Every championship trophy begins with building the right team. The people you choose to surround yourself with will make the greatest contribution to your successes or failure. You can put candidates through a battery of psychological profiling-type tests to screen them in or out. And, while these tests are helpful, they rarely give you a sense of the “intangibles” the person possesses. So, never underestimate your intuition.

Here’s a “gut” test to use for potential candidates.

Ask Yourself:

Would I enjoy sitting next to this person on a long flight? Chances are if you are calling the flight steward an hour into the flight for a seat change, they’re not a good candidate. Remember you are going to spend lots of time together.

Would I care if they worked for my closest competition? If you start to sweat at the thought of having to sell against them, snap them up right away!

If you were on a romantic dinner date would you want them to be your server? Do they have an attitude toward service that can match the importance of any occasion? To serve graciously in such a way that it enhances the experience of others without having to be the centre of attention is one of the most crucial indicators of a great team member.

Trust your heart and trust your intuition in the hiring process. It’s how you attract and keep the people you love to work with.

And that’s worth thinking about…