111: Strengthening Strengths Beats Improving Weaknesses

When people receive feedback about their strengths and weaknesses, they often choose to focus on their weaknesses. But Joe’s research, based on one million assessments of 80,000 leaders, shows that people tend to be better off focusing on their strengths rather than their weaknesses.

To build leadership strengths, such as trying to improve our honesty, it can be helpful to focus on adjacent strength builders such as assertiveness. By improving our assertiveness, we can improve our honesty.

Joe’s research shows that those who rate us are twice as accurate at predicting our strengths and weaknesses as we are.

Steve Jobs had weaknesses, some of which were nearly fatal flaws. But his strengths were so strong, that they more than compensated for his weaknesses in the workplace.

111: Strengthening Strengths Beats Improving Weaknesses | Joe Folkman