Superheroes & Soldiers | Work Series

Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame is an epic. Besides the core Avengers team, several other superheroes with various superpowers stopped Thanos and his evil ambition to obliterate Earth.

All superheroes joined hands and used every power available for stopping the mighty Thanos. However, you may have missed something during the last battle – while the superheroes were doing everything possible in stopping the invading enemies, there were also hundreds and thousands of nameless foot soldiers that were fighting the enemy relentlessly.

Those Rocksolid soldiers played a critical role yet remained unknown. Well, this was a movie, but you see this all around you. In real combat, the soldiers with no unique superpowers fighting our enemies, yet remain unknown and often even nameless.

Now, let’s draw our attention to where we spend most of our waking hours – The office. Look at your teams, and you may find a few superheroes or often referred as Rockstars exercising their powerful abilities in doing the right thing, achieving all targets and objectives, and making your workplace a better place to thrive. Often these Rockstars also protect your firm from enemy competition or market shifts, ensuring the legacy of your firm stays on.

But they are not alone.

You also have some foot soldiers – no superpowers – the Rocksolids. They are fighting too – the day-to-day challenges relentlessly nevertheless. They are the ones rowing the boat, so your Rockstars can take better aim at your enemies. They are the ones who are at the pit stop, changing the tires for your Formula 1 drivers to win the track.

It’s tempting to have only Rockstars in your team, welding their superpowers for accelerating the success of your team and your company. But the reality is that a capable team is a right blend of Rockstars and Rocksolids.

Rockstars wow the audience one after another, and are always looking for a bigger stage and broader audience. They don’t last in one place for long, moving on to the next gig. Rocksolids, on the other hand, are more grounded and loyal, looking to do their best to improve things around them. They are hungry for growth but not in a hurry.

The Rockstar breed is an exception and not the norm. At one point in my life, I wanted to turn my foot soldiers, the Rocksolids into superheroes – Rockstars. However, not all foot soldiers can become superheroes, and neither should they. But the reality is that even if you do hire super performers, in the equation of calibration, you will end up with some players who are reliable and worthy but may not be a superhero by typical definition.

If a kitchen only have chefs with no sous chefs then who’s doing the chopping and plating, and managing the staff? Who is executing the plan laid down by the Rockstars? The Rocksolids are also equally responsible for maintaining stability, especially during rough seas. They are usually around to weather the storm and piece the scattered place together.

If the Rockstars are the jet engines, the Rocksolids are the wings. You need both to reach your destination. And when the engine fails, the jet needs the wings to glide safely.

Let’s take it one step further. How about yourself? Try zooming out, and ask yourself – are you a Rockstar or Rocksolid? Regardless, you are critical to the success and longevity of your business. Both serve their purposes, and both are essential.

Share your thoughts. 

To your success!

Razak
CommonInterest