"Ideas are a dime a dozen; it's execution that matters."
Who said that brilliant, pithy line? Me. Often. I was right. But in much more important ways, I was wrong. I was cheating myself every time I said it. Even today, I still cheat msyelf too often in the same way. You likely cheat yourself this way, too. Here's how:
Four of my top VIA strengths are: Creativity, Judgment/Critical Thinking, Love of Learning, and Curiosity. For me, these strenghts come out as:
- A hunger to gather information about subjects, organizations, and IDEAS
- A tendency to sort, connect, re-arrange, and generally process that information
- An ability to envision compelling new goals, see new pathways to old goals, and gain insights into problems
Put those three together, and often my ideas are strategically on target and powerful.
Sounds good, right? But, remember what I said above, "Good ideas are a dime a dozen...." I generally see this process as a toss-off; nothing hard, and nothing to be particulary excited about. Even worse, I have tended over my life to take it for granted. I have often failed to work to hone those strengths, and I have rarely (if ever) actively sought to put myself in position to use those strengths.
What I should have been doing - what I should be doing today - is working to develop and hone those strengths through targeted learning and practice. Eric Ericcson, the leading expert on the development of expertise, has said it takes 10,000 hours to develop expertise, and that what sets the very top performers apart from the merely good is the willingness to work hard at the most difficult parts of their skill.
So, why haven't I been working on these strengths? Why haven't I been putting myself in positions to use them? Well, partially because I've taken them for granted and assumed that, because they are relatively easy for me, they aren't particularly valuable. I've likely also pulled back sometimes because the work was hard, and I've probably carried a deep belief inside me that says life should be easy (stupid, I know, but not uncommon ). Today, it's mostly fear. It's not enough just to have ideas. It is not even enough to put time and effort into refining and honing them. I have to go beyond that and put them out there - out into the "marketplace of ideas" where they might be torn to shreds, or, worse, ignored! (Bonus points for spotting the Harry Potter reference!)
But, those are my strengths. Am I going to get more of what I want out of life by going with what I'm not as good at? Which is worse, failing - or living with the haunting thought I might have succeeded if I had only tried?
The point of sharing these personal thoughts with you is to encourage you to ask yourself some questions.
- What are your strengths?
- Are you dismissing or ignoring them, and if so, why?
- What's the smallest possible step you could begin now that would get you using and relying on your strengths more?
While you think about it, here are a couple of creative pieces that might help you ponder. The first is "Dance with Who Brung You" by Asleep at the Wheel. Love it. Instead of your date to the dance, think about dancing with your strengths. As the song says,
I had a friend from Texas, he really had some style, he sang that good
old Western Swing and drove 'em wild
Then a talent scout from Vegas said "Boy, play and sing this way"
And in one short year he was broke and in L.A.
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