Talent problems are not solved by swapping in “better” talent at higher salaries. Many top performers are often sitting on a stockpile of ideas, skills, and interests. Part of being a leader is to help people identify and tap into their purpose and value. 

There are two extremes of leaders: Multipliers and Diminishers.

Multipliers believe that everyone is brilliant at something. When they step into a room, ideas flow and problems get solved. They also:

• Create engaged workforces and unleash collective intelligence.
• Pay little attention to org charts and see themselves as coaches and teachers.
• Acknowledge people’s “native genius”.
• Assume that people are smart and will figure it out, given resources and space.
  
  Diminishers can be tyrants, know-it-alls, or micromanagers. They believe that high levels of brainpower cannot be found everywhere and in everyone. They often:

• Create cultural and behavioral barriers.
• Roll out initiatives revolving around what the leader knows rather than what the group might learn.
• Make decisions alone or with input from a small group of advisers.
• Need to be the smartest, most capable person in the room.

^{_{Adapted: Harvard Business Review | Managing Yourself: Bringing Out the Best in Your People}}