Virtually every office has one: that employee who is the go-to contact and seems to knows everything and everyone. The office can’t run without her. No one wants to think about what would happen if he ever left.

Being such a critical part of the team has a number of benefits, including a measure of job security. But those indispensable team members don’t get just that way through arbitrary means. If you want to join their ranks, here are seven ways to get there.

Channel Elite Athletes

Elite athletes are constantly trying to improve their performance. They fine-tune the details that allow them to compete at the highest level—and that practice holds some valuable lessons for people who are trying to become exceptional at their jobs, says Porter Braswell, cofounder and CEO of Jopwell, a technology platform that helps black, Latino, and Native American students and professionals unlock opportunities for career advancement.

“What I mean by that is not the ability to run fast, jump high, and all the other physical attributes that come with being an athlete. But more of the tactical, being a good teammate, communicating well, knowing how to work hard, being disciplined, being able to multitask—all the things that come with that athletic mind-set. Competing: That’s the mind-set one has to be in before I believe they can perform well,” Braswell says. Read more…