DECEMBER 24

The first step is having realistic expectations.

THE MYTH OF THE WELL-ROUNDED PERSON

We’d bet you don’t believe in fairies or Santa Claus (hope we didn’t shatter anyone’s false reality there) or the boogeyman. But there is one myth that still exists among managers: the well-rounded employee.

We sometimes want all of our people to be perfectly balanced and, frankly, it’s just not realistic. It’s much more productive to identify what an employee does best and turn them loose on it. Finding their niche and excelling there is good for the employee—who feels valued—as well as the company, which benefits from the employee’s expertise.

Now, repeat after us: different is good.