I see this quite often: a manager refuses to hire people they feel will make them look bad. This is sure sign of a weak manager and they are setting themselves up for more work. It will also lead to their eventual failure.
When I hear people talking about having problems with someone at work, one of the first things I think of is whether the other person is threatened by their work. I have experienced that myself on occasion. I share stories with others about challenges I have with people, and inevitably, I am asked if the person is threatened by me. I hate this, and it makes me sad when people feel intimidated by others. We should lift each other up and celebrate successes. We should change our thinking and go from feeling threatened thinking that those people make us look better. When you hire better people, your job gets easier.
I love creating strong teams that are smarter than me. A good team has experts in many different areas. When we are honest with ourselves about our gaps, we can find strong team members that will fill our gaps. As leaders, we cannot do it all ourselves. We must have trust in those around us. I am so lucky to be surrounded by phenomenal team members that make my job easier each day!
When you hire down, you make your job harder.
Dr. Katie Ervin is the founder and CEO of Catalyst Development. She has contributed to Brainz Magazine and the Forbes Business Council. She is currently writing her first book.