A marine animal that has the ability to filter nutrients from water has become the preferred metaphor for describing people who have a voracious appetite to learn. Like a sponge soaks up water, the best team members are eager to learn, absorb new information, and seek feedback from anyone willing to share it.
Sponges are not only receptive to feedback. They are open-minded and curious, seek out learning opportunities, focus on personal growth through self-improvement, and work hard to advance their skills. This makes sponges highly coachable and a pleasure to work with for leaders.
Unfortunately for leaders, they can’t create more sponges. They can only recruit them and create the conditions where other sponges will gather and prefer to hang out.
Team members who are sponges arrive on the team with a fierce intrinsic motivation to learn and grow. As appealing as a successful team track record might be, they are most attracted to leaders who are themselves sponge-like. Leaders who exhibit an intense desire to learn from anyone are sponge collectors. Sponges prefer to learn with others just like them.
To retain team members who are sponges, good leaders give them what they most desire. Namely, opportunities to learn.
Giving sponges assignments and experiences to try new things and experiment with new ideas is music to their ears. Good leaders also ask them to acquire new skills by giving them challenges that push against where they are.
No team has too many sponge-like members. Adding the metaphorical qualities of this marine animal to the criteria for selecting new team members is a wise choice. Leaders can’t create sponges, but they can select for them.
A Daily Dispatch from the Front Lines of Leadership.
