When I was finishing up a degree years ago, the HR folks came down to try to talk us through the real world. They said, "There's only three things you need to know when you're hiring someone: Can they do the job? Will they do the job? And could you stand to spend the weekend in Pocatello, Idaho with them?"
I chuckled. This was in Minnesota. I was probably the only person in the room that knew there was a Pocatello, Idaho. (Pocatello is 60 miles down the road from us.)
Since then, I've learned that there's one more question to ask, "Are they happy?"
I'm interviewing job candidates this week and was reminded of a short piece that I once wrote about happiness. I went back and read it, thought about it.
If they can do the job, I'll probably hire those who are the happiest.
