It doesn’t surprise me any more to constantly see people working in areas they are not good at. It’s pretty common to see a person who resists information and takes short cuts run a research project for a client. Or a person who prefers working with ideas who is wasting loads of time building a prototype to prove their point.
Here are a couple important tips I want to share with you when it comes to strengths and weaknesses…
Step 1: Stop focusing on weaknesses
Focusing on weaknesses will set you on a downward spiral. It will lower your self-esteem, blur your vision, it might even turn your focused in the wrong direction.
The truth is, you will never be perfect. You will always have weaknesses that will accompany you throughout your life. Should you completely forget about them? Absolutely not! Understanding your weaknesses helps you to plan ahead and hire the right team, because where you are weak, somebody else excels.
One of the reasons people get stuck doing things they’re not good at is because they focus too much on their weaknesses.
Let’s say that Larry is a business owner but he resists systems. His way of dealing with problems is to avoid them and create short cuts. But as an entrepreneur his business can’t run without proper systems. Larry has a decision to make. He can either force himself to do what he’s not good at and create lots of stress in his business and life by focusing on this task, or he can hire somebody who will thrive in this area while he focuses on his unique expertise.
Both options will cost him. The first one will cost him his time, energy and probably well-being. The second option will cost him money. The question remains – how valuable his time, energy and well-being are to Larry.
Today I challenge you to stop focusing on your weaknesses and shift your perspective. Accept the fact that you will never be perfect and step on the road toward your life’s purpose. All it takes is a decision.
Step 2: Understand your strengths
One of the side-effects of focusing on weaknesses is a loss of perspective. Most of the time weaknesses will block your view and cause you to not see your real strengths.
Is it possible that who you are is totally fine and there is no need to “fix” yourself to improve your performance? I strongly believe that the reason you’re not seeing the results you want is not because you need to strengthen your weak spots, but is because you’re not strengthening your strong spots!
Ask yourself these questions…
- What am I good at?
- What are my core strengths?
- Where should my focus be?
A couple of years ago I learned what my core strengths are. It took me a couple of years to understand how ground breaking this information was, but ever since I did, my life has never been the same. Suddenly I knew that no matter how much I wanted to do something or how much knowledge I knew about something, there will be things that I will never do. I’ve learned that by being myself I will not only be able to do my best work, but I will also avoid wasting my energy on tasks that can (and should) be delegated.
I invite you to take yet another step today. Click here to schedule your Instant Performance Makeover with me to discover your core strengths and…
Step 3: Maximize your potential
If you study the top performers out there, you’ll notice that they have one thing in common. They’re maximizing their potential in the area of their focus. They’re not trying to be everything to everybody. And they don’t pretend to know it all. So why should you?
Once you turn your focus away from your weaknesses and start discovering your core strengths, your next step will be to focus on expanding your strengths and maximizing your potential.
How do you do that? I wish the answer was as simple as 1-2-3, but it’s not. Still, here are a couple of tips that might be helpful to you as you walk through this life-long journey…
- Think in terms of progress, not perfection. Life is about constant improvement. Take it easy, yet, challenge yourself.
- Compare your performance on a weekly, monthly and annual basis. You’ve heard me right. When you need to compare, you compare your performance with your own, not somebody else’s.
- Ask for help. It’s important to remember that nobody does anything great alone. You can’t succeed alone. What makes a difference is the caliber of the people you surround yourself with.
Are you ready to be more and achieve more in life? I’d be honored to be in your circle of influence and help you find the true North in your life. Click here to see how we can possibly work together.
