5 Reasons Why Swimmers Make the Best Employees
We all know the qualities that employers seek out in new hires. They desire candidates who have a strong work ethic, those who are team players, those who are self-motivated—the list goes on and on.
You might ask, how can a job candidate possibly live up to every personality expectation set by an employer? Well, the answer is simple: Hire a competitive swimmer, and all expectations will be blown out of the water (no pun intended). Here are five reasons why swimmers make the best employees.
Swimmers are the epitome of time management
Arguably the most important skill of all is time management, and swimmers do it best. Before most wake up for the day, swimmers have likely already completed a morning practice. Then, after a long day of school or work, swimmers have to budget their time in order to fit in another practice. All this time spent in the pool requires swimmers to prioritize their time very efficiently. You will not find a swimmer who is late, either. They know that a crucial aspect of time management is completing obligations on time. Swimmers are trained that early is on-time, and on-time is late—and that knowledge is applicable to any job.
They work the hardest
It takes a special type of person to have a work-ethic like a swimmer. While our hard work can sometimes be underappreciated in the sports world, swimmers understand that there aren’t many things harder than jumping into a cold pool several mornings a week in order to perform at our best. Swimmers understand that success doesn’t happen overnight. Swimming is a monotonous sport, and swimmers know they must work hard even on the little things. In any job, you can expect a swimmer to tackle every task at 100% and one step further, because they’ve been training to do it for their entire lives.
Swimmers understand how to handle evaluation
Evaluation is critical to improvement in the workplace. Similarly, swimmers are constantly being evaluated in the water. They know how to receive evaluation from the clock and from authority, and they know how to use feedback to their advantage. Swimmers know that when goals and expectations aren’t met, changes are necessary to reach their goals. They realize that evaluation is not meant to be personal, but rather a mechanism for progress.
They always finish the job
Whether completing a brutal practice, a grueling training spell or a long, tiring season, swimmers appreciate the importance of perseverance to completing a task. Swimmers know that giving up is not an option, no matter the circumstance. In the workplace, you will not find a swimmer who is half-hearted. Swimmers are perfectionists. Once a swimmer buys in, they will do everything in their power to achieve and succeed. They know that performance is a reflection of effort, so finishing the job is never even a question.
Swimmers are awesome team members
Teamwork is vital to success in the workplace. Collaboration between coworkers can either make or break office relationships. Swimming may be coined an individual sport, but swimmers are still excellent teammates. They are great at supporting one another, particularly when the going gets tough. Swimmers know exactly how to get the best out of their teammates. This is evident in training, schoolwork, and competition. Hiring a swimmer offers a unique opportunity to employers. Swimmers will boost office morale and maximize productivity by pushing coworkers to improve.
Swimming is a lifelong sport, and the lessons learned from swimming apply to many aspects of life. Swimmers learn characteristics from the sport that make them outstanding candidates for any profession.
All commentaries are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Swimming World Magazine nor its staff.
Dana Bender
Great article. U must know or b a swimmer
My grandson is a model for this article
Does all of the above he will be an outstanding employee
I only wish that I will b around to employee him
When he is available
Great article and definitely true! Those lessons that are instilled in us early on as swimmers hold true throughout the rest of our lives in all that we do.
Eleanor Grimes
Sophie Moore ?
John Enefer
Jackie Rose
Kate Sanderson
Theoretical article. Does hard work, time management, etc. in athletics translate to the workplace? As a former swimmer and hiring manager, my experience is sometimes. Can and will the individual do all these things in an environment of greater ambiguity is perhaps a better question. If the swimmer is as motivated to succeed academically and professionally as they were in the pool, the answer is yes.
Thank you for this excellent, insightful article. Swimmers are leaders as well. John Naber, Nancy Hogshead, Janet Evans, Michael Phelps, Missy Franklin and many more swimmers have continued to serve as productive role models after leaving competitive sport.
My work with EY was rewarding because finally this corporation now actively engages hiring athletes just because most athletes do not consider work only a job but a profession and a commitment. They work overtime to get the job done. Thank you! Donna de Varona.
I have always thought this to be true.
The author didn’t mention the most valuable trait that is directly transferable from the pool to the workplace … ACCOUNTABILITY.
Swimmers know that they are solely responsible for their own results, which can only come from extraordinary effort. As my coach always told us, “you will never benefit from Lucky Breaks in the water; the water is a relentless force pushing against you … the only path to improvement is to keep moving forward”.
A swimmer won’t be the person who blames others or who is expecting others to cover for them, and will never ask the boss to “cut me some slack”.
I agree so much with article. Swimmers are also seemingly very good high school and college students. Many are engineers. I d say any also true of triathletes. Being a swimmer turned triathlete, another trait is tremendous discipline.
Thanks for article…must be why I’m in such a down mood on days that I cannot find water accessible
My daughter was an Olympic silver medalist and this article describes her perfectly. She does her job like she did when she was a swimmer always at work early and doing more than she has to. She works with young people and tries to instill these qualities in them.
This is LITERALLY transposable for ANY competitive athlete – not just swimmers.
Truth
Maravilloso artículo, como madre soltera crie a mi hijo y nada desde los 3 años , hoy con 22 a punto de graduarse como ingeniero y no para de nadar y competir . El es muy organizado, puntual y responsable. Perfeccionista educado respetuoso , excelente en el trabajo y creo que todo eso lo adquirió por la natación y Seguidor de Cristo . Gracias por tan increíble artículo. Es total verdad lo que dice , mi hijo es prueba de ello.