Japanese writer Haruki Murakami said, “All of us are imperfect human beings living in an imperfect world.” In essence, we all have weaknesses that become exposed at different points in our lives; so, the real question is what do we do about them, or should we even do anything at all? Let’s dive in!
There are many schools of thought on how we should approach our weaknesses. Sadly, most people lack the courage to make the hard choices that are likely to yield the best results. However, I have discovered that if we are open-minded and determined, we can slowly chip away at some of our less enviable attributes.
In his bestselling book, Principles, Ray Dalio discusses some strategies for dealing with your weaknesses.
1. For starters, you can deny them. While this is the obvious path of least resistance because it keeps your ego intact, it is really the worst route to take because one simply cannot improve upon that which one fails to confront or chooses to ignore.
2. You can accept them and aim to turn them into strengths. This could be a great option if the strength you are trying to acquire is consistent with your natural abilities. For example, you might be an extrovert who loves speaking about important issues and sharing your message with people in one-on-one situations. But, let’s say you have avoided giving speeches to large audiences for a variety of reasons such as low confidence; then, it would be a great idea to devote additional time to making progress in this area. What is a small step you can take to give a presentation to an audience that may not necessarily be your target group so the stakes are low?
Conversely, if you choose to transform a strength that goes against the grain of who you are at your core, you could wind up expending effort in the wrong place. A great example would be when Michael Jordan left the NBA to establish a career in the MLB. All things considered, he was just an average baseball player, but the amount of time he would have had to devote to dominating the sport, in the way he did basketball, would not have been worth it. Instead, his time would have been better spent returning to basketball, which is what he did and ended up winning additional championships. The key is, if you are a 7/10 in natural abilities and interest, trying to go to a 9 or 10 makes sense. If you are a 2 or 3, or even a 5 or 6 in ability, trying to go to a 10 is a mighty feat and often a futile endeavor. It’s not to say you will not get there eventually, but in the end, would it be worth the extra investment that could be earmarked for something else that would yield greater and more meaningful results? Finding the answer may lie in whether the skill development is in alignment with your true passion and purpose. Only you know the answer.
3. Finally, you can choose to accept your weaknesses and find ways around them. Dalio argues that this path is the easiest and most viable, yet the one least followed. Being a good manager means having a great understanding of your team’s composition so you can pull in particular people for specific jobs. Their fortes serve to supplement your weaknesses. In fact, all successful people know when to ask for the help of others who possess strengths in areas they lack. This is where those personality assessments, such as The Big Five or Myers Briggs comes into play because you can always aim to have the right people doing the appropriate work. An excellent leader knows how to utilize a perceived weakness of one of their team members for the right job. As Psychologist David Kipper would argue, a weakness can be a flip side to the strength. For example, if you have a hard time seeing the nitty-gritty of getting things done, it may be because you have a strength of being a big-picture thinker. Therefore, being used more for the macro and less for the micro can be a huge help to your organization.
Q: Which of these approaches or any others have you used in the past to address a weakness of yours? Share your comments with us; we would love to hear!
Quote for today: “A hero is someone who, in spite of weakness, doubt or not always knowing the answers, goes ahead and overcomes anyway.” -Christopher Reeve
How do you tackle your weaknesses?