Sometimes editing can be fun and exciting work. Other times, it’s boring and tedious to the point of total misery. That’s why I’d probably say endurance is the most important trait to have in terms of being an editor. Technical ability is important I would say, but the endurance to last through both tedium and calamity are what separate editors from the rest.
An example: The other day, my computer just randomly stopped capturing footage in Final Cut Pro. I checked all the wires and connections no idea what had happened. Restarted the computer six or seven times. No luck. Checked with my supervisor. Also no idea. Called over the IT guy. He shrugged his shoulders. Told me he’d order some parts and fix it eventually. Normally that’s pretty much the ‘pack it up and go home’ moment, but I decided to keep searching for a solution. After an hour of crawling through IT forums with no luck, I eventually started to home in on a solution. Something was wrong with the firewire driver for the Mac and I needed to get settings to reset. Eventually I attempt to reset the system management controller (no idea what it meant, but hell, worth a shot) and voila! The modest intern succeeds at fixing a problem his 10-years-of-experience boss and know-it-all IT guy could not!
Endurance beats raw talent every time, folks. Never say die, keep at it, don’t hesitate to put in the work, and you’ll be fine.