As our products, services, projects, and companies grow, we assume the people currently working on them are the right ones for the job.
This makes sense, right? They’ve been there from the start. They have the right experience. They’re subject matter experts. They know how to grease the wheels. They have strong conviction for what the future should look like.
Now, I want you to imagine your friend group when you were 7 years old. How many are still close friends today? What about friends from when you were 12? Or 18? Or 25? Or 37?
As we grow and change, so do most of the people who influence, inspire, and motivate us. Sure, there are a select few—best friends, family members, spouses—that remain constant, but the majority end up changing. And that’s a good thing.
This helps give me perspective anytime people move in and out of the orbit of the projects I’m working on. Those moments provide opportunities to reinvent, and to learn.