Although we admire @simon sinek, we beg to disagree with him on this one.

You should definitely hire for both attitude and skills.

Although skills can be taught, some, particularly human skills (also known as “soft skills”) such as effective communication, emotional intelligence, and servant leadership, can take a long time to develop. When hiring for a role, we strive to onboard new hires within a reasonable timeframe and maximize ROI on the hire.

That doesn't mean we only need to hire “perfect” candidates (do they even exist?). On the contrary, the skills-based approach to hiring encourages leaving our preconceived notions on what is the relevant experience and education at the door and to assess candidates on obtaining the relevant skills for the position.

A growth mindset and positive attitude can certainly aid in skill acquisition through curiosity, self-learning, openness to feedback, and introspection. However, if the required skills are too far from the candidate's current abilities, these qualities can only go so far.