Who doesn’t dream of working in a company where people collaborate smoothly and treat one another with respect?
Everyone wants an environment where ideas thrive, teamwork feels natural, and achievements are celebrated. In a workplace like that, it’s not the technical skills that stand out but the positive personality traits people bring to the table. While knowledge and skills matter, traits like empathy, resilience, and reliability often set you apart.
In this article, we’ll explore why positive personality traits matter, highlight traits that employers value and offer tips to develop them.
Why do good qualities in a person often have a bigger impact than skills alone? It’s because they shape how people connect and work together.
Imagine a busy office where tensions run high. If you’re patient and understanding, you can help calm the stress and build trust and teamwork. Pushing too hard, on the other hand, might just make things worse.
Positive character traits also make you a better performer. Take agreeableness and openness. These are traits often linked to better leadership, employee well-being, and lower burnout. When you’re open to new perspectives, you can spark fresh, creative ideas.
Developing good qualities can be personally rewarding, too. These traits, which can boost your mental health and self-esteem, help you face challenges with a growth mindset.
Consider a resilient person who sees a setback as a way to learn and grow. They can turn any feedback into self-improvement. Compare that to someone who sees feedback as a personal attack. Instead of improving, they may become defensive, which can hold them back.
Simply put, positive traits help you work better with others and grow in your career.
Here are 20 traits that most employers look for to build a workplace that’s productive and supportive:
1. Empathy: Understanding and sharing the feelings of others.
Show real interest in others by listening and asking thoughtful questions. Practise empathy by thinking about how your actions affect your colleagues.
2. Communication: Sharing ideas clearly and effectively.
Improve this by being straightforward. Before meetings, for example, prepare your key points to make sure everything is understandable.
3. Cultural awareness: Understanding and respecting different cultures.
Research and respect cultural differences, especially in Australia’s multicultural workplaces. This helps everyone feel included and makes it easier to work together.
4. Accountability: Taking responsibility for your actions and decisions.
Follow through on commitments and own up to mistakes. Keep a checklist to stay on top of tasks and deadlines and show you’re reliable.
5. Patience: Staying calm and composed, especially under pressure.
Practise mindfulness techniques like deep breathing when you feel frustrated. This helps you respond thoughtfully instead of reacting emotionally.
1. Adaptability: Adjusting to new conditions and changes.
Embrace change by focusing on what you can control. Say your team switches to new software. Invest time in learning instead of opposing it.
2. Curiosity: Wanting to learn and explore new ideas.
Set a goal to learn one new thing weekly. You can study an industry trend or skill to stay informed and open to growth.
3. Self-motivation: Working towards goals without being pushed.
Break larger tasks into smaller, manageable goals to be focused and productive. Celebrate small wins to keep yourself motivated.
4. Optimism: Seeing the brighter side of situations, even in challenges.
Reframe setbacks as temporary and look for silver linings. For instance, a missed promotion can show you where to improve and open doors for future opportunities.
5. Resilience: Recovering quickly from difficulties.
Build resilience by thinking about past challenges and how you overcame them. Use these experiences to remind yourself of your strength and resourcefulness.
1. Humility: Being modest and putting others before yourself.
Celebrate team successes instead of taking all the credit. For example, say “we achieved this” instead of “I did this.”
2. Collaboration: Working well with others.
Share ideas with teammates and ask for their feedback. Offer to help them when they’re overwhelmed. This builds trust and camaraderie.
3. Integrity: Sticking to strong moral principles and honesty.
Be consistent in your words and actions. If you commit to a deadline, meet it – even if it means asking for help to stay on track.
4. Strategic thinking: Planning ahead while considering possible challenges.
Set long-term goals and plot down potential challenges. Use tools like SWOT analysis to make the right decisions.
5. Resourcefulness: Finding quick and clever ways to overcome difficulties.
When faced with limited resources, find creative solutions. For example, use materials you already have for a new project instead of asking for more funding.
1. Initiative: Assessing and acting independently.
Look for ways to contribute outside of your role. You can try suggesting improvements or volunteering for new projects.
2. Reliability: Being dependable and consistent in delivering results.
Let others trust you more by always delivering quality work on time. Create routines so you can stay organised and meet deadlines.
