Here’s a simple thought exercise: Think about your organization and its team members. Which employees would you select for professional development and training? Seems straightforward—the top performers, right? It seems to be common wisdom that the best of the best would be those you’d recognize and who would benefit most from development opportunities. However, there’s a bit of a paradox inherent here that often goes unrecognized. Those who are afforded these opportunities are the ones that need it the least. Past performance does not necessarily dictate future performance, and individual success is not necessarily the result of individual effort. When allocating training and development resources, it’s important that business leaders make their decisions based on many factors rather than simply choosing their “best” employees. Include those with developmental needs in the equation—those who show promise but aren’t quite there yet—when selecting where training resources will be directed.