The ONE Hiring Mistake You Keep Making (and How to Fix It)

You hired someone who checked every box.

They had the experience. They knew the tools. They interviewed well. On paper, they were exactly what you needed.

But six months in, something's off. They struggle to recover when things go sideways. They avoid hard conversations. They wait for clear direction instead of figuring it out. You find yourself managing them more than you expected, and you're not sure why.

The skills were there. But the attributes weren't.

And now you're stuck trying to fix a problem you didn't even know you were hiring for.

Most managers hire for skills and experience.

It makes sense. Skills are concrete. You can list them in a job description. You can test for them in an interview. You can see them on a resume.

But skills aren't what determine whether someone succeeds on your team.

Attributes are.

Drive. Resiliency. Adaptability. Humility. Integrity. The ability to work with and through others. The capacity to stay steady under pressure.

These are the things that separate people who thrive from people who just get by.

And they're much harder to teach than any technical skill.

(I first learned this framework from George Randle and Mike Sarraille in their book The Talent War. It's shaped how I've thought about hiring ever since.)

Here's what I've learned about hiring:

Skills get people in the door. Attributes determine whether they stay, grow, and contribute at the level you need.

You can train someone on a new tool. You can teach them your process. You can onboard them into your systems.

But you can't train someone to care. You can't teach resilience in a 90-day plan. You can't onboard someone into humility.

If the attributes aren't there, the skills won't matter.

So before your next hire, do this:

Step 1: Identify the attributes your team needs most.

Not every attribute matters equally in every situation. A turnaround team needs resiliency and adaptability. A steady-state team might need curiosity and team ability. A growth team needs drive and effective intelligence.

Write down 3-5 attributes that would set someone up to thrive in your environment right now.

Step 2: Design interview questions that surface those attributes.

Don't just ask about skills. Ask about situations that reveal how someone thinks, responds, and shows up under pressure.

Examples:

• "Tell me about a time you had to admit you were wrong. How did you handle it?" (Humility)

• "Tell me about a time when priorities shifted suddenly. How did you respond?" (Adaptability)

• "Tell me about a time you helped a teammate succeed, even though it wasn't your responsibility. What did you do?" (Team Ability)

Step 3: Assess for attributes first, skills second.

If someone has the right attributes but gaps in skills, you can fill those gaps.

If someone has the skills but lacks the attributes, you'll spend months trying to fix a problem that was there from the start.

Hire for who they are. Train for what they need to know.

What attributes does your team need most right now?

Reply and tell me.

Jeff

P.S. Recently took on a new team? I just released a free 5-day email course on the most common mistakes leaders make in the first 90 days, and how to avoid them. Get it here.