One of my favorite things is rallying and recruiting great people around a vision.
The thing about great people is that they have great trajectories. That means I can’t expect most to intersect the things I’m working on forever. They have other places to go next. (This is especially true of great people recruited before the world knows they are great.)
A key for me has been to take genuine interest in their success and trajectory, beyond just when it intersects my own. When I do this, it creates an ever expanding pie of opportunity and excitement, instead of feelings of loss or frustration when good people move on.
The greatest compliment to my team building skills is seeing great teammates go on to do great things elsewhere as they grow. Maybe that sounds narcissistic (and maybe it is slightly, don’t judge;-), but I only mean it in the sense that it’s a compliment to my team when others seek to recruit them.
It also forces me to continually look for more great undiscovered talent all the time. Healthy teams are living, breathing, changing things.
Here’s to the future success of all the good people I’ve had the pleasure to work with who moved to the next adventure!