Why Only Children Are Poised to Succeed at Work

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Worried that your only child will somehow be disadvantaged in their future career? Outdated and unsupported notions of self-serving employees who aren’t team players have fallen away along with other inaccurate only-child stereotypes. A preponderance of research finds that, in reality, singletons have an edge at work.

If anything, the sense of security, not having to fight for attention, and extra support improve an only child’s chances for a productive, fruitful life. In short, the long-term prospects for a successful work life are reassuring.

“Most stereotypes about only children aren't true,” Ava Aznar, a lecturer in psychology at the University of Winchester, reiterates. “In fact, they may end up smarter and more successful than people with siblings.”

Confidence Helps

The confidence gained as an only child lets a person speak up for herself and guard her boundaries, which can be helpful in the work world. Only child Micha Goebig, founder and CEO of Go Big Coaching, spelled out in a Forbes article what women in business can learn about confidence from only children.

Goebig, who helps women in tech and other male-dominated industries lead with confidence, writes that “if you always have someone who listens to you, you very likely grow the confidence to take up space without giving it too much thought, even when surrounded by strangers. You don't doubt that you deserve the attention, deserve being seen and heard.”

Having parents as a ready audience pays dividends later, too.

“Most singletons spend a lot of time growing up around adults, and this can give them a huge advantage later in life, especially in terms of personal and career development trajectories: Those who don’t feel intimidated by smarter people often seek them out and ask questions without feeling they have to make themselves look smarter or more experienced than they are,” Goebig notes.

She adds that only children also excel in self-advocacy. “By the time others realize that good work simply does not speak for itself, no matter how good it may be, onlies may already be talking happily about what went well on their project and what their personal share in the progress was. And the truth of the matter is, they may not come across as arrogant jerks at all, but rather as confident and competent.”

Are Only Children Team Players?

A team of researchers probed deeper into workplace concerns, asking, “Are only children difficult team members?” They posited preposterously that choosing good employees is “an ever more challenging task in the presence of an increasing number of adult only children, who are widely perceived to be spoilt, self-centered and thus with weak team spirit.” They found that the only children contributed as much to the team effort as children with siblings. The only slight variation was reluctance to join the group, but that unwillingness lessened when the only children were given information about their peers’ performance.

Whether you are looking at what social scientists discovered decades ago or recently, the results are favorable, showing only children have a competitive edge at work. That can be shocking to those who cling to old notions including the researchers who theorized only children would have a “weak team spirit.” Their findings negated their assumption.

When you factor in a starting point of doing well in school and having “significantly higher educational outcomes” than children with siblings, the only child’s success in the work world seems highly likely.

Copyright @2024 by Susan Newman, PhD

Related post: Why So Many Only Children Excel in School