“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool.” – Richard Feynman
I have worked years at things that are not in my nature. Effort alone has not been enough to make me world-class regardless of how much time I put in. No, I would prefer not to lie to myself and just accept the fact that I am not great at certain things. It’s not only the truth, but it is liberating. I know the things I do well:
- Getting to clarity.
- Developing business strategies.
- Building business systems.
- Writing and speaking.
These are my sweet spot.
Working on accounting, doing meticulous research and sugarcoating bad news are not things I enjoy nor am I sought out for such. My strengths and weaknesses have been consistent since I was a kid. The older I get, the more I stay close to my strengths and avoid my weaknesses.
There are plenty of other people that have strengths where I have weaknesses. They can work in their domains with ease because they have talent and their nature lends itself easily to their strengths.
When you are not good at something, stop lying to yourself. It’s a curse of mediocrity to be self-deluded and fool yourself. When you are wrong about yourself because your ego cannot tolerate the truth that you are not good at something, it is a classic recipe for losing.
Stop lying to yourself and instead partner with people that augment your strengths with their own. In the end, you will save valuable time and be able to enjoy your work and life more when you get to play largely in your sweet spot rather than your weak spot.
It’s hard not to lie to ourselves. We are terrible judges of our own talent and efforts. But if you wonder why things are not better, try getting out of your own way. Know your strengths and choose to partner to increase your own effectiveness.
