There are six things that A-Players look for in a new job.
One of those is “Cool Colleagues”.
This one is sooooo subjective. So, what does it mean?
I like the Little Golden book The Saggy Baggy Elephant, by Jackson’s and Tenggren, for this one. Stay with me.
Little Sooki (the saggy, baggy elephant) is out on his own. He doesn’t know he’s an elephant but he is dancing through the jungle because he loves to dance. The jungle shakes. He knocks down a tree. And a parrot taunts him and makes fun of him for dancing and for his saggy, baggy skin. Sooki tries to fix it, comparing himself to other animals with tighter skin. He gets scared by a crocodile and hides in a cave when along comes a hungry lion. When Sooki trumpets, out of fear, a herd of elephants comes along and scares off the lion. For the first time Sooki sees other elephants and realizes they are just like him. They have saggy, baggy skin. They like to dance. And they are all happy together.
So, “Cool Colleagues” really means a place where your A-Players fit in.
Share what you are about. Don’t try to sugar coat it. And above all don’t be afraid to share what’s truly different about your team.
You won’t need to convince people that you have a great place to work when the right people see what makes you unique. The right people will like it. The right people will join you and be happy. And so will the rest of your team.