Who Do YOU Want to Work With?

I LOVED this week’s post on Tech Crunch by Michael Arrington entitled “Startups Must Hire The Right People And Watch Every Penny. Or Fail." I wish I’d wrote this post because it sums up exactly what I look for when trying to hire an employee. And as an ex-accountant, the “watch every penny” section simply warmed my cold accountant heart.

I have always looked for that indefinable x-factor when interviewing potential staff. Michael Arrington says to look for the person with the “fire in their eyes” who wants to work as part of the team and gets excited about anticipating and solving problems. I agree they are not hard to spot, but they are often very hard to find – even when the salary is a good one. I think people like this are often valued at their current jobs and may not always be out there looking for a job when you need them. So good networking is often the only way to find them.

However, this advice is not only good for those in the tech industry and startup companies. I think this is good advice for all companies in every industry.

In every company I have ever worked in, the people I want to work with and those I want on my team are the ones I know have a passion for what they do. And I believe it is possible to have that passion even in a receptionist or administrative role. In my mind, it really comes down to taking pride in your work product and in understanding that you are what you produce.
It makes me think of the stories I’ve heard about self-made millionaires who started in the mail room but were able to work their way up to being the CEO of their company. These are exceptional people, of course, but they are also the type of individuals who took pride in being even a lowly mail room clerk – because he or she knew their reputation would be built on how well they did in whatever job they were assigned. And when there was a higher level position available, their superiors were willing to give them a chance (regardless of whether their credentials met the stated requirements) based on their work ethic, their intelligence and their passion for doing an outstanding job under any circumstance.

In terms of the work/life balance issue, I do think this is important. I struggle with this issue every day, but if I didn’t love what I do, I wouldn’t be doing it. I know I can pick up and walk out the door at any time things get to be too much, but I stay and work as hard as I do because I love the company I work for and the people I work with. I am constantly excited about what is around the corner and what new projects might end up on my desk. It’s really not such a bad problem to have. The alternative would, in fact, be much much worse.