Employable Personalities

Plenty of articles have attempted to create a detailed list of employable characteristics, but I will attempt to emphasize dependability and exceeding expectations as the two most important qualities anyone with or without a job should strive to develop.  These qualities, if sought after, will redefine an individual as someone who can be trusted with responsibility and possibly a promotion. 

In my experience as an employed individual, I know that employers search for dependability.  Of the many traits that define dependability, I identify the most important to be good work ethic.   Good work ethic can be defined by the capacity to which an employer can rely on an employee (Ylisela, 2014, para. 3).  An efficient manager will not have time to babysit his employees.  The manager should be spending his precious time building value for the company.  Therefore, an employee who has a good work ethic and is determined to be dependable by an employer stands out from the rest (J. Sheets, personal communication, September 26, 2014).

Employers naturally set expectations as they hire individuals, but rarely do those individuals exceed those expectations.  Take the time and make the effort to excel at the task given you, no matter how important you perceive it to be.  Mediocre employees merely fulfill the minimal requirements that their position demands.  While employees who strive to exceed expectations stand out from their dismal counterparts (Nichols, 2014).

Mastering dependability and exceeding expectations are flawless ways of standing out among coworkers.  Employee dependability gives employers the trust they need to delegate responsibility.  Meanwhile, if an employee consistently exceeds expectations, then an employer will be more likely to refer that employee to new opportunities.  Furthermore, focusing on perfecting two characteristics is easier than focusing on ten.

References

Nichols, S. (2014). 10 ways to meet and exceed your boss's expectations. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from Kforce: https://www.kforce.com/resource-center/career-articles/meet-and-exceed-expectations.aspx

Ylisela, M. (2014). Example of dependability in the workplace. (Online, Ed.) Houston, Texas.