“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.”
— Michael Jordan

In the context of business, Talent Chemistry is the art of aligning diverse individual strengths, talents, and contributions, so that the output is greater than the sum of its parts (Talent Synergy).

1+1 >> 2

A simple example: someone who is excellent at building relationships, networking, and business development might not be the person who is great at detailed analysis, reporting, compliance, and record-keeping. Ask either of these personalities to perform all functions— they will struggle to sustain performance for an extended time. However, put them in a team together and teach them how to work together; you have multiple functions of your business covered.

If you work closely with particular individuals, it is quite easy to determine their natural capabilities. Here are some simple behavioral indicators that suggest someone's work activities align with their natural talents:

Activities come naturally to them and are done on time (ahead of time) with ease.
When you offer an activity that is within their natural genius, their physiology lights up, and they are excited to take on additional responsibilities.
The individual's growth trajectory is exponential, and their peers describe them as consistently 'leveling up' in a short period. This is regardless of historical experience in the function or formal training and qualifications.

The converse is true too— to identify areas that don't come naturally to someone, you will notice:

They procrastinate on activities that aren't within their natural talents. For example, ask a visionary creative thinker to file their taxes— this would take a lot of extrinsic motivation (e.g., do it, or else) and personal energy to fulfill.
Their growth trajectory is linear— they require much more effort to improve in a particular function because those activities don't come naturally to them.

However, without undertaking a detailed, long-winded psychometric analysis, how can you quickly determine someone's natural talents even if you haven't worked with them before? In this post, we share exactly that:

A quick 2-question process to determine the zone of someone's natural talent.
What behaviors to look for to identify their natural talent footprint.

I: The 4 Talent Footprints— What Does Yours Look Like?

Modern psychological profiling can be traced back to one particular individual, Richard Wilhelm, who translated an ancient 3000-year-old Chinese text, The I Ching, into German and eventually, English. The I Ching laid the foundations for Carl Jung’s work on the human experience and human archetypes. Jung said the following in reference to Richard Wilhelm:

"Inoculated us with the living germ of the Chinese spirit, and we found ourselves partaking of the spirit of the East as we experience the living power of the I Ching. It is capable of working a profound transformation of our thought."

The I-Ching, translated to mean “Book of Changes” has been the basis of multiple modern-day personality profiling tools such as Myer Briggs and DISC. Within the I-Ching, are references to different “energies” and how they translate through human behavior:

Ideas and Innovation Orientation— these people see things in their mind’s eye as if they were real, present, and possible today. They often have their ‘heads in the cloud,’ enjoy creatively solving problems within chaotic times, and, at worst, are often accused of starting things they don’t finish. They have a balance between extroversion & introversion. Examples: visionary founders, creatives, and strategic thinkers.
People Orientation— some people are great with people, can’t help but say hi to everyone in the room, and are generally energized in the presence of others. We know them, and you know them because it is hard not to notice them! They have a bias towards extroversion. Examples: team builders, relational sellers, and marketers.
Timing and Pacing Orientation— these individuals are often half an hour early for something, can’t stop themselves from planning and love, absolutely adore ‘to do’ lists. They will tell others to ‘slow’ when everyone says ‘go!’ because they can see the forest from the trees. They have a balance between extroversion & introversion. Examples: customer success managers, project managers, risk managers, administrative professionals.
Facts and Figures Orientation— they love numbers, data, and facts and are generally the types who aren’t into socialising. It’s not that they don’t care about people, they have a stronger filter for facts and information. They also have a bias towards introversion. Examples: analysts, compliance officers, finance managers, and engineers.

Notice that there are four types, and, when you look at any personality profiling tool, most profiles are a combination of 1 or 2 of the above, with varying degrees of detail and distinctions. We don’t need to go into too much detail. However, most of us demonstrate an affinity for one (maximum two) of the above traits.

Below is a diagram that illustrates the four talent footpoints and their key attributes. Most people have two dominant footpoints— a primary and a secondary, and typically, they are next to one another as opposed to directly opposite on the diagram. For example, it is rare for a Type A (visionary thinker) to be a strong Type C (manager).

However, someone who is a solid A, a visionary thinker, can shift into facts & figures mode (D) and people mode (B) with ease even though that is not their preferred natural operating state.

For people who are solid integration of two profiles, they are typically in the following combination:

II: Rapid Profiling— The Only 2 Questions You Need to Ask

By asking these two questions, you can use a process of elimination to determine the nature of someone’s natural talents:

1. Would you say you are more introverted, extroverted, or a balance of both? On the diagram, this helps you determine which side of the vertical line to place the person.

Introverted— a solid D (Facts & Figures) with a combination of A (Ideas) or C (Timing & Planning) — the left of the horizontal line.
Extroverted— a solid B (People) with a combination of A (Ideas) or C (Timing & Planning) — the right of the horizontal line.
Balance of Both— either a solid A (Ideas) or a solid C (Timing & Planning) — on the horizontal line.

2. Would you say “ideas” come more naturally to you, or, serializing and managing tasks and activities? On the diagram, this helps you determine which side of the horizontal line to place the person.

Ideas (Bigger Chunk)— either an A, B, or C as they lay on the top of the horizontal line.
Serializing & Managing (Smaller Chunk)— either a B, C, or D as they lay on the bottom of the horizontal line.

Summing Things Up

By determining which side of the vertical and horizontal line the person likely is— you have a general sense of their natural talents. Therefore, when you observe the nature of activities you want this person to carry out within your organization, identify which two quadrants the role requires most and look for the person who maps to that most effectively.

Note: this doesn’t mean the person will perform well immediately. After all, a more experienced person has advantages over a less-experienced person. You must balance your talent placement with experience and natural aptitude.

Try it out and let us know how you go!