If I were in the shoes of a business owner and I had to choose between hiring Avery, one who has a high-performance ceiling, or Jaime, who is known for consistency, I would choose Jaime. I value hard work and those who show up daily to do their best. I want to work with someone who would be consistent day in and day out. Reliability is key. Personally, I get easily frustrated with individuals who I know are capable of a lot, but rarely, if ever, exert their potential. You never know which version of this type of person you are going to get on a given day, so there is much uncertainty.
A job where it would be more valuable to hire Avery over Jaime would be a paramedic. In this position, most of the time, high performance is only required every now and then (i.e. when a patient is present), not all the time. Avery is highly capable, but because of his/her “can do” measure of performance, might not always display their abilities. As long as Avery is ready to perform at full potential when the time comes, that is all that matters.
On the other hand, a job where Jaime would be better to hire than Avery would be one such as an office job. For the most part, these jobs require the same effort of work daily. Being the type of individual that Jaime is, it is likely they are easily motivated by oneself. Further, consistency from an employee here is very important, hence why Jaime would be the better choice.
2 replies on “Typical vs. Maximal Performance”
I was torn in making this decision and actually decided to choose Avery over Jamie. I admire your choice though and believe that either candidate can be made into a valuable employee. I do agree that reliability is extremely important, and in this case, you make a good argument for why Jamie would be a better employee. I hadn’t even thought about a paramedic for Avery, that is very true. Instead, I thought of a firefighter, which is very close to the same category. This would allow for Avery to shine in stressful situations. Jamie would be good at a lot of jobs including an office job or a cashier. Thanks for sharing your post!
Delani,
I enjoy hearing why you picked Jamie over Avery. I don’t blame you at all. I personally think Avery is the better choice just because her potential is higher and with some good training and development you can get her to be a great employee. I think it’s worth trying to develop your employees and have them reach their full potential.