To bill or not to bill

Bill is an enjoyable romp through one version of how William Shakespeare came to write plays. I am not sure how accurate this version is, but it is quite funny and occasionally laugh out loud funny. This is a low budget jump across from the Horrible Histories TV series, indeed so low budget that quite a few actors play multiple parts (which adds to the humour...)

Is this film made for children? Well yes.. and no: it is probably pitched squarely at the family market with plenty of subtle wit to keep the parents amused as well. It is not a great film and certainly does not have a script to match anything that the Bard wrote, but on a rainy Sunday afternoon, you won't be disappointed.

The leadership theme for me from this film was about finding your talents. Sometimes, we get stuck doing one thing (lute playing in this narrative) but really our calling is elsewhere (being a playwright). The mark of a good leader is not only one who recognises her/his own talents (and exploits them) but one who is also great in spotting (and nurturing) talents in others.

Spotting talents in others means going beyond what is on obvious display and looking for the clues behind the presentation. It also means asking good questions, listening and creating opportunities in which people might discover their talents, ones they may not have known they had.

How good a talent spotter are you?

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This is Blog 115 in my 2014/2015 series of blogs about leadership ideas to be found in the movies of our time. You can read here as why I began doing this (with an update at the end of 2014). Please subscribe to this blog if you want to read more. Thanks. Click the label 'film' to see all the others.