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Lesson 10
While
still out on the beach, I laid out a plan.
After listing the people in order by respect,
I drew two columns. The first column was
labeled, Weaknesses. This column can get very long, very quickly
because we notice weaknesses first and then have a tendency to concentrate on
them. You might ask, "Why write
down all those terribly negative things?" This list will become a map
through the minefield.
The
other column was labeled, Strengths. I stared at the blank column and it stared
back at me. It was as though I had
writers block. Perhaps I hated to admit
this person had any. But, she was the
most respected person in the office. She
had to have strengths. I
forced myself to concentrate on her strengths, which included mathematical ability, loyalty to the
company, a good sense of humor, an appreciation for the finer things in life,
and so on.
Things I
wouldn’t have necessarily associated with strengths on the job began to add
up. I began to realize the things that
added strength to a person as a whole were strengths he or she could apply to
his or her job. My focus began to shift
from the huge pile of weaknesses to the huge stack of strengths just beside it
within each person. The old dog was
learning a new trick.
Once I
realized how many strengths this woman had, strengths that weren’t being
recognized or put to use in our organization, I was bursting at the seams with
enthusiasm the next time I had the chance to talk to her strengths. The strengths column was as long as the
weaknesses column. She immediately
noticed I was enthusiastic about her potential.
I reflected back to her the things she felt were important and
valuable. What she thought and felt
became my priority instead of ramming my priorities down her throat.
We can
transplant hearts and other vital organs from one person to another, but we
can’t transplant strengths.
Nevertheless, managers and parents try every day and there has never
been a successful operation. Our job,
therefore, is to be a catalyst between their strengths and the way we'd like to
see the job done. You’ll keep adding to
both lists over time.
A word of
caution: The responsible leader does not leave these lists lying around the
office. This is an exercise for you and
you alone. Keep your lists at home. Each evening take only a few minutes to pick
a couple of your team members from your chart to connect with individually the
next day in a coaching session. Select
one or two of the strengths from their individual lists that you can show them
how to use more of in some part of their jobs.
Here are some ways to get started:
- Make a list of the most respected person's weaknesses and a second list of the same person's strengths.
- Keep in mind that the second list will be more difficult because of the long-term propensity to focus on weaknesses.
- Lay out a coaching strategy for each person, based on your awareness of their weaknesses, but emphasizing communication with their strengths.
“Be aware of their weaknesses,
but talk to their strengths.”
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