Listen To Their Stories
I’ve sat through more than one discussion where a community manager bludgeoned a member by asking them to highlight their superpower.
It’s an awkward question and often leads to humble, awkward, answers.
The best superpowers are identified and nurtured.
In your interviews with members (especially those you wish to become top members), you don’t trample your way over answers to get to a superpower. You ask questions about their background and listen to their stories.
Everyone has a story about how they became interested in the topic, how they began working in this sector etc…Once you’ve listened completely to their story, then you can begin to identify superpowers within the community.
“So it sounds like you’re quite good at ….”
“I noticed you’ve done well at …”
It’s often a lot easier (and more effective) for you to identify what you see as their strengths than asking members to list theirs.