Focus on Your Talent

People do well when they do what they do well and stay away from what they do poorly. Is that not common sense?

- Henry Cloud (p. 144).

photo: Tamarind (Asam Jawa) tree @ Botanical Garden, S'pore

The above statement by Henry Cloud in his book, Integrity, reminds me of an incident during my sabbatical in the US. I was speaking to a very successful researcher in the field of real estate & urban economics and shared with him that one of my goals during my sabbatical was to work on an area of weakness. His advice to me, "to excel in my research, I should concentrate on my strength (not on my weakness) and work with someone who can complement my skill set."

photo: tamarind fruit
According to Henry Cloud, some people are incredible number twos, and lousy number ones. They could be a star in one role, and a washout in the other. Their character will dictate where they end up... He added that humility is not self-deprecating, but real and honest. When someone is who he or she really is and does not act as if he or she is more than he is, that is not arrogance, but secure identity. Out of that security, competent action flows and results happen (p. 146).

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Because these kinds of people are humble enough to know what they are not good at, they do not think they are something they are not and try to operate in those areas. Therefore, they perform poorly less often.

photo: tamarind flower

Entrepreneurs who are successful often learn early on that they are poor managers. So, they begin things and then turn them to people better at operations than themselves and avoid losing the value that they have created. And managers who do not fool themselves into thinking that they are creative visionaries do not step out into nothingness and lose everything.

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Successful people stick to what they are good at and find ways to make that larger. Usually, that involves surrounding themselves with people who are good at the areas they do not possess…,

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"not only do they get the right people on the bus, but they have them sitting in the right seats on the bus." (p. 146-7)