Is it best to fix weaknesses or build on strengths? Marcus advocates the latter.

When we think of our siblings, their faults quickly come to mind, and their differences too. From an early age, Marcus wanted to build on his strengths and manage around his weaknesses. He saw uniqueness in himself, and wanted to make a contribution based on that.

However, if you believe that, you are in a minority. When Gallup asked lots of people whether success would come from fixing weaknesses or building on strengths, about 40% in the US, Canada and England said a focus on strengths was key; 60% focus on weaknesses.

As a culture, we study failure to learn about success … But that’s wrong. If we try to learn good by inverting bad, we only get not-bad. To learn about excellence, you can’t learn it from stdying failure.

Since writing “Now, Discover Your Strengths” in 2000, with an attempt to start a revolution on strengths, the world has changed. In 2000, there was little talk about strengths; now there is more.

Marcus showed a video on the strengths-based programme at Purnell School in New Jersey. They try to identify their “affinities”, and then present that to the school for all to understand. This has required a culture change, from mocking the students to working with them to reach accomplishment.

Here’s another question: what percentage of a typical day do you spend playing to their strengths? Everyone says “people are our greatest asset”, but it is really that “people’s strengths are our greatest asset”. Unfortunately, on average, people only spend 12% playing to their strengths.

The key point for leaders: How do we move that number? Two approaches: (1) try to change the system, or (2) change yourself first.

Need to face up to 3 myths and corresponding truths. Blow up the myths, and embrace the truths:

Myth 1: Our personality changes over our life. Truth: We become more of who we are. Our values, our dreams, our maturity will change, but our core will stay the same.

Myth 2: We grow most in our areas of greatest weaknesses. Truth: We grow the most in our areas of strength. How do you learn to embrace your strength and do it more?

Myth 3: A great team member puts his strengths aside and does whatever the team needs. Truth: A great team member volunteers his strength to the team the most of the time.

How do we shift from using our strengths once a week to most of the time?

1. Identify your strengths. Use StrengthsFinder, Myers-Briggs, or Disc. But that’s not enough — take a blank sheet of people, line down the middle. On one side, write “I loved it”, and on the other “I loathed it”. Write down activities on the “loved it” side when you feel successful, when it feels instinctful (things you are looking forward to), it offers an opportunity to grow (you have got into the flow state), and you feel like you have done what met a need inside. Pay extraordinarily close attention to those things that make you feel wonderful.

At the end of the week, look at the list of “loved it” and identify the top three. Then write three strengths statements … Things that make you feel strong.

You are the authority on what makes you feel strong.

2. Each week, put together a “strong week” plan. Push your time towards your strengths. Spend more and more time on things that invigorate them. Make the “best” of your job into “most” of your job.

Play to at least some aspect of your strength statement.

3. Learn how to describe your strengths without boasting and your strengths without wining.

All of this is risky. But the day will come when staying where you are today is more risky than embracing a strengths-based future.

“Let tomorrow be a more strong day than it was today.”