Job Seekers Who Have a “Learning Attitude” Are More Likely to Succeed

A new study by researchers from Lehigh University and the University of Missouri found one of the attributes in job seekers most likely to lead to success in their search is an attitude focused on learning.

The study found job seekers who have a “natural disposition to learn from every situation in life” are likely to be more successful in getting their dream job and achieving some of their major career goals.

To conduct the study, the researchers focused in on 120 college seniors who were hunting for jobs. Subjects in the study who were identified as having a strong “learning goal orientation” (LGO) reacted to failures in the job hunt by searching much more intensely, whereas people with low LGO decreased their intensity. Interestingly, the same was true even when the job search was going well.

This indicates that people with high LGO respond and deal with stress better than other people, and are more likely to push forward and learn from their experiences in the job search, both positive and negative.

Fortunately, there are ways job seekers can learn to improve their learning attitude. The researchers behind the study say job seekers should spend some time every day reflecting on their successes and failures and what they have learned from the process rather than getting caught up in the emotional highs and lows.

It’s just one more study that shows that while attitude may not be everything when it comes to the job search, it certainly plays a major role!