Harvard Business School expert says there’s one trait all successful people must have

A Harvard Business School expert has revealed there's one trait you must have if you want to be mega successful.

Success comes in all shapes and sizes, and while success might look one way to one person, it could be something completely different to another.

But if you want to have a long and successful career, Professor Joseph Fuller is adamant that having one specific personality trait is absolutely key to smashing it in the world of work.

While you might think that having bags of confidence, top grades - or the ability to be a part of the '5am club' - could equate to having a successful career, Fuller explains that it's something totally different.

One trait could make you mega successful in your career. (Getty Stock Photo)

Turns out, it's actually down to adaptability.

“They’re not wedded to some predetermined career path that they set when they were a student or starting their first job,” Fuller told CNBC Make It.

“They’re open to unexpected opportunities and embrace change instead of fearing it.”

While Fuller explains that setting career goals is great, it's important not to be so stringent and linear.

Doing this could mean “you’re ignoring what motivates or interests you, and instead letting rigid expectations guide your career,” he explains.

“That type of stubborn mentality won’t take you far.”

Essentially, fixating on one path in particular could be more harmful to your career.

It's something that LinkedIn vice president, Aneesh Raman, also agrees with.

“Adaptability is the best way to have agency right now,” he said in a new report. “At the core of managing change is building that muscle of adaptability.”

The report, by LinkedIn, named adaptability as the 'skill of the moment', as well as naming 10 other skills as the most in-demand for 2024.

These are:

1. Communication
2. Customer service
3. Leadership
4. Project management
5. Management
6. Analytics
7. Teamwork
8. Sales
9. Problem-solving
10. Research

In other careers news, one expert has revealed the one part of a job interview that's hugely important.

Dr. George Sik is a psychologist and workplace expert at eras.co.uk. He says that small talk is hugely important.

Small talk is hugely important. (Getty Stock Photo)

“The small talk offers the candidate a chance to make a first, but lasting impression," Dr Sik said.

Yep that's right, it's the question that has nothing to do with your ability in the role but rather, gives a snapshot of you as a person.

He said: "In a sea of CVs, this is the chance to really stand out against other candidates, and for interviewers to get to know what a candidate is really like.

"In fact, in Asian and Middle Eastern business culture, small talk is arguably even more important than it is in the West, particularly when it comes to discussing families."