Remember the old joke about the tourist asking the New Yorker how to get to Carnegie Hall? The well-known reply is, “Practice, practice, practice.” Practice requires sacrifice. As John C. Maxwell reminds us, talent is never enough. In an interview with a self-made billionaire, the interviewer asked, “What is the secret to success?” The billionaire replied, “It's quite simple. Decide what you want to achieve and what you're willing to give up to get it.”

To achieve greatness, people must be willing to make sacrifices. Michael Phelps and Michael Jordan, for example, were known for their remarkable work ethics. Achieving greatness as a team also requires sacrifice, and extraordinary teams can only emerge when individuals are willing to commit to an extraordinary level of sacrifice.

This level of commitment goes way beyond mere engagement. You cannot install it. You must select for it. Look for people with the right aptitude for high commitment. Make a high level of commitment a critical element of fit when you select people to join your team and when you delegate tasks and responsibilities.