What Are Your Non-Negotiables?

It’s the morning after Election Day, and I have a question for you: Have you ever hired anyone? Well, if you’ve voted, then you’ve at least influenced who gets hired. And, with all the he-said, she-said and who is right or wrong when–it can be difficult to navigate. So, I ask you: What are your non-negotiables when hiring someone?

I’m not implying that these are the only things you look for when hiring or even that they correlate to how you or I vote. But, they do provide a focus and help us cultivate an internal culture, mindset and attitude towards our work.

My Four Non-Negotiables:

Initiative

People with initiative are rare–and when you come across them, you can develop not only a mentorship relationship, but also a reverse-mentorship relationship. In other words, like iron sharpens iron, working together makes you both better at what you do and what you know. A person with initiative does not always have all the answers–but they know where to get them. They are resourceful, pro-active and self-thinkers. For example, I once was in an interview where the person asked: If I was hired, what could I do before now and then to prepare for the position? Is there anything you’d like me to study or any skills I should refine? This is initiative. Check.

Commitment

From my experience, those with initiative often possess commitment. Commitment comes in many shapes and forms–maybe it’s in the form of certain ethics and values, maybe it’s a deep passion or belief in what one is doing. Maybe it comes from a personal experience that resonates with the individual or a desire to contribute to the team or be a part of something greater than oneself. Often, commitment is the seed for both initiative and accountability. As, people with commitment tend to be life-long learners. People who are willing to “Do, Learn, Improve and Repeat.”

Accountability

They say that few people can admit when they are wrong. What may be more rare, are people who are willing to admit that they don’t know something (but then have the initiative to discover it). To me though, accountability is more than this type of black and white definition. There are shades of accountability, that when you can find hints of it in someone, it is easily recognizable. This is because accountability can also be referred to as servant leadership. I first learned of servant leadership from my dad. In sum, servant leadership is when the leader serves others–rather than others serving the leader. I believe leadership can come at any level in an organization. And one who is a servant leader is the cream of the crop.

Writing Ability

In marketing, we write…a lot. Whether it’s email, marketing plans, research reports, presentations, blog posts, tweets, etc., writing and overall communication is at the core. Writing can be a detailed yet creative process. It gives you insight into how someone thinks and arranges thoughts and ideas and how someone approaches a task. Maybe it’s my own love for writing that gives me this bias, but you can tell a lot from someone’s writing–it can be a canvas for change.

Your Challenge

So–What are your non-negotiables? Consider putting together your team or organization’s non-negotiables. Make it a team brainstorm over lunch. Even if just as an exercise, I think you’ll find it telling about the culture you work in and the direction you’re headed. And that holds great importance in achieving your team and organization’s mission and affecting positive social change. If you do this, please share how the experience goes with the rest of us by posting a comment.

flickr credit: Jose Betancur

9 thoughts on “What Are Your Non-Negotiables?”

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Mazarine November 3, 2010 at 1:44 pm

Initiative and accountability are useful.

I ALSO look for someone who KNOWS themselves clearly, knows their own strengths and motivations.

So a person who says, “salaries are nice, but I really run on compliments” obviously knows herself.

Or another person who says, “I like to communicate through texting, how do YOU like to communicate?” is clearly aware enough to realize that not everyone communicates the same way, and wants to meet you half-way to minimize any confusion.

I dig that kind of person.

Mazarine

Alex Bornkessel November 4, 2010 at 1:34 pm

Excellent addition–I dig that type of person as well.

I almost added “being pro-active” to the list but consider that can be rolled up into initiative.

Cari Griffin November 5, 2010 at 5:52 am

What a great thought provoker…..I do like people who have initiative, are self motivated, confident but still willing to learn at the same time.
I will certainly put this to the team and see what they come up with and how similar or dissimilar we all are.
Thanks for the discussion.

Steve Harper November 5, 2010 at 5:58 am

Outstanding post Alexandra!

Certainly some outstanding criteria by which to judge potential candidates.

Ripple On!!!

Steve

Gabriele Maidecchi November 6, 2010 at 10:24 am

The main things I look for in people I am evaluating for a work position in my company is surely commitment, dedication to what you’re about to do. Especially when hiring a programmer or designer, he has to show he’s not just good at what he does for a mere economic reason, but puts passion in it and personal interest beyond the work requirements.

Robin Stevens Payes November 9, 2010 at 2:57 pm

The writing component is crucial – and often the most difficult to find. Communicating clearly – in writing and in conversation – is both a science and an art where many practitioners claim capabilities, but the results may not match up to their claims. Often, researchers and technical experts use their own specialized vocabulary that prevents other audiences from understanding. Short cuts in social media can compound the disconnect with audiences. Very frustrating!

Alex Post authorNovember 9, 2010 at 3:17 pm

@Steve @Cari Thank you! Carrie–Let us know how it goes having this discussion with your team.

@Gabriele Love your elaboration on committment. People with committment make work not seem like “work.” Makes for a great team and strong collaborations.

@Robin YES. So glad to hear I’m not the only one with this as a non-negotiable. Writing and communicating is a must–and it’s something we can always improve upon, no matter who we are, but basic, strong and fundamental skills are a must.

Steve Radick November 22, 2010 at 9:31 am

Love this post Alex – good work. Can’t disagree with the four you mentioned, but I would also add one more, and it’s similar to the one that Mazarine added…”self-awareness.” I want someone who’s very aware of what they’re good at, where they can improve, and how they handle both in the workplace. Do they mentor others in their strengths? Do they seek out help in the areas in which they’re weak?

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9 thoughts on “What Are Your Non-Negotiables?”