High Talent Wants the Latitude to Tackle Big Challenges

On nearly every team, one or more team members display the talent that leaders are looking for. These team members have a strong inner drive, a passion for the work, a learning mindset, and a deep desire to tackle big challenges. And not just to prove themselves, but also to develop their skills. 

Good leaders know that if they treat highly talented team members in the same way they engage everyone else it is a recipe for losing them. Instead, they look for opportunities to give them the challenges and meaty projects they covet. Most importantly, once they assign a tough initiative to an unusually talented team member, they set the guidelines, define success, and then get out of the way. 

Overmanaging the talented team member as they engage the project is the kiss of death. What they want and need is the latitude to figure out how to approach and succeed on their own. Good leaders give them exactly that. They check in and make themselves available for feedback when asked, but otherwise refrain from getting involved. 

They let the talented team member make their own mistakes and navigate the boat the way they want. This motivates them to excel and retains their talent long-term to the benefit of the team and organization. 

Too often, leaders give the biggest challenges and stretch assignments to their most experienced and trusted people. This guarantees success and rewards the most competent team members with the assignments that most impact team results. This makes perfect sense but misses the opportunity to reward high-potential team members with the eagerness and drive to prove themselves by stretching their skills. 

Giving a talented team member a big responsibility before they are perfectly ready for it is how the best leaders retain future stars and allow talent on the team to grow. 

On most teams, there are always more challenging projects than there are experienced team members to drive them. Rewarding a high-potential team member with a heady assignment is a way of spreading responsibility and growing the team at the same time. 

The temptation to steer the project or to provide the heavy hand of oversight is the real challenge good leaders face. But not doing so has long-term implications on how the best people on the team develop, grow, and whether they stay in the seat. 

Some team members want to run toward difficult tests, larger responsibility, and impactful assignments. When they have the skills to do so, the best leaders give them running shoes and let them sprint.