Key takeaway:
Since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, work has only become faster and more complex, and that could be exactly why employers are now valuing calm above speed. In the post-AI workplace, success isn’t defined by constant adaptation, but by the ability to stay steady when everything else accelerates. Calm is no longer a soft skill; it’s become a core foundation of lasting performance.
When ChatGPT launched in late 2022, it marked the beginning of a new era for work. Generative AI rapidly reshaped how people operate, make decisions, and collaborate, but has it also changed how we hire?
The latest Clevry Q3 2025 HIRE Report compares assessment data from Q3 2022 to today, revealing clear shifts in the personality traits employers now prioritise. The findings suggest that as AI has taken over more technical and routine work, organisations have started valuing human steadiness over speed.
Two traits in particular have surged up the rankings since 2022: Stress Management and Calm. This could mean that employers are responding to the fatigue of constant disruption, hiring people who can bring balance, composure, and focus into environments that are increasingly complex and unpredictable.
In 2022, adaptability and agility were seen as the ultimate assets. Three years later, the evidence shows a turning point: the traits defining success in 2025 are less about chaos and more about control, less about reacting fast, and more about staying grounded when everything else is moving faster.
This quiet shift suggests a new kind of performance culture is taking shape, one where emotional stability has become as valuable as technical skill or ambition. The Calm Revolution has arrived.
Calm and Stress Management surge into the top five
Between Q3 2022 and Q3 2025, Stress Management climbed from rank 9 to 2, while Calm leapt from 12 to 5. These are not subtle movements; they mark one of the largest priority shifts in recent hiring data.
The top of the list now reads like a guide to psychological resilience:
- Resilient: still the most assessed trait, holding the top position since 2022.
- Stress Management: up seven places.
- Listening: steady and rising.
- Striving: still valued, but now edged out by emotional regulation.
- Calm: up seven places.
This pattern suggests a decisive cultural rebalancing. After years of celebrating speed, decisiveness, and adaptability, employers are now looking for something else: stability. In the wake of rapid AI adoption, economic volatility, and organisational fatigue, the ability to stay composed when everything else shifts has become a defining professional advantage.
Post-AI fatigue: Why Stability is in demand
The rise of AI has changed not only how people work, but how they feel about work. Since 2022, automation has accelerated processes, created new efficiencies, and introduced a steady drumbeat of uncertainty. Employees across industries have had to adapt repeatedly to new tools, growing expectations, and added pressure to keep pace with machines.
It’s no surprise then, that calmness and stress tolerance are now prized above all else. In a landscape dominated by rapid change, endless digital noise, and blurred boundaries between work and rest, employers are turning their attention to psychological durability.
This isn’t just about “wellbeing” in a corporate sense. It’s about operational performance. The modern workplace doesn’t necessarily need more people who can pivot; it needs more people who can endure. Teams that remain composed under stress make fewer emotional decisions, handle conflict better, and sustain productivity when others can’t. Calm has therefore become a form of strategic advantage.
The cultural tone has shifted too. The old language of “high energy,” “fast-paced,” and “disruptive” is giving way to words like “measured,” “balanced,” and “steady.” In practice, this reflects a collective recognition that constant motion isn’t the same as progress and that mental steadiness is what keeps organisations functioning under strain.
What recruiters can learn from this
For recruiters, these findings present both an opportunity and a challenge. Emotional stability is not as easily identified as hard skills or experience. It requires careful assessment, observation, and a shift in how we interpret behaviour during selection.
1. Use assessments to measure composure.
Psychometric assessments can capture stress tolerance and emotional regulation more accurately than interviews alone. Tools that measure Stress Management and Calm objectively allow recruiters to differentiate between genuine stability and surface-level confidence.
2. Look beyond “energy” in interviews.
A candidate’s ability to project enthusiasm isn’t necessarily a sign of capability. Instead, observe how they handle ambiguity or challenge. Do they stay clear and constructive under pressure? How do they recover from a curveball question? Those moments often reveal more about future performance than rehearsed answers.
3. Reframe what ambition looks like.
The most ambitious people aren’t always the loudest. Many high performers express drive through consistency, self-discipline, and a preference for steady progress over grand gestures.
4. Consider team balance.
In hybrid or high-pressure settings, emotional stability can act as a force multiplier. Teams with a few calm anchors often perform better collectively, because emotional contagion works both ways: one steady temperament can stabilise an entire group.
The business case for calm
The business case for calm people is clear. Emotional stability doesn’t just reduce conflict or burnout; it improves decision-making, retention, and overall team performance. Research consistently links high emotional regulation to better leadership outcomes, higher job satisfaction, and stronger problem-solving under pressure.
In environments where information moves faster than people can process it, calmness functions as a cognitive advantage. It allows individuals to pause, evaluate, and respond, rather than react impulsively. Organisations with this trait embedded into their culture benefit from fewer mistakes, more thoughtful strategy, and greater resilience during disruption.
Even in customer-facing or sales roles, the advantage is evident. The ability to maintain composure during difficult interactions builds trust and credibility. When combined with empathy and clear communication, it can help turn everyday exchanges into long-term relationships.
Calm is not the opposite of drive
One common misconception is that calm people lack urgency. In reality, the data suggests that Calm and Striving coexist at the top of the rankings for a reason. These are individuals who can stay ambitious without the emotional volatility.
For recruiters, this means re-evaluating what high performance looks like. Instead of equating success with constant activity, the new question is: who can maintain clarity and focus when everyone else is overwhelmed? Those are the hires that sustain performance long after the initial rush fades.
The bigger picture: Calm as competitive edge
The new focus on Calm may be a signal of wider cultural adjustment. The combined pressures of automation, remote work, and digital overload have created a workplace where steadiness has become the ultimate differentiator.
Recruiters who recognise this shift early will shape stronger, more sustainable teams. By hiring for composure, empathy, and emotional balance, organisations build resilience into systems through their people.
Calmness, once seen as a personality quirk, has become a measurable advantage.
