236

EMPLOYMENT  PSYCHOLOGY

with  in  employment  work  that  it  is  worth  while  com
sidering  them  in  a  little  detail.  The  first  item,  personal
appearance,  is  one  of  the  most  common  and  at  the  same
time  one  of  the  most  unreliable  points  of  criticism.  Many
an  accountant  whose  books  are  the  acme  of  neatness  and
accuracy  may  wear  a  shiny  coat  and  a  collar  which  is
frazzled  around  the  edges.  And  many  a  mechanic  who
turns  out  his  work  with  dispatch  and  completeness  has  a
slouchy  and  sometimes  even  slovenly  carriage.  There
are  certain  kinds  of  work  in  which  appearances  are  particularly ­
  important  as,  for  instance,  in  the  case  of  salesmen, ­
  floor  walkers,  solicitors,  and  others  whose  success
depends  largely  upon  the  impression  which  they  can
make  in  a  momentary  interview.  But,  for  the  large
majority  of  factory  and  office  jobs,  these  traits  must  be
given  a  very  liberal  interpretation.  Many  a  worthy  man
who  has  been  in  too  great  a  hurry  to  shave  or  whose
laundry  has  not  arrived  in  time  to  contribute  to  his  appearance ­
  in  the  employment  office,  will  otherwise  be  lost
to  the  organization.
The  qualities  listed  under  the  head  of  initiative  might
have  some  general  value  if  their  presence  or  absence  could
be  detected;  but  how  they  are  to  be  discovered  by  mere
observation  or  by  a  short  interview  is  a  question  difficult
to  answer.  Even  if  the  applicant  does  have  the  mysterious
sign  of  creativeness  stamped  upon  him  in  some  observable
way,  it  means  very  little.  The  important  point  is:  What  is
the  nature  of  his  creativeness?  Is  it  a  faculty  for  creating
objects  or  methods  useful  to  the  particular  work  in  which  he
is  engaged,  or  is  it  a  peculiar  faculty  for  creating  a  disturbance ­
  among  his  co-workers  ?  And  as  for  being  a  quiet
pusher,  an  applicant  may  be  very  quiet  and  give  indications ­
  of  being  full  of  restrained  energy  during  an  inter ­