A question we should perhaps ask more often, of ourselves as well as our team members.
For example the most impressive gardens are those that have been carefully considered, with thought for where each piece of nature will flourish most effectively, at the same time as complimenting the wider landscape. As a leader, carefully placing the right skills and characteristics into your roles and projects, provides the potential to develop a rolling cycle of development. Encouraging each one to flourish and grow at the desired time like a seamless transition from spring to summer blooms.
We all have our place and sometimes need encouraging into different environments before we can reach our full potential.
Have you ever dug up a half dead plant, refusing to give up on it, and moved it or put it in a pot? It’s so satisfying a few weeks or months later when it rewards you with new growth. Maybe that ‘weak link’ in your team is simply in the wrong environment to encourage their growth and would surprise you if moved?
That said, there is something to be admired in the beauty of a natural meadow where nature has made its own decisions. Where you can, perhaps consider how the skills of your team can be left to form and complement each other naturally. Team building or informal events can be carefully curated to support people to work out for themselves where they might fit into the wider landscape. Throw some seeds into the breeze and stand back and observe, you might be pleasantly surprised at what emerges further down the line.
A word of caution though, be careful with those little rays of sunshine who can overshadow the quiet beauty around them. You know, the big blousy ones who love to be seen and take centre stage, keep them in check, prune them back gently when needed and cast some light on those who don’t find it as easy to push through and be noticed. There’s room for everyone.
“Watching something grow is good for morale. It helps us believe in life” Myron S. Kaufman
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