be sure to sell yourself as someone who plays well with others.

3. A Willingness to Learn

It's essential that you remain teachable. Even if you're highly skilled, you can always learn more. When seeking employment, you want to come off as knowledgeable and proficient but also willing to take on new challenges. Finding a job is going to be very difficult if you aren't humble.

4. A Thorough Understanding of the Organization

One of the biggest mistakes that people make when seeking employment is assuming that technical skills and past experiences are all it takes to assimilate into a new company. The reality is that every company has its own unique corporate culture, and the better you fit in, the better your chances of getting hired. While you're in the process of finding a job, put in your due diligence. The hiring manager is looking for someone who will thrive with the company, so take some time to learn about the ins and outs of the brand, and prove you're the perfect match.

5. Problem-Solving

You're going to run into problems in the business world. That's just a fact of life. How you react to those problems is what defines you as a person and as an employee. Be the type of person who seeks immediate solutions instead of wallowing in the drama.

Try to put yourself in the hiring manager's shoes. Imagine the type of employee you would want to hire, and strive to become an even better version of that person. There's no doubt that seeking employment is challenging in many ways, but adopting these standout traits makes the process much easier for both you and the hiring manager.

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