This all links in, of course, with one of the previous editorials, where the ensuing discussion thread included a lot of "soft skills" in the list of "essential DBA skills". In that discussion, we did touch on the topic of what job requirements are advertised, and there certainly seems to be something of a dichotomy - advertise based on specific technical skills and HR cliches, but interview for attitude and recruit based on breadth of ability.

How to find someone with good instincts? If you can ever find the answer, you'll be able to write your own pay cheque, I'd expect.