11 Qualities of Nice People Who Get Ahead
Be kind and competent, then just watch how eager people are to do business with you.
By Sherrie Campbell •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
One of the greatest predictors of success is personality. If you want to be more successful, take a good hard look at your personality. Those with likable personalities receive better treatment and more freedoms. When people enjoy being around you, you will be treated better, seen as more successful, viewed as more confident, and your rise to the top is often quicker.
1. Be authentic.
Know who you are and manage yourself well. When you know who you are others experience you as trustworthy. To be authentic you must operate without pretenses. Be confident and honest. Do not compare yourself to others and do not put any effort into being someone you are not.
Have a keen awareness of your strengths and weaknesses and adjust accordingly. When you're authentic there is no "trying" to impress because what you already possess internally is impressive, workable and successful.
Related: Advice for Entry-Level Employees: How to Be Authentic in the Workplace
2. Be interested.
Show interest in others and appreciate the benefits of developing new, stimulating relationships. When you are not self-centered you will enjoy listening to others share about themselves. Recognize each person as someone you can learn from.
Being interested will make you a great networker because people will sense you have no hidden agendas. People will appreciate the depth of your interest and experience you to as genuine and likeable, making them feel open and willing to do business with you.
3. Be attentive.
Be present when others are communicating. Make it your sole intention to stay absorbed in the information being discussed. When you are not distracted or impatient to share your own perceptions, people will enjoy connecting with you.
When people feel heard and understood they relax and become more drawn to you. When you are attentive trust is developed and opportunities are more generously offered because people will feel confident they are entering into a mutually beneficial relationship.
4. Be humble.
Be satisfied and fulfilled in life by your own volition, work ethic and commitment to your success and that of others. Know the serenity that comes when you don't need to be the star of the show. Always acknowledge that your success in life has come with the help and support of many who believed in your ability and willingness to learn. Appreciate those who helped you get to where you are.
Never hesitate to share the spotlight. Understand that as you shine, so do others. When you are humble people want to partner with you.
5. Be prompt.
Value your own time and the time of others. Be prepared, organized and efficient. In disciplining yourself to be organized and on time you will experience less stress. When you are on top of things life is more enjoyable. Others will appreciate your sense of duty and trust they can count on you to be ready for any occasion.
Employers and partners value these qualities and will see you as an asset. They will give you successive opportunities to grow and develop to keep you from looking for other opportunities elsewhere.
Related: 7 Ways to Get People to Believe, Like and Respect You
6. Be accepting.
Be wise enough to never shut others out with prejudgment. Come to view life as rich with opportunity and learn to embrace human differentiation. Let it inspire you that everyone is different. Refrain from criticizing the choices others make, even if you would never make those choices for yourself.
By practicing acceptance people will feel they can be true to who they are around you. Acceptance creates possibility. As you develop more diverse relationships and connections you greatly increase your opportunities for love, joy and success.
The only fear you should never lose is that the one person you don't accept has the offer you've hoped for.
7. Be giving.
Develop an attitude of abundance. Embrace yourself by giving back. In giving of yourself and your time you will become a richer and deeper human being. You will need less from others as you discover the satisfaction of lending a helping hand to people who need it.
Develop a genuine concern for people, their needs, thoughts and feelings. As others sense this in you, they are confident asking you for guidance or assistance.
8. Be optimistic.
Live in optimism. Work on being self-competent. When you live through optimism you become an infectious person to be around. Strive to make other people feel good or better while in your presence. As you become comfortable in yourself and your abilities you will have the power to instantly lighten the mood of those around you.
Make it your nature to always look for the silver lining, the growth opportunity, the brighter side of the challenges you face. Don't dwell on negative thoughts or spend time around negative people. They only dull your shine.
Exude brightness and people will naturally want to follow.
9. Be empathetic.
Show understanding and compassion for the emotional pain of others. Develop the perspective needed to imagine another person's pain. As your empathy grows it will become less challenging to put your own defenses or perceptions aside to absorb what is being shared with you by another, whether you agree or not.
Become a compassionate listener. When solving problems, make decisions based on the mix of your perception and the person you are dealing with.
10. Be open.
Be open to receiving and letting other people in, Have an open mind and heart. Being guarded blocks opportunity and discourages trust and emotional well-being. The more you increase your emotional income the more capable you become in opening yourself up to new relationships and opportunities.
Openness increases your likelihood of developing relationships that are reciprocal, enduring and forward moving. Accept that we are all in a process of constant change that requires you to be flexible so you do not stunt your growth or someone else's.
11. Be quiet.
When you are self-assured you will no longer engage with self-centered people who have a wide ego terrain to defend. You will not tolerate loud, angry, manipulative, boisterous, histrionic, narcissistic people. You will spend zero time or effort on attention-seeking behaviors or antics because there is no need.
Commit to self-development and becoming deeply anchored in who you are, what you have to offer and what you are accomplishing in life. Drop the need to cater to egomaniacs who march around with loud personality billboards.
Never be the biggest show-off in your office, strive to be the hardest working.
Embrace the quiet qualities of self-competence and people will naturally be drawn to, and curious about, you. Focus on producing because you will be the happiest when you are succeeding. Use your time to gain more knowledge and try new things. Turn down the volume, talking less and watch yourself succeed even more.
The greatest benefit to continually working on raising your emotional income, through the betterment of yourself and your life, is you exponentially increase your opportunities. Opportunities come to you through the easiness of your likability. Why? People desire to give opportunities to people they like. It's simple.
Related: A Bit of Empathy Might Be the Best Marketing Strategy
