An Unconventional Hobby Every Leader Must Adopt To Maximize Their Results

I’ve made some really stupid hiring decisions.

It’s often easy to blame some people I hired as deficient, lazy, or even chronic narcissists. But who hired them? Me! All lousy hiring decisions are my fault.

Yet, hiring is one of the most important jobs of any leader.

Without a great team, you produce mediocre results. So you have to recruit, coach, and retain people that will execute a given strategy.

Spotting talent is a skill — which most people are bad at.

Tyler Cowen recommends you make talent evaluation a hobby.

Spotting talent is an incredible skill and valuable in all facets of one’s life.

Tyler recommends you try to figure out the people you encounter. Think of yourself as a recruiter for the best sports team.

It’s best to observe talent in areas that fall outside of your job, “such as sports, entertainment, politics, or even celebrity gossip.”

Try to figure out who really has it or not.

Don’t focus on trying to identify the next mega star. Search for undervalued talent.

Large companies can overbid and hire the “obvious” talent.

The value of identifying undervalued talent gives you a personal and organizational edge.

“Screening correctly for the overlooked late-career woman, the non-obvious misfit producer, or the hidden genius is your best bet at building a unique, motivated, and loyal team.”

Identify the creative spark.

Tyler likes to ask, “What is it you do to practice that is analogous to how a pianist practices scales?”

The purpose of this question is you can quickly learn how someone thinks about ongoing self-improvement beyond their daily habits.

If someone doesn’t practice, they still may be a good hire for a particular role, but you learn what you see is…