How Do You Find Employees With the Right Mindset?
By Penny Morey
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
As an entrepreneur, my company is my pride and joy. When it comes to staffing up, how can I find people to bring into my organization that truly care about it the way I do?
First of all, as an entrepreneur, you need to understand that just about no one will ever care about your business as much as you do. That does not mean that everyone else is unenthusiastic or watching the clock. But, as you stated, "my company is my pride and joy." The key word being "my." It is like your baby. You see its beauty in a unique light, which makes perfect sense.
There are two things you should be seeking. One is skills. You want to hire people who have the skills you need to complement what you bring to the company. Skills are fairly easy to assess, of course, and very important. As a startup founder, you need to find skilled people to do things that you either do not know how to do or dislike doing.
The other thing you want is to hire people who share the characteristics and personality traits that you value most highly. Behavioral assessment tests can work well to identify these hires. Not all such tests are created equal. Find one that is validated, for example, that measures the personality traits that are important to you. Then, if you take the assessment and understand your profile in key areas that relate to your passion for the business, you should be able to find people whose mindsets are similar -- not identical, perhaps, but close enough on the important traits to make them good fits for your company team.
