My new friend Justin Buck wrote a great piece the other day. Using a very interesting story about the paints Picasso used in his art. Read this great blog post, but the theme is that Picasso took the ordinary and made it extraordinary. We have the opportunity to do this, too, and Justin shares 5 points:
- Starving Your Talent is a Mistake
- Even Limited Resources Are Resources
- Your Greatest Resource is YOU
- Even Great Resources Can’t Guarantee Great Results
- We Choose Our Own Means
When coaching clients, I often have to remind them about points 2 and 3. The seeds for your success lay in your current environment. You will have to take action to germinate and grow your resources. What is key is changing the way you think so that you can see and act on the opportunities before you. Then you will be able to turn common house paint into a masterpiece.
Leaderclip 
Thanks, Dwayne! You’re absolutely right; most of us stumble on those two key points. Reading your takeaways reminds me of another great example. During my time managing fast-food restaurants, the easiest way to judge a manager’s talent was by seeing how he or she laid out the positioning schedule. Julie will work cash register, Johnny will run the grill, and so on. Seeing where the manager positioned him/herself revealed the manager’s key values. Leaders must recognize themselves as their own greatest resource, and position themselves to bring the greatest value to the team.
I’m glad you enjoyed the post! Thank you for encouraging so many.
Justin,
Thanks for the comment. Where a leader puts himself could be about what the leader values, but it might also be about what is best for the team. Leaders often hold their teams back because they feel that they should be doing the thing at which they are best. They need to get over themselves and think about what will put the team in a position to win. One day, a leader may need to be in a position because someone needs training. Other days, she might be somewhere so she can observe and support a critical operation. it all depends on what the team needs.
Of course, great leaders doing this are positioning themselves in a way that shows what they value, just as you suggested.
Exactly! Poor managers would often position themselves in ways that locked them down to a particular place. By contrast, effective managers were fulfilling the obligations of their posts while coaching and augmenting the performance of their team(s).
Great point about the leader potentially getting in her team’s way. She could show off her sales skills, but is it the best use of her time as a leader? Something we could all chew on for a while!