Wouldn’t it be great to have job offers flowing in? To have the difficult task of picking from multiple jobs that you’d love to have?

You know those people at parties that everyone wants to talk to? That’s who you want to be in the job market.

When job-specific skills and experience levels are equal, there are other qualities that employers base their hiring decisions on. These are often referred to as soft skills and you can’t prove you have them with diplomas or keywords on your resumes. You can’t even prove you have them with many years of experience.

You demonstrate these qualities (or the lack of) during the job search process and by telling stories about your previous experience.

So yes, you want to sell the skills you have that are required to do the job. But also, you want to show them that you are the kind of person they want to actually work with. We spend a lot of time with our co-workers, so we’d prefer to enjoy that time. Also, managers and supervisors want to hire someone that won’t make their job harder.

These are 4 qualities that everyone wants in an employee. Reflect on your past experience and how you can show that you are the person everyone wants to hire.

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SOLVE PROBLEMS

This is a big one. In fact, the next 4 all relate to this one.

Every job and every company has problems. It’s not a reflection on individuals or organizations, it’s just reality across the board. As an employee, you can either help solve problems, or create more.

A common mistake is when employees continually bring problems to their boss, but never bring solutions. Even if it ends up not being the right or the chosen solution, when you come with ideas for solutions, your boss will see you as a team player and invested in the success of the organization, not just your own.

Every problem you don’t solve, is one that someone else has to. Depending on the issue, it may be appropriate to just take care of it yourself. For others, you may need some additional information, insight, and approval to move forward implementing solutions. But the key is to be solution-minded, not just problem-focused.

Here’s a simple pattern to follow when you become aware of a problem:

• Identify the problem and the cause
• Brainstorm possible solutions
• Understand the implications and resource needs for each possible solution
• Rank the possible solutions.
• Decide whether this is a problem you can solve on your own or if others should be involved
• Implement or propose solutions to your boss.

BE POSITIVE

People like to be around people who are positive. Complaining and negativity are exhausting and contagious. But positivity is also contagious. So decide which one you’ll spread and be intentional about it.

Try to really pay attention to how you respond to challenges and unexpected events. Are you flexible and optimistic? Or do you point out everything that’s wrong and worry about the future?

Think about difficult times and how you have demonstrated resilience. And think about times when you haven’t. Brainstorm ways that you can create a positive response and environment at work. It can be as simple as making a point to have a smile on your face when you get to work each day. Or finding someone to encourage in their work every day.

We all have power to alter our work environments – make sure your influence is a positive one.

MAKE YOUR BOSS’ JOB EASIER

It’s easy to think that your boss should make your job easier, but if you flip that around, you will be a valued employee that anyone would love to hire.

Find ways to support your boss and even ways to make them look good. It seems pretty obvious that this is what anyone would want, but few actually do this intentionally. Ask how you can help. Ask what their biggest challenges are and find ways to help.

BE WILLING TO WORK

Not just willing to be AT work every day. Be willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. If a co-worker is sick or buried in work, step up and help out. If there is a pressing issue that impacts the whole department, shift your individual work priorities to work towards a solution.

Even if these are things you dislike or don’t have a lot of experience in, do them anyways because it demonstrates your commitment and loyalty. Show up in a way that people will admire, respect and appreciate.

Remove the phrase “that’s not my job” from your vocabulary. Your job, is to contribute to the overall success of the organization. Don’t tie yourself so tightly to your job description, that your boss can’t count on you. Plus, if you only focus on the things you’ve always done, it’s hard to get noticed for promotions or something new you may enjoy.

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Think about times you’ve demonstrated these qualities and work them into your resume, cover letter, and interview responses. You can even add examples to your LinkedIn profile.

Show people that you have these qualities, and they will all want to hire you.