My column last week was about traits many athletes possess that I believe can make them good employees — competitiveness, teamwork, dedication, and resilience. Some helpful questions and suggestions from readers led me to think I should probably clarify the thought that I was trying to convey.
If you recall, last week I mentioned that a colleague once suggested that hiring athletes was a “risky proposition.” I just didn’t buy his premise that athletes are somehow inferior to other job candidates. I was arguing against his “dumb jock” theory. What I should have done was argued that all stereotypes are dangerous.
By making it about athletes and not stereotypes, some people thought I was advocating for athletes as the best employees. I wasn’t. Nor do I think athletes have the corner on any of the traits I outlined. I think people can come by these traits in many ways.
For example, musicians may have to compete to be “first chair,” work in concert with other musicians in a band or orchestra, and dedicate themselves to their craft to succeed. That would help them to develop competitiveness, teamwork, dedication, and resilience as much as any athletic competition would.
Living in Nashville, I’ve heard plenty of stories about musicians who came here to chase their dreams. They wait tables and play in bars while being turned down by record label after record label. Finally, for a select few, that big break comes. If that’s not resilience, what is?
One person who commented on the column suggested that veterans also have these traits. No doubt they do. I’ve never been in the military, but it’s obvious that good soldiers are competitive and dedicated. And in the military, teamwork and resilience are highly desired traits that are crucial for survival and success in combat. Just the willingness to put your life on the line takes an incredible amount of dedication.
The bottom line is that people from a variety of backgrounds have these qualities. It’s managers’ responsibility to find those people and get them on their team.
That’s why many companies — including ours — use assessments in the hiring process. Typically, a company identifies certain traits or qualities that will allow a person in a specific position to be successful. It doesn’t matter how the applicants came to possess those traits, only that they have them.
So if my column led anyone to believe I thought a company full of athletes was the key to success, I apologize. As one person who commented on the post wrote, “Rejecting any applicant based on a stereotype is a dangerous proposition whether they are military, athletes, or of a protected class.” He continued, “A hiring manager who restricts the applicant pool based on stereotypes is truly shortchanging the company.”
He’s exactly right. Look for the traits that will make your workers and your company a success, not how they may or may not have acquired those traits. It’s what people can bring to the job that really counts.