Strengthen Strengths 
Not Weaknesses

The memory is still vivid for me. I walked into my boss’s office for my performance appraisal. I was ready for the discussion, because I knew I had really performed well. The outcome of my evaluation was not certain in my eyes, but I was looking forward to the praise and recognition I justly deserved, especially from my manager who was usually silent in this regard. Instead, I was shocked with how the meeting actually unfolded.

For the first five minutes it was noted, with little checkmarks in the appropriate boxes, that my performance was “exceptional” in many areas. However, the next fifty-five minutes were spent discussing how to improve my “satisfactory” areas of performance. I was devastated. The manager had focused on my administrative work, which is not, and never will be, an exceptional capability for me. I actually detest administrative tasks. I find them boring, tedious and highly repetitive. I perform the required functions well enough to cover what needs to get done, but that is all. Where I soar is with new projects–the land of the unknown. I giggle like a girl, thump my chest like King Kong, and embrace the future like a voyageur when I think of the possibilities of a new venture. The excitement is a huge shot of adrenalin in the arm. So asking me to be better at something I am not thrilled about is like asking a monkey to be a giraffe. It’s downright crazy.

At its conclusion, I walked out of the meeting totally downhearted. “Why bother busting my butt when all I get is a checkmark in a box, and a plan of action on how to be a better administrator?” I asked myself.

This trip down Memory Lane was prompted by a recent discussion I had with the president of a large, actually huge, company. He shared with me his pet peeve, posing the question, “Why do we invest so much in helping our employees improve ‘their weaknesses’ when the rewards would be far greater if we supported the strengths of each employee and made them excellent?” And he is right.

We are each possessed of varying capabilities and skills. Our jobs should allow us opportunities to employ those skills that we perform in an exceptional manner. The other areas–dare I say our weaknesses–we should learn to carry out as best we can, but not necessarily waste time and energy striving to do so in a stellar fashion. Would it not be more beneficial to the organization to assist team members to enhance their strong suit from great to excellent instead of from mediocre to just above mediocre?

I think so.

Then why do we ask employees to improve performance in areas at which they will never excel? It seems like a futile, demoralizing act.

Imagine the productivity of an organization where team members perform at an exceptionally high level, because they only do those tasks at which they shine. Imagine the joy and the excitement of coming to work each and every day. I think these ideas are worth savouring and acting upon.

I don’t think it would be too hard. Let’s create a team environment where each member participates in a brainstorming session, looking at skills, strengths, and levels of enthusiasm, and matching them with the functions required to realize the goals of the workplace. The job descriptions wouldn’t change; each worker would be “dealing” their less desirable aspects and taking on more of what s/he loves to do, enabling everyone to operate at peak capacity and with joy.

I was so engrossed in this conversation that I forgot to ask the president with whom I was conversing what the practice was within his organization. This is a dialogue worth having with all company leaders who are striving toward innovative productivity and greater enjoyment in the workplace. It would be unfortunate for this idea to be left unaddressed.

“The rewards would be far greater if we supported the strengths of each employee and made them excellent”

Article originally published in Volume 10-6 of Your Workplace magazine