Talking about great people...

If you ever read a book or article about a successful business, you probably read about how important it is to have a great team. It is not unusual to hear that great people are more important than a great product idea or a great market.

That is fair to say, no arguments there. Your team will set the pace and the culture of your company. It is up to them to have innovative ideas, share knowledge, treat clients well, execute daily tasks, and almost everything else on your business.

That is a great piece of knowledge, but I bet you already knew that. Now, what you probably don't know is what exactly great people look for in the work environment. By understanding what that is, you can keep your best professionals motivated and nurture a culture of excellence across the company.

There are 3 main factors that make all the difference for your team, and that you should always bring to the workplace:

1. Autonomy

2. Purpose

3. Mastery

1. Autonomy

Let us start with the first one: Autonomy. Autonomy is when people can make decisions and discuss their own ideas. It is the art of self-governance, when you feel an owner of your projects and tasks and when you can steer them to where you consider right. People should feel that the success or failure of the project is up to them, and nobody else. Since they are great people, they will deliver an incredible job, because great people do not like to deliver poor service. They will if they are demotivated and if they feel that their decisions and opinions don’t matter, though.

Do not mix autonomy with independence. Independence is when a person works alone and that can be damaging for business. People need to discuss their ideas and challenge each other to create the maximum possible value. You don’t want independent people, you want autonomous people, that are confident to be vocal about and carry on with their ideas.

2. Purpose

Now, let’s talk about Purpose. Purpose is the great feeling of knowing you made a difference and that you matter. Great people were made to shine, and it is extremely demotivating for them if they believe that their existence is insignificant in the company. Great people should be involved in ambitious projects and their impact should be communicated to them as often as possible (feedback sessions are a great tool to do this, by the way). It is also easy to identify great people using this concept, as they seek purpose not only in the work environment but also in their personal lives through volunteer work, sports, hobbies, etc. People with these habits should receive attention and projects that level with their ambitions.

3. Mastery

Finally, we have Mastery. The concept of Mastery relates to being great a something. Great people love to be the “go-to” people. They enjoy being acknowledged by their knowledge and skills. They will always seek to reach excellence, and that’s great for business. People that love to learn and go above the curve in a new skill usually will thrive in any environment. That being said, it is important to give them a chance to become masters in their professional areas. Encourage new challenges, provide training, connect with other experts, or request their expertise in multidisciplinary projects are great ways to foster Mastery in your workplace.

In sum

Those 3 elements are the recipe for identifying and nurturing a great team in any company. Leaders should always reflect on whether they have them in their companies or not and employees should be proactive to develop these elements too. The result you can expect is a team that is fast, precise, and deliver great quality work, in addition to being happy and motivated every single day.