The failure to find the right niche for people - or to let them find their own perfect niches - is a major reason that so many workplaces are mediocre, even toxic, in spite of the presence of talent. Leaders of great groups give them whatever they need and free them from everything else.

People in great groups have blinders on. Their work is all they see. They value failures as learning opportunities. They are optimistic, not realistic, as they proceed from one challenge and crisis to the next.

People who know what they want and why they want it, and have the skills to communicate that to others in a way that gains support

Leaders must earn the trust of their teams, their organizations, and their stakeholders before attempting to engage their support.

The future has no shelf life

Excellence is a better teacher than mediocrity. The lessons of the ordinary are everywhere. Truly profound and original insights are to be found only in studying the exemplary.

You are your own raw material. When you know what you consist of and what you want to make of it, then you can invent yourself.