Correct your weaknesses or develop your strengths? 3 questions will help you decide

When to Focus on Strengths

So you've decided to focus on what you do best. The logic here is specialization and mastery.

Albert Einstein didn't have to be a good artist, baker, or tailor. He could enjoy other people's art, eat rolls baked by someone else, and wear costumes that he did not sew. Taking the time to learn how to bake would force him to pay less attention to creating general relativity.

Einstein's research proved to be extremely important for all mankind. If he spent half of his day on trifles, he would not have made his discoveries.

This example illustrates when we should focus on our strengths:

When specialization is possible. Einstein could safely ignore the chances of learning how to bake cupcakes - he didn't lose anything from that.
When skill matters. Einstein's success depended on whether he became a better physicist or not. The best, not just good or mediocre.

When to focus on weaknesses

Sometimes it is impossible to come to terms with the presence of weaknesses in something.

Suppose Einstein, a brilliant visualizer and thinker, was weak in mathematics. Unlike the inability to bake cakes, the inability to do arithmetic calculations would be a serious gap. Because Einstein's success in science was led not only by thought experiments, but also calculations that were understandable and available for verification by other scientists.

The mathematics of general relativity was so complex that it took Einstein years to solve all the equations. From the stress of constant hard work, he even developed stomach problems. Nevertheless, he could not escape mathematics.

Einstein could not entrust the mathematical calculations to someone else, because they are inextricably linked with his work as a physicist. He could not outsource the development of his theory.

This example illustrates when we should take action to correct our weaknesses:

When delegation is not possible. Einstein couldn't get someone else to do all the math for him. He had to deal with her himself.
When one space undermines the whole undertaking. If Einstein was bad at mathematics, he would not have been able to substantiate his theory of relativity, if it were even three times correct. One weakness, insignificant for most people (think math!), Would turn out to be a failure for him.

How to choose between fixing and ignoring weaknesses

Now let's figure out what questions to ask yourself in order to decide whether you should overcome your weaknesses or focus only on your strengths.

1. Can you outsource the work?

If you are able to outsource work that you are not an expert in, it is likely that you do not need to do it. When you can hire a professional, buy a product, or delegate a task, this is often a better solution than learning someone else's field from scratch.

2. Can you ignore your weakness?

Even when it is not possible to delegate your affairs to professionals, weaknesses can sometimes be ignored. Just do something else. If you're a writer, but not particularly funny, maybe you don't need to supply your prose with comedic elements - write tragedies. If you are not good at mathematics, then give up the career of an economist or programmer and become, for example, a florist.

3. Do you want to improve your weak side?

Sometimes weakness is a dormant strength. Often we do not shine in something, not because of a lack of talent, but because of a lack of practice. Therefore, if you are really burning with the desire to correct your weakness, this is a sign that you just need to work more on it.

But the opposite is also true. If you hate working on something where you are weak, and are more inclined to do what you do best, do what you are strong at. The question of whether you can ignore your weaknesses is important, but even more important is whether you want to fix them.