10 Things that require zero talent

This is a postcard I produced for our team at agenda21 about 5 years ago. I found it in a box of old papers last year.

When we were working on our values, I wanted everyone to start challenging their own attitudes about work and the way we behave. I had a version of the 10 things the require zero talent printed on postcards and distributed them at one of our all-hands “Round The Kitchen Table” meetings. We discussed what these meant to us and how we might use this to start affecting change. To my delight, I saw many of these pinned on desk dividers of stuck to walls – the team embraced the idea. So much so, that we gave a card to each new starter and their line manager would explore these attitudes with them.

Coming across it (along with some incriminating photo’s of former colleagues!) made me realise that it’s just as valid today as it was then. I’ve preached ‘hire for attitude’ as a mantra for years and love the idea that you can make a difference in a business without having any particular skills or qualifications, just by having a fantastic attitude. Add some talent on top and the sky’s the limit.

I thought this might be useful as a starting point for hires this year, or as something you could send out to your remote working teams.

Andy.

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