I have been incredibly blessed in my life to work with some of the best of the best. Unfortunately a few times earlier in my career I took this incredible gift for granted. You realize how important it is to work with great people when you have the opportunity to work with less than dedicated teammates (thankfully a very rare experience for me).
When Steve, Charles, and I started our first company we did not always agree on things. In fact, there were times that we wanted to kill each other but one thing remained true, we had a deep respect for each other and realized that we each brought different things to the business. By realizing that, even when it was hard, we powered through some incredibly difficult times and remain, great friends and collaborators, today.
As a leader the most important decisions you will make center on the team that you will build. I’m most proud of the teams I have been a part of or have had a role in building.
Remember – leading well means driving hard to hire talent that is better than you and be ok with that.
Dan