This past weekend I saw something very impressive.
On Saturday, my daughter Katherine received a midmorning call from her theater teacher informing her that Prudy Pingleton, a talented senior named Abigail, was under the weather. Katherine, who was Prudy’s understudy in the school musical, Hairspray, was being given her chance to break a leg.
The day turned out to be amazing. Katherine nailed the part, convinced me it was 1962, and sent the audience home not knowing they were subjected to a back up.
As a leader, occasionally one of your team members will go down or move on. The question is, If that happens, do you have an understudy developed and ready take their place?
If you want to ensure continuity when a transition takes place, I suggest you spend some time developing the understudies on your team. Great teams have a well defined depth chart and a next man up mentality.
What impressed me Saturday was not only Katherine, who was ready, but also a leader who had prepared her team for the unexpected.
Don’t just spend all your time developing your superstars. Your backups need some attention too.
Leadership Begins at Home,
Randy
What are some ways a leader can develop an “understudy?”
Comment Below …
Recent Comments