Strengthen Your Strengths

I'm always surprised when I find people who take their strengths for granted.  Just because you are strong in a particular area, does not mean that it is developed to it's potential.  Developing anything, be it a strength or a weakness, takes a level of attention and focus.

Below are some things to note about strengths:

1. They're hard to explain: Some strengths come so naturally that you experience difficulty in explaining it to others.  As a result, others assume it's "easy" or that you don't work as hard.  Language changes perceptions; this commercial by Nike puts Michael Jordan in control how people percieve Michael Jordan's success because he's finally putting some words to what we've seen all these years.  Research and read up on your gift and find the language to translate it.
2. You have an eye for the same talent in others: You can easily become the expert and an advocate because you're able to tell the difference between someone who is good and who is great.  Use this to calibrate your organization's talent pool and ensure that those who are great, are actually heard.  Or branch out and share.  Use your strength to, as Guy Kawasaki says, "poop like an elephant" (elephants share and spread their poop).
3. If you use it too much, it could become a derailer: Sometimes when you're really good at something, you get totally absorbed and lose track of time, people, and things when you are doing it.  For instance I'm really good at Critical Thinking, but I'm also an independent thinker so I leave my team feeling left out at times.  Ensure you're aware of this effect and establish an objective system of checks and balances (a spouse, eggtimer, Outlook calendar) that keeps you on track and prevents you from isolating other members of your team.

While it's important to know our weaknesses, it is the optimal use of our strengths that will eventually set us apart from the rest of the pack.

Comments

[Cathy Goodwin]

I agree completely - although I think we can learn to look at other people and identify strengths we don't have ourselves.

For example, I admire those who can do what I call "swimming easily in the corporate sea." They instinctively know what to do in dicey situations, how to ask for what they want, how to get around their managers and a whole lot more.

Most of my clients take this ability for granted. They don't even realize it's a skill. It's mavericks like me who call attention to their talents.

[Kiersten Mitchell]

That's a great point, Cathy. I have a friend who I call the "mayor" because he's able to walk into a room and make an instant connection with everybody. He didn't realize it was a skill until a recent interview when then interviewer pointed out that it was exactly what they were looking for. He couldn't imagine something that he does so naturally, being something he could actually get paid for!