Today kicks off NFL free agency. There are many big name players in the market: Peyton Manning, Vincent Jackson, Reggie Wayne, Mario Williams. Here are some leadership questions I believe are healthy to ponder when considering any free agent prospect, whether an athlete, a business hire, your church leadership, or any organizational development.

1. Do they LOVE the game?… or merely love the spotlight. Some players just can’t get enough of the spotlight. Others have a genuine love for the game and their joy for playing always shows through regardless of the uniform they wear or the salary they make. Does your prospective employee have a real love for your industry or product, an enthusiasm for your marketplace, a passion for your organization, and a genuine interest in the people or customers you serve? Or are they just looking for a paycheck? Will they honor your team’s brand simply because they love what it represents, not because its logo is on their paycheck? Does your new church member have a genuine love for God and people, and a passion to reach people with the Gospel at any cost, or are they just looking for a community to showcase their individual spiritual gifts? A player who plays solely for the love of the game is a dying breed. When you find this in a free agent, sign them!

2. Do they make the clubhouse stronger? Some free agents come with a ton of talent but disrespect leadership and authority. Randy Moss is a great talent, but is more known for ripping clubhouses apart than his stats on the field. This typically comes from a deep-seated disregard for authority. One disrespectful player can destroy the harmony of the whole clubhouse. A little leaven affects the whole lump (1 Corinthians 5:6). No talent on this planet is worth the price of disunity! Make sure your free agent is good for your clubhouse. It will spare you much pain and rebuilding time.

3. Are they a good fit for your playbook? Some players have had success because they have been the benefactors of a good offensive or defensive system. Their stats are indicative of having other good players around them. Will their gifts be able to thrive in your system and organization? Do they share your core values? Can they make the necessary adjustments in their personal game to help the team have greater success on the field? This will require sacrifice and commitment to your system and your playbook. If they don’t have what it takes to sacrifice, this free agent will be a bust and likely will cause trouble for the team. They will be the first to complain when they don’t get as many “carries” or “touches” as someone else on the team. Make sure they believe in your playbook, processes, and systems, to be a natural fit for your team.

4. Do they make other players better? This is what great players do. Michael Jordan. Peyton Manning. Magic Johnson. Ray Lewis. Great talents showcase themselves and pad individual stats. But great players make everyone else around them better. They lift the lid on expectations. They raise the bar on excellence. They lead the way with their passion. You don’t want great talent, you want great players! Championships are won with great players, not the best talents. When a great player steps on the field, it instantly makes everyone else better. Not always the case with a great talent.

5. Do they speak well of their former team? This is a good one for all my church-planting friends out there. A seasoned pastor once said, “Take careful note of how new church prospects speak about previous churches they’ve been a part of. How they leave one church is the way they will leave yours!” The way they criticized others is the same way they will criticize you. Don’t think that you will be exempt from their toxic cynicism. You will be tempted to think as a leader that you will offer them something “better,” something to be less critical of, thus saving them from their cynical nature. Its fools’ gold. Wherever a cynical person goes, cynicism is attached to them like a Marvel Comics’ symbiote. They don’t leave the toxicity with their former team. You’re not a “Super-hero” leader who will change that. Save your team much lost time by listening to how free agents talk about their previous teams. Sign those who speak well of their former teams, regardless of the disagreements and differences they may have had. It’s a mark of maturity and a sign of how they will respect your leadership.

6. Do they talk more about themselves or ask questions about the team? People who talk mostly about themselves (i.e. personal goals, contractual demands, stipulations that will make them happy, etc.) rather than asking questions about where the team is going and how to make it better, are free agents you need to pass up on. If the health and success of the team is not their primary agenda, let ‘em go. Individuals don’t change the world… teams change the world! Anybody who doesn’t buy into that doesn’t need to be on your team, period. They must be interested in the team as a whole and its collective goals, not individual agendas.

Have I missed anything? What are some leadership questions you ponder about free agents?

For further reading, check out Talent is Never Enough, a great leadership resource by John Maxwell.