Focus on Your Weaknesses

I hate paying bills. I'm not good at finances, budgeting and have an aversion to sitting down and working on our checkbook. It could be termed a "weakness." Current research says that I should minimize my attention in that area (my weakness) and focus on my strengths (speaking and writing?). Yet recently I realized I've learned some key things by focusing on my weakness that have made my strengths better. So now occasionally I purposely focus on something I don't do well and am amazed by what I learn. 

First of all, have you read the research about focusing on strengths in order to excel and not on weaknesses? It's out there in psychology, education, personal development, etc. The challenge is that the singular focus on strengths in order to excel might be over-blown. We can learn quite a bit by tackling a weakness that we might not learn just by focusing on a strength. 

One of my "skill" strengths is writing. It's something I do well enough that other encourage me to do it more. I'm very aware that I'm no Hemingway, but others enjoy my writing, or at least my family does. So, writing would be termed a "what" strength. It's "what" I do well. Yet, what I didn't realize, since writing comes relatively easily to me, was that I had created a mental model about how I wrote, how I set up my writing area, and the time and discipline I set aside to pursue my writing. 

As I wrote above, finances and paying bills are one of my "weaknesses." So my object is to complete them as efficiently and effectively as possible so I can move on to other things. Yet I realized that the same discipline, order and efficiency I brought to paying bills (playing to my weakness) were skills I could apply to my strength of writing. Because of what I've learned I radically reordered my writing space, the time I write, how I focus and how I determine the outcomes. It has worked very well and it was totally outside of the mental model I carried for how I was supposed to write. 

Focusing on strengths is still a powerful tool to excel. Yet avoiding weakness, or avoiding something brand new because it is not a strength is a mistake. Try wading into the morass of a weakness and focusing on making it slightly better. Yet at the same time be mindful to what you learn. You might find, as I do, that there are things you learn from focusing on your weakness that you will not learn by focusing on your strengths. And for me the bonus is... the bills are paid. 

Do You Want to Fly?

I've always wanted to fly. No, I don't mean in airplanes, I do enough of that. Just be able to stretch out my arms and fly freely without the fetters of gravity. The world looks different from up above. The perspective is broader and I realize how little things are on the ground compared to the world and the universe. Even just being in a plane, I feel transported and it always gives me new ideas and new goals.

Yet, I realize that I fly every day. Not in the caped-crusader sense, but I move above and beyond my normal existence in the experiences I have when I'm at my best. Those moments change me, challenge me, and encourage me to do and be more. Trans-formative moments give me a glimpse of what I'm capable of, and at that moment I can either choose to look at the reality of my potential, or go back to what I've always done.

Take writing for example. I write everyday. Sometimes it is just this blog, other times it is a poem, or working on a book. And there are moments when I write that I lift my head from the page and can't believe what I've just written. Where the prose or new idea came from, I have no idea. But at that moment, I'm flying. I'm lifted above my normal existence and can view it from a different angle. The moment gives me a perspective on what is possible.

Sometimes it's frightening when it happens. Flying takes you to heights you might not be ready for. Looking down can be a jarring experience and so sometimes we long just to remain on the ground. These are the moments we need to discipline ourselves to examine. When we've done something that lifts us out of our normal routine we have an opportunity to learn from it, to learn to use our wings.

Rumi put it best. “You were born with potential. 
You were born with goodness and trust. You were born with ideals and dreams. You were born with greatness. 
You were born with wings. 
You are not meant for crawling, so don't. 
You have wings. 
Learn to use them and fly.” 

The next time you have a moment when you almost scare yourself with something you've done at work, at home, in a personal endeavor; stop and savor the feeling. You are flying. Lifted above the normal workday reality, you can now glimpse your own possibilities. At that moment you can feel your wings. So, what will you do? Do you want to fly?

Good Enough Is Not Enough

Two days ago I posted the following quote by Charles Kendall Adams on The Greatness Project Facebook page. "No one ever attains very eminent success by simply doing what is required of him or her: it is the amount and excellence of what is over and above the required, that determines the greatness of ultimate distinction." Yet we live in a society seemingly focused on delivering what is just good enough. Some people barely give what is expected of them, yet expect high praise or high pay in return.

For a moment think of those you've encountered in the past week who've gone over and above what they were supposed to do. Some of the waiters, delivery men, artisans, and professionals stand out in my memory because they didn't just offer what they were supposed to, they went above and beyond what was required.

Great individuals desire to pursue excellence and that desire drives them to outperform others rather than offer a mediocre service, product or effort. When you encounter them you are changed for the moment because you see the higher possibilities for yourself and everyone.

Perhaps the important question is how do people experience us? Do they experience someone who goes above and beyond and transforms the moment? I have found that when I give the extra effort in almost anything, whether or not someone notices, I feel the elation of giving it my best and not just giving up when it is good enough.