3. Emotional intelligence: Understanding and managing emotions.
Read others’ body language during conversations to understand how they feel. This way, you can adjust your approach based on their reactions.
4. Open-mindedness: Considering new ideas and perspectives.
Think of ways you can consider perspectives different from your own. Try asking a junior colleague for input. They might surprise you with their fresh ideas.
5. Leadership: Guiding and inspiring others.
Inspire others by leading by example. Be positive, professional, and dedicated to help your team do the same.
Understanding yourself and how you connect with others can supercharge your personal and professional growth. Self-awareness reveals your strengths and areas to improve, paving the way to embracing positive workplace traits.
Developed by D.W. Fiske, the Big Five Personality Traits test is a powerful framework using five key traits of human personality for understanding yourself.
You can remember the Big Five traits with the acronym OCEAN:
Openness: Willingness to try new ideas and experiences.
Conscientiousness: Organisation, reliability, and attention to detail.
Extraversion: Comfort in social or team settings.
Agreeableness: Consideration of others’ needs and feelings.
Neuroticism: How well you handle stress and emotional challenges.
This test is based on decades of research and has been shown to work across different cultures. Instead of putting people into rigid categories, it looks at where you fall on a spectrum for each trait. For instance, if you score high on openness, you're probably creative and curious. If your score is lower, it might mean you're more practical and enjoy sticking to routines.
The Big Five test gives useful insights such as:
Workplace dynamics: If you are detail-oriented and dependable, that means you’re great at meeting deadlines and staying organised. This makes you a good fit for structured roles.
Leadership potential: If you’re outgoing and cooperative, you’re more likely to excel in leadership and teamwork roles.
The test is popular because it focuses on traits that can evolve. This means you can work on areas where you want to grow.
The International Personality Item Pool (IPIP) and NEO Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO-PI-R) are great tools to use. Here’s a closer look:
The IPIP is a free resource you can find online. It includes tests made to be accessible to individuals and researchers.
The NEO-PI-R is a professional-grade assessment tool. It’s a long and detailed test that many organisations or clinics use. The NEO-PI-R usually needs a licensed administrator, but workplaces or career professionals can provide you access to it.
While some traits may come naturally, anyone can develop good qualities by forming good habits.
James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, explains that building habits are about being consistent, not perfect. Small, repeated actions lead to lasting change, making habits the basis for personal growth.
Before thinking of the traits you need in the workplace, start by forming good habits. Here’s how:
Set specific, actionable goals: Instead of saying, “I want to be more empathetic,” set a clear goal like, “I will listen without interrupting during team meetings.”
Start small: Focus on manageable actions. If you’re working on accountability, write down daily tasks and tick them off as you complete them.
Create a trigger: Pair your new habit with one you already have. For instance, after you log in each morning, take five minutes to review your day’s priorities.
Track your progress: Keep a habit tracker or journal to see how you’ve been practising the new behaviour. This helps you spot patterns.
Celebrate small wins: Acknowledge your efforts, even if they seem minor. Celebrating progress gives you more reason to turn actions to habits and builds confidence.
Now that you understand how habits can create a strong foundation, you can decide on the traits to focus on and how to go about personal and professional development.
1. Reflect on strengths and areas for growth
Think about your traits and which need attention. For example, are you flexible but not very patient? Write down examples of when you’ve shown these traits or when you haven’t.
2. Set improvement goals
Note the traits you have that can still grow. If you score low on openness in the Big Five test, try looking for new hobbies or working on tasks that push you outside of your comfort zone.
3. Ask for feedback
Look for trusted colleagues or mentors that can provide you with their honest perspectives. They might notice you’re great at strategic thinking but could benefit from being more collaborative. Feedback is one of the fastest ways to see blind spots that you can change.
4. Focus on one trait at a time
Trying to improve everything right away can be too much. Choose one trait to work on each week instead. Practice with small actions everyday, like staying positive in meetings or helping a stressed teammate.
Showcasing your character traits can leave a strong impression in two key areas: the hiring process and your day-to-day work. When you highlight these traits in your resume and interviews, you’ll definitely stand out. And when you keep showing them at work, you’ll build trust and strengthen relationships along the way.
