We are used to see job offers who end their long list of skills the applicants must have mastered to perfection with statements like: “Must have a positive attitude, willing to work independently in a fast-paced environment, ideally under 20 years old with 25 years of experience…”

In reality, if everyone in your office is awesome at the same three things, you may be in trouble. Having a great team isn’t just about having more hands on deck to work, it’s about putting together a diverse group of people who bring along their own unique skill sets.

An example. If you’re hiring three designers to work on a project together, it stands to reason that there’s a set of base skills that you need them all to have. It also stands to reason that they have other skills outside of that base. Let’s call these ‘fringe skills.’ A team with a great variety of fringe skills can accomplish so much more than the minimum that the project requires. That could end up meaning you find solutions you never even dreamed of.

So how do you know what fringe skills your candidates have? If all of your candidates are tailoring their resumes to you, you may never even hear about their skills that would be considered ‘irrelevant.’ Give your candidate the chance to talk about everything they’ve accomplished, not just the same standard basics.

Besides, when you write your job post like everyone else, your company will just be one of many for the applicants as well.