We all have strengths and weaknesses. So why not leverage what you’re uniquely good at and do what you love?

One of my biggest strengths came to me in the form of what I thought was a handicap. In my days of being an employee, in every new job I held, before I felt I could really make headway in my assignments, I had to understand all the variables of the project, identify all the moving parts, and define how they fit together. I perceived this as a problem because I felt unfocused and as if things were slipping between the cracks until I went through this process – which required a bit of focused time, paper, a pencil, and of course an eraser.

What I learned is that when I was done “wrapping my head around it,” I had created a system and documented process for this particular function, which could be used over and over again, by me or anyone else. Eventually I realized that this is very valuable! I have cultivated this skill, and now it is one of my areas of expertise. No holes in the bucket is a good thing! So what could be perceived as a crutch, through one lens, turned into a service that adds value to other people’s lives. Strengths and weaknesses are often opposite sides of the same coin.

Here’s another example. Most successful and wealthy entrepreneurs have been called “unrealistic” or “irresponsible” at one point in their lives. We need big dreamers though, because everything wonderful that has ever been created was first an idea in a dreamer’s mind. Imagine all the rolling eyes the Wright Brothers must have gotten when they announced they were going to make a machine that flies around the sky. The flip side of “irresponsible” is the insatiable need to evolve out of an ordinary (read: unfulfilling) existence. This drive cultivates a willingness to take courageous action, a quality necessary to make big things happen. Thank goodness for those unrealistic, irresponsible dreamers with their heads in the clouds!

Here’s one more strengths and weaknesses reframe: My husband self-admittedly has obsessive-compulsive tendencies (i.e. he quadruple-checks door handles and can spot a crumb from across the room), but without this attention to detail, he would not be the genius photographer & video editor that he is! Plus, I’m one of those rare lucky ladies who gets to hear, “I like what you’ve done with your hair today,” and “I noticed you cleaned the bathroom mirror!”

Rather than going against our own grain or expecting others to mute out their quirks, why not recognize ourselves and each other as geniuses in our own rights?

A few years ago, I read an AMAZING book on a “strengths-based” model of living and managing business, called Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton. Since reading this book, I haven’t looked at the world the same. It helped me to better understand my own ways of thinking and operating and, also, to appreciate others even more. When you buy the book, you can take an online Strengthsfinder test you can take to learn about your “dominant themes” and thereby discover that you are, in fact, a one of a kind genius.

We love to do what we are good at, and we are good at what we love to do. The moral of the blog is cultivate your unique gifts and offer them to the world! When it comes to strengths and weaknesses, focus on your strengths. Do what you love. It will make you more happy and then will make the people around you more happy too. Nobody likes a grump!

I’d love to hear your insights. Have you ever found a strength disguised as a weakness? What do you absolutely love to do? Comment below with your thoughts!

March 2013 Issue