Learning: how to accelerate value creation (or kill it entirely)

I’ve supervised senior professionals when I was half their age, and I’ve supervised interns still in uni. All of them have one thing in common: they need to know that their work has value. That they, underneath whatever their results might look like, have value. Interns don’t want to do mundane tasks simply to keep busy—but they might if a) they know what value those tasks will bring and b) they get other opportunities to use higher skills that only they possess. And when someone has more expertise than I do, great. I wouldn't hesitate to tell them that and seek their perspective.

But something that can really slow a team down is the employee who “knows everything.” You might find them at the top (I’ve been around and there’s nothing you can tell me I don’t know) or in their first professional job (I’m the ‘it’ generation and you’re just in my way).

Lifelong learning is my jam, and I believe I can learn something from every single person I work with. People who share this attitude make fantastic teammates! We sharpen each other and we stumble on new discoveries that open new windows of opportunity. When there's a cheese platter right next to you, how can you resist sampling what's on offer?

There's one surefire way to park yourself in mediocrity. Saying “I know it all.”