12 Positive Personality Traits of Effective People

Your personality is defined by what you do, not what you say. Highly influential people have certain personality traits that define them for who they are.

Sometimes he meets a wonderful person and says, “I could never be like this!” we think. While we all have personality traits that seem to be part of our DNA, my experience is that our personality is more malleable than you might think, and I’ve adopted personality traits that go against my nature and culture.

I grew up in the Netherlands. My experience is that people here are often unnecessarily contradictory and pessimistic. That’s why less than 3% of my audience is Dutch. Because they do not like personal development very much. So was I.

But after I started traveling a lot after graduation, my views changed. I was exposed to personal growth and embraced many of the characteristics of very influential people that I have met throughout work and life. But I also researched and read about inspiring people.

Below is a list of 12 positive personality traits. I have uncovered these traits by working with influential people from all walks of life. I think we can create our own unique personality by adopting these characteristics for ourselves and acting accordingly.

1- Being talented: There is no exception to this feature. I have never met an effective, happy or successful person who is not talented because 🙂 They take their lives seriously and work. They do something for a purpose. And most importantly, they know what they are talking about.

2- Being curious: Effective people avoid assumptions. This was my biggest problem. I used to make assumptions about everything. One of my co-workers once told me directly: Stop making so many assumptions! So did I. I decided to wonder. Effective people ask a lot of questions. This is how you can avoid assumptions.

3- Being assertive: People think that it is necessary to be good. This is wrong. It’s nice to be nice, but you don’t always have to go out of your way to be nice. Effective people think for themselves. But they do not sacrifice others. Assertiveness is about that.

4- Being forgiving: Holding grudges is the worst thing you can do. Many people destroy relationships and group dynamics because of grudges. “How could this person do this to me!” Maybe that person doesn’t even know why! People can do stupid things and keep doing it.

5- Being independent: Effective people are not easily influenced by others. They listen to others. But they are independent thinkers. They are not easily influenced by external activities.

6- Being respectful: Do you know how people make subtle sarcasm (disrespect) towards you or other people? “You look very tired. What’s going on?” This is just one of those dirty words that will make you feel bad. There are many people who will want to pin you, which automatically makes them feel better than you. But respectful people never do that. I also never disagree with these people and you can still be respectful. Basically, influential people are the opposite of internet trolls.

7- Being truthful: When you lie regularly (no matter how small), you will eventually get caught by your own circle. Call me superstitious, but you can be sure I’ll catch you at the last stop of your lies. That’s why it’s best to tell the truth. It’s not always nice, but at least you shouldn’t lie.

8- To be precise: It is difficult to explain things in a few words. It takes a lot of thought and effort to be precise. That’s why you can see a lot of people talking in an endless loop. They don’t actually know what to say, so they take a shotgun approach. They spit out the words and hope a few hit the target. To be precise, you need to be like a shooter. Every sentence and action serves a purpose.

9- Being fair: People who say that justice is an impossible concept are generally not just people. There are universal principles of justice. In summary, be honest with people and don’t pretend. Be consistent in the way you treat people. It is the fairest thing we can do. And yes, this seems practically impossible because it is sometimes against our nature. But influential people do many things against nature. Things others don’t do.

10- Being flexible: Life is complex and full of changes. In order to survive and thrive, it is always necessary to adapt. That’s why effective people are extremely flexible and fluid. If you give them a new idea that works better than the old one, they can move on with the new one. They don’t care about their egos or smart looks. They care about what works.

11- Being aware of yourself: Knowing what you can and cannot do will make your life easier. Often, we are not aware of who we are. But to be effective, you must know who you are and what you can do. If you have weaknesses or make mistakes, self-awareness will help you be honest about it. There’s nothing wrong with being flawed here, because if you’re not flawed, you’re probably a robot.

12- Being optimistic: Give influential people a problem and they will think of a solution. Give them something that is pessimistic, and they will likely offer you something to be grateful for. On the contrary, being pessimistic is the easiest thing in the world. Anyone can complain and say “we can’t do this”. But saying “I have to find a way to make it happen” is the difficult thing.

Your personality is not a stone. You may have some natural tendencies. But with the right mindset, you can adopt and integrate any and more of the above personality traits into your life. Which one you want to adopt depends on your nature. But you can’t have positive traits by going the wrong way.

Remember that being a particular person is a choice. Changing yourself is only a matter of time. Because after determining your personality and acting accordingly, you are now in a certain position and on the right track.

Darius Foroux