Kanye West is an extreme case, but weāve all known a Brilliant Jerk. Someone who is the smartest or the most talented in the room but whose brilliance comes with a measure of toxicity that ruins it for everyone else. Theyāre high-performing, and theyāre also kind of an ass.
As we reimagine how we work in a post-COVID world, itās time to reevaluate how we define brilliance and the types of behavior we allow.
Taking the blinders off
Brilliant Jerks are brilliant. Theyāre also toxic.
Iāve worked with many brilliant people and, thankfully, only a handful of jerks. Two come to mind.
š© The first remains the most talented person Iāve ever met. We knew it, and they were challenging to handle because they knew it, too. Public outbursts. Refusals to touch specific projects. Someone who made you want to stare at the floor when you passed them in the hallway.
šŗ The second was a visionary marketer. They designed simple solutions to complex problems before the rest of us even knew there was something to solve. A high achiever who spotted and created opportunities. But they were a lone wolf--unable to compromise or to play well with others.
In both circumstances, the Brilliant Jerksā behavior terrorized the office until they left for new opportunities. We missed their talent, but when they were gone:
- The air seemed lighter.
- We felt more comfortable sharing ideas.
- Meetings felt productive.
- The work was fun again.
How do you know the difference between a disagreeable employee and one who might be a problem? Talk to your team and get feedback. Create opportunities where you can observe how your team works together and offer feedback--positive and negative--in the moment to address what you see.
If you see something, say something. Candid and direct.
No one wants to lose a talented employee, but the health of your organization depends on curating the best team. Sometimes it takes a single conversation to help someone understand how their behavior affects others. In other situations, coaching can help get them to a place where they can perform well and get along better with those around them.
Emotional intelligence > Technical ability
Earlier this week, my brilliant (but NOT a jerk) colleague Katie Sorce shared a link in our internal chat that loosely suggested we might soon lose our jobs to AI content-writing robots. I donāt think Iām in any immediate danger, but none of us can ignore that technical skills are being commoditized and replaced with apps and algorithms more and more every day.
My ability to work with others to get projects across the finish line is a more significant indicator of success than how skilled I am at my job. That's sometimes hard to swallow, but it's true for a good reason.
Yes, the bots are coming for us.
But also, our jobs are so interconnected.
Fifteen years ago, I locked myself in a quiet room when it was time to crank out content.
Today, I grab the largest room available and invite a data specialist, our creative team, a copywriter, a social media person, an account strategist, and more to decide how we will explore and implement a concept together.
Our work today is profoundly smarter and better executed because I canāt do my job unless you do yours. We have to do it as a team.
Itās not enough to create an attention firestorm like Kanye West or Elon Musk. You must fan the right attention toward the right group to get them to take a specific action.
That requires collaboration and thoughtfulness, not the loudest person jamming their idea through the room.
Developing a new language of leadership
What you allow is what will continue.
Read it again.
To lead healthy workplaces, we must do a better job rewarding those who produce outcomes, not those who speak up the most or have the biggest personalities. If someone on your team makes it harder for others to execute, theyāre not brilliant.
Theyāre an obstacle.
Brilliant Jerks slow down the organization when time is spent dealing with their personalities or when they make others afraid to speak up or share their ideas. You donāt have time for that.
Let's agree to evolve away from an outdated office dynamic that rewards the loudest opinion toward a more tactful, sometimes quieter, vision that is more effective and more sound.
Strong leadership recognizes and rewards the people making the company better--however they do it. The person facilitating the work getting done and lifting those around them is just as vital as the person moving the pixels or coming up with the quippy words. It takes all of us.