Here’s how to ensure your positive traits shine in both settings.
When preparing your resume and interviews, use clear, specific examples of your personality traits. Companies aren’t looking for buzzwords; they want proof of how you’ve shown these traits in real-life situations.
Reliability is a quality that employers value. You can highlight this by sharing a story about a time you nailed a tough deadline. Perhaps you tackled a big project with a tight timeline - by staying organised, focused, and collaborating with your team, you not only finished on time but also proved how dependable you are.
Leadership is another trait that resonates well during the hiring process. Talk about a moment when you inspired or guided a team to success. You could explain how you noticed low morale during a team project and found ways to rally your colleagues.
Now that you’re in the role, it’s your chance to let your traits shine through what you do. This becomes as important as presenting them during the hiring process.
Initiative is one trait that can set you apart. When you step up and take action without needing to be asked, it shows you're all in and ready to go above and beyond. Think about spotting an outdated workflow that's holding the team back. Instead of waiting for someone else to fix it, you could do a little research on your own time and offer to try out a fresh approach. It's all about being proactive and making a difference.
Empathy is another important trait for keeping good workplace relationships. You can practise this by listening to your colleagues’ problems during meetings or one-on-one conversations. If a teammate feels overwhelmed, listen and take time to understand their challenges.
You’re human. You have bad days, moments of doubt, or times when emotions get the better of you – and that’s okay. Even the most positive personality traits can be tested in difficult situations.
What matters most is how you respond to those moments. Be kind to yourself and be willing to grow. When you slip up, it’s a chance to learn, improve, and show resilience.
Here’s how to navigate tough moments when you’re challenged:
Patience: Stressful situations can test even the calmest people. When you feel frustrated, take a deep breath or step away to reset. This pause allows you to respond thoughtfully rather than reacting impulsively.
Communication: Misunderstandings happen, but how you address them makes all the difference. Approach the situation calmly, explain your perspective, and apologise when needed.
Resilience: When setbacks happen, it’s easy to dwell on the negative. Reflect on what went wrong instead, and think of it as a learning experience. View challenges as stepping stones so you can move forward with a more positive mindset.
Adaptability: Unexpected changes, such as a new team dynamic, can throw anyone off balance. You can be more flexible by focusing on solutions rather than problems. This shows your strength and maturity.
Empathy: Conflict can sometimes blind us to others’ feelings. Though difficult, try to see things from the other person’s perspective. Sometimes, being more understanding is all it takes to de-escalate tensions.
Australia’s culture is rooted in values like fairness, equality, and inclusivity. It’s all about giving everyone ‘a fair go’ and celebrating multiculturalism. This highlights collaboration, respect, and community – values that most people carry into the workplace.
In Australia, professional traits like humility, cultural awareness, and accountability are important. Employers want team members who can work well with others, respect diverse perspectives, and take responsibility for their actions. You can focus on these traits to help you succeed and fit in seamlessly.
At the end of the day, developing positive personality traits is a lifelong journey of self-awareness and growth.
While technical skills can help you land a role, traits like empathy, resilience, and accountability will set you apart. Developing these traits will help you build a better work culture and set you up for career success.
Personality and character traits are often confused, but they’re different. Personality traits reflect how we naturally behave, like being introverted or extroverted. Character traits focus on our values, like honesty or kindness. Together, they define who we are.
Research job descriptions and company values to pinpoint what traits employers are looking for. Common traits include accountability, adaptability, and collaboration. These align with positive workplace attributes.
Successful leaders are all about integrity, strategic thinking, and emotional intelligence. These traits help build trust, guide smart decisions, and bring the team closer together.
Australian workplace culture is all about fairness, teamwork, and embracing diversity. Employers really appreciate qualities like humility, cultural awareness, and taking responsibility. These traits are at the heart of the Australian workforce.
You can show you're reliable by always hitting your deadlines or show empathy by listening when a colleague shares their concerns. These small actions help build a stronger team culture and lift everyone’s spirits at work.
Start by reviewing a list of positive personality traits and identifying which ones line up with your strengths or areas for growth. Practising these traits everyday can help you build trust, improve relationships, and advance your career.