What talents and skills have you not tapped into yet to add value?

There are more than three hundred tools in the personal creativity management system, and each one of them has an objective.

There is some way your condition will be improved when you implement that particular solution.

One of the more common objectives is around talent. Which is a polarizing word that can be misused, overused and abused with any organization. But not if you have the right intention as a leader.

Because if you think about human potential as the critical path to fulfillment, then you n inspire your team members to become prolific innovators.

Imagine you have someone in your organization with a clear talent for user interface design, but unfortunately they’re working at a role where they’re essentially making the same thing over and over again. If that’s the case, they’re almost certainly frustrated creatively.

And so, see if there are opportunities within the team for them to do something they’ve never done before. Teach them the creative tool of surprising, aka, the system for calling on themselves a little more with each project. Here are a few questions you might ask them over coffee.

How can we leverage your natural talents more consistently?
What talents that you might not exercise anywhere would you like to contribute to the team?

You’ll find that challenging people to change in the relative size of what they think is their creative territory will give them a chance to elevate, not just execute. It’s hard not to become more prolific, and more fulfilled, when someone does work like that.

Speaking of work, here’s a different strategy for leveraging people’s talent.

Next time you walk by somebody in their element, doing their thing, wielding their talent like a pro, take a picture. And don’t just share it with the team once, memorialize it for all eternity.

The name of this creative tool is called artifacting, in which you capture, organize, merchandise and share moments that signal the collective spirit of your culture. It not only makes people feel seen for their gifts, but it reinforces the spirit of innovation, both of which can contribute to higher levels of employee engagement.

Look, talent may be a loaded term from an organizational standpoint, but from a personal perspective, few things are more important to fulfillment.

Show me a person who uses their gifts to make a difference in every area of their life, and I’ll show you someone who is happy, productive and always brings positive energy to the team.

Whom do you work with that is talented in ways they never dared to dream?