Play to your strengths

(Photo by Sergio Pedemonte on Unsplash)

I recall as a child, my parents were able to see my strengths and encouraged me to try things that played to my strengths. They praised my achievements, and this encouraged me to do more. As I grew up, I became more aware of my weaknesses as I compared myself with those around me and I tried hard to develop those areas of weaknesses. I thought I had to be everything to be successful. So I spent time and energy focusing on my perceived weaknesses, often believing I had to develop these areas in order to be successful.

A few years ago I read the book “Strengths Finder” by Tom Rath, and took the StrengthsFinder Assessment thereafter. This really got me thinking about my strengths and how I could harness them to my advantage. Another book that was a great catalyst for me was “Quiet – the Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking” by Susan Cain. It spoke to my strengths as an introvert versus my shortcomings of not being an extrovert.

A strength is something that we do well, mostly because it’s a natural talent or a skill that we’ve practiced and developed over time. All of us have multiple natural strengths. But how much of time are we spending doing what we do best everyday? Chances are we are not spending a lot! We devote time to “fixing” our weaknesses rather than developing our strengths. Studies show that leaders are more effective if they clearly display strengths even if they also clearly display weaknesses. A leader with multiple strengths and some clear weaknesses is perceived as more effective than someone who has no clear strengths and no weaknesses. (The New Extraordinary Leader by John Zenger and Joseph Folkman).

In his book “Strengths Finder”, Tom Rath speaks about a strength in a mathematical sense. This resonated with me. The formula is as follows:

Strength (the ability to provide near perfect performance) = Talent (a natural way of thinking, feeling or having) x Investment (time spent practicing, developing your skills, and building your knowledge base)

In a way Talent is synonymous with strength but a talent that has not been nurtured by investing time and practice will never develop into a strength. On the other hand, an area with less talent will need a greater investment of time and practice to develop into a strength. Simple logic will tell us that investing time and effort in an area where a talent already exists will develop the greater strength.

I will share with you a personal example to illustrate this point. I have gained a reputation for having an eye for detail – that is, my strength is detail orientation. I always thought it was a badge of honour and I proudly wore it. I was adept at “not making mistakes” when it came to detail work. However, I always knew that I put in a lot of effort to reach this level of “detail orientation”. It was never fun, but I loved the satisfaction I derived from putting out error free work. When I did the MBTI assessment (a personality assessment), I was shocked to find that detail orientation is not my preference. Rather I prefer big picture thinking. At first I was disappointed but as I reflected on it, I realized that I had to put in much more effort than someone who had a natural flair for detail to gain the reputation of being detail oriented. In other words, without natural talent in this area, I had to put in greater investment of time and effort to develop this “strength”.

So what does all this mean for you? Well, you can gain greater satisfaction and success if you know your strengths and then find opportunities that will allow you to play to your strengths.

There are multiple ways to determine what your strengths are. I suggest using all these different strategies to find out your true strengths.

1. Write them down. You already know them but writing them down helps you to focus in on them. Think back to your childhood and the things you enjoyed doing, maybe even the toys you loved to play with. It may give you clues as to where your talents lie. Hopefully, you have developed these into strengths.

2. Take an online assessment. Tom Rath’s book StrengthsFinder 2.0 is a great resource. It’s an easy read and the online assessment (online code included with the book) to determine your top strengths (talents) is very valuable. The results will be something that will go a long way and that you can use as a reference all your life.

3. Ask those closest to you to name a few of your strengths. Include personal as well as professional connections as you may display a different set of strengths in different situations. People are generally happy to engage and provide this feedback.

Now circle your top 2 or 3 strengths. Seek out opportunities to use these strengths. The next time you are working on a project whether at home or at work, put these strengths to work. As you exercise your strengths, they will become even stronger. More importantly you will be known for these strengths and your confidence will automatically increase.

I want to touch on weaknesses as most of us have been taught to focus on our weaknesses. As children, we are often reminded of the areas that require our attention, both by our parents and our teachers. In the workplace, we are reminded of our gaps, of the things we did not do well, where we missed the mark. This becomes more apparent at year end when we have our performance reviews. This approach leads to us investing a lot of time and effort into areas of lesser talent where there is little opportunity to create a strength. It is important to know our weaknesses and have a way of working around them. Find ways to manage these areas. In that sense, working on our weaknesses should be something we all do. After all, we aspire to be well rounded people with many capabilities. In addition, there are some fatal flaws that may need to be remedied to lead us on the path to success. I’m not discouraging you from working on your weaknesses. But don’t focus on them as they will never be your strengths.

So, find your strengths and then invest in them. Build your reputation in the areas of strength. Your confidence will increase, and you will be on the path to success.

Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.

-Albert Einstein