Ex-Google VP reveals No. 1 skill she looks for in an employee and only 15% of candidates have it

Former Google VP Claire Hughes Johnson has shared the key skill she always looked for in job candidates during her 10-year tenure with the tech giant: self-awareness. Writing for CNBC, Johnson said self-awareness is a rare trait, with research indicating that only 10-15% of people actually possess it, despite 95% believing they do. Johnson said being self-aware makes a person more motivated to learn because they're honest about what they need to work on, and helps them relate better to colleagues and managers.

To check for self-awareness, the former Google employee Johnson said she watches for the balance between the use of the words "I" and "we" and checks that candidates are honest about their role in situations. She also asks about how colleagues would describe the candidate and how they have acted on constructive feedback.

Johnson offered some telltale signs for those who want to know if they possess self-awareness. Those who consistently disagree with the feedback they receive may not have the gift of self-awareness. Even those who are unable to describe the kinds of work they enjoy, and feel drained at the end of a workday without knowing why may not have the self-awareness, as defined by Johnson. 

Johnson advised building self-awareness by understanding personal values, identifying work style patterns and analyzing skills and capabilities. She also recommended an exercise by Eric Yuan, founder and CEO of Zoom, who sets aside 15 minutes at the end of each day to ask himself what he did well, what mistakes he made and how he can improve the following day.

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