Hire for Passion

I am not a consultant or a human resources guru. However, I do run a business and have seen a lot of different people succeed and fail in my respective workplaces over the last 20 years.

When it comes to recruiting and hiring, I’ve noticed a strong indicator of future success in job candidates: Passion.

People need a passion for something that requires action. Action is important here—you don’t need a workplace full of people who have only a passion for watching TV, just watching sports, or passive listening to music. But someone who has a passion for TV and acts upon it by running a fan website or by building her own cutting edge home entertainment network might have what you seek. Passion could also be found on the job, or outside work.

Evidence of passion indicates several positive attributes, including:

• Ability to engage in pursuit of a goal
• Affinity for action
• Ability to manage time and identify priorities
• Self awareness to realize interests
• Vision of a desired future

People with passion and a proven ability to take action are likely well prepared to help you meet your goals.

For most jobs, I think you also need to look for evidence of “finishers.” A passion without the ability to achieve results may not help your cause. A tinkerer with a garage full of unfinished projects might leave the workplace projects in similar condition. Achievement is icing on the cake of passion, especially for more experienced people who have had some time to achieve goals. Awards and rewards are great evidence of achievement, on and off the job.

Some great questions to reveal passion include: Is there anything you feel passionate about? What do you like to do when you find yourself with a little downtime? What do you do to pursue your interests? Is there a way you measure success when you pursue (your passion)?

I predict you will find that passion is a far more important predictor of success than simple experience.

Travel Light

Not everyone can embrace minimalism, but there's a time I'd highly recommend it: During air travel. Carrying-on your bags (rather than checking luggage) is a no-brainer for me because it saves so much time, hassle and stress. When you carry-on you always have your bags nearby. I even try to limit my carry-on luggage to a single bag that can fit underneath the seat in front of me. Now I have access to my bag throughout the entire flight.

Most gate agents have all but given up trying to stop people from stuffing the overhead compartments with 3+ carry-on bags, making the space under the seat into my private little goldmine. Even better, I can board at my leisure because I compete with no one for my bag space. My bag won't get lost or destroyed by handlers, and I'll avoid long check-in lines and painful carousel watching.

Lucky for me, I am not more than six feet tall, so my personal premium on legroom is not too high. I can always slide my feet under or rest of top of the bag.

If you're working inflight, a small laptop with a widescreen is a big bonus. With tight spaces, a 13-inch or smaller screen in a wide format means the top of your open screen can fit behind a reclined seat in coach while on your lap. I've given up on using the tray as a laptop table--the dimensions are just too tight and the keyboard is an un-ergonomic reach. Plus if the occupant in front of me unexpectedly reclines, my laptop can get caught in the vice of the seatback and tray table. With couple of good batteries and a cell modem, I can work pretty much anywhere and anytime.

So how does my bag get so small? I keep the layers minimal and the clothing light. I try to re-wear pants on a trip. I carry clothes I can launder at the hotel or even in my room. I don't always need a full suit, but if I do I want only one suit jacket. And if I need a warm coat or bulky sweater, I wear it or tie it around my waist so I never need room for it in my bag. I wear one pair of shoes and bring some light slippers for working out on a bike or eliptical.

My job requires a fair amount of domestic cross-country travel. I try to keep my trips quick and focused. I set my meetings, and get in and out of a town as fast as possible. I'll even take a red-eye if my meetings allow. Here's why it makes sense: If I ticket domestic travel at least two weeks in advance of travel, I can usually overnight travel for the same price as a hotel room. Add food, the daily rate for a rental car, and all other travel incidentals and soon it financial makes sense to stay airborne. I don't like sleeping in a plane seat, but I don't like sleeping in most of the hotels my company will pay for either.

In contrast, on those rare occasions when I travel to one location and stay for several consecutive days, I go ahead and load up a big checked bag so my stay feels downright luxurious!

Don't Watch!

This could get ugly.

Well, not really ugly--unless you're not ready to face your passivity demons!

I think a key to living a full life is to participate. Get off the bench and get in the game! Check out the video below of Gus on the slopes last week. I love how flailing for a second can help you get your balance back--check out his windmill impersonation.

We missed a football game or two on TV while we were on the slopes, but who cares? Even front row at the game would have been chair time that none of us need.



It can be inspiring to watch a great performance, but is it not more inspiring to attempt a performance of your own (even if the result is far from greatness)? Is it more fun to play basketball, or to watch it at your local bar? Would you rather watch kiteboarding from your couch, or learn how to ride for real? Buy a guitar and strum, or zone out with an ipod?

Apply these questions as you plan your day and I think you'll find yourself watching a lot less.