The Strongest Link
None of us succeeds on our own. We are all part of a team. Different teams have different priorities. Sports are a great microcosm of life. Competition allows us to observe human behavior through success and failure in an organized, measurable way. It has been proven that when you are building a championship basketball team, it’s important to adhere to the superstar factor: one great player can make all the difference on a basketball team even if that one player is surrounded by average performers who make up the rest of the team.
At the other end of the spectrum, a soccer team performs best when you upgrade the weakest link. It’s not as important that you have a superstar as it is that you have a higher average talent level among all the players on your team.
As you are contemplating the people around you in your personal and professional life, it’s important to determine whether you need a superstar within a narrow area of expertise or if you would be better off with an average performer who can fulfill a number of functions within your organization.
I have been privileged to have eight of my books turned into movies. When casting a film, I believe there is a lot of merit in having one superstar who is a household name surrounded by a cast of competent but lesser-known actors. When my novel, The Lamp, was turned into a movie, we determined it was best to obtain the services of Academy Award-winning actor Louis Gossett, Jr. for a critical part in the story and surround him with good performers who were not as well known. The benefit of having an Academy Award-winning actor connected with the project became apparent within our promotion and marketing efforts as everyone recognizes and respects an Academy Award-winner. If instead, we had hired an average cast and even raised the level slightly, it could have never generated the excitement and notoriety of having an actor the caliber of Mr. Gossett on the team.
Not all teams are created equally, and not all tasks require the same kind of team. In my work in academia through the Stovall Center for Entrepreneurship, it has become apparent that someone can succeed as a professor by becoming an elite expert within a very narrow field even if they have average knowledge of all else in the world. While this may work in a teaching environment, it may not translate to the world of business. Success demands that we pick our team carefully.
As you go through your day today, focus on the people who will get you where you want to go.
Today’s the day!