Tuesday, August 14, 2007

WOW! I just realized it's been another week since I last posted. I know that's not that big of deal; but I've had some really great notions lately that have since slipped through the 'cracks' in my brain.
I was able to attend the latest Leadership Summit presented by Willow Creek Assoc. and there was one thought from there I've been wanting to share. It was from a talk given by Marcus Buckingham, who wrote "Go Put Your Strengths to Work". It's about the idea that we have it all wrong when we tell anyone that if the improve on their weaknesses they'll get better at whatever it is they already do quite well - which when you think about it is really quite daff! One of the illustrations he used was when Shaq went the L A Lakers. He couldn't shoot a free throw to save his soul (Kind of a really dumb analogy isn't it). So what they told him was not to worry or work on that part of his game, but to work on scoring in the paint. He asked why when he was already the best center in the game. They said that was true, but he wasn't the best that ever was, and that was what he was capable of being. So he did, and earned 3 scoring titles and 3 NBA championships at the same time. And guess what? His free throw shooting % went up by 20%. So, to all of us out there trying to get better by working on our weaknesses, let's do this. Take a paper and draw a line down the middle. On 1 side write I Love It and on the other I Hate It. Now go and live life for a week writing down everything you love and hate. At the end of the week, select the top 3 things you absolutely love, and work at getting to be the best you can at it. Have fun. I know I am!
PJ

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I've read "Now Discover Your Strengths" the first in the series by the same author. It's a good book, too. It even has an online component where you can take a test to determine your strengths. Still, to a perfectionist it seems quite impossible to NOT focus on my weaknesses. That's all I tend to see. But I do have to say I love your idea of writing down the things you love and hate. That works better for me than thinking about what I'm good at and not so good at. Update us on how your experiment goes. I think I'll try it too...