The One Personality Trait That Influences Your Reputation Most, According To Princeton Study
Without this one learned personality trait, you could be self-sabotaging all your interactions.
fizkes | Shutterstock Sometimes, you meet people that you just can’t help but swoon over. Even from a platonic or professional perspective, you fall into their gaze, are charmed by their conversations, and can’t help but speak purely good things about them. It just comes naturally … they make it too easy.
It’s not their appearance, style, or workout regime that draws people in — it’s one very specific personality trait that influences their reputations.
According to a Princeton study, one personality trait has the power to influence your reputation the most — charisma.
According to the study, charisma is the personality trait that ultimately influences your reputation more than any other defining trait. It's what lingers long after a conversation has ended.
“It’s not how confident you are. It’s not how attractive you are,” career coach Hanna Goefft explained about this key personality trait. “You know those people that are just so contagious to be around? It feels like everybody likes them. They can do no wrong."
Charisma has the most influence on your reputation, as it often shapes other people’s subconscious perceptions of you.
Whether you call it “Rizz” or simply likeability, your charisma actively contributes to your entire aura, both subconsciously and consciously affecting the way people around you perceive your demeanor.
Being cold and closed-off instead of warm and competent can greatly affect your reputation, as people form a vision of “who you are” inside their heads before getting to know you.
Unlike other common personality traits, charisma can be learned.
From work promotions to meeting new people to first dates, learning how to build an aura of charismatic energy can transform your life.
When you charm people with charisma, especially from a genuine and intentional place, they’re more likely to speak highly of you behind your back, building your reputation into a proudly positive one.
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“What sets charisma apart from other personality traits is that you're not born with it,” Hanna added. “It’s actually something that you can practice and grow and develop over time.”
However, be careful when you’re trying to “learn” charisma — it often takes much more subconscious mindset tweaks and little conversational tips, not an overhaul of your entire personality.
“The problem that many people have,” Hanna continued, “is that they over-index in one way or the other.” Instead of finding a healthy balance of both warm and competent cues, they lean heavily in one directly, which tends to come across as not only “try hard,” but insincere.
“You can signal warmth by nodding your head or tilting it to show that you’re listening. You can signal competence by speaking more slowly and confidently and on down tones rather than with an inflection," she suggested. "There are all sorts of tweaks you can make.”
At the end of the day, charisma looks different for everyone. Come from a place of sincerity and focus on tweaking certain aspects of your conversational style — from body language to active listening — and you’ll make a good impression and craft a reputation that you’re proud of.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a News & Entertainment Writer at YourTango who focuses on health & wellness, social policy, and human interest stories.