Having a weakness is not a weakness

Having a weakness is not a problem. Failing to identify it is.

Plenty of companies and people have weaknesses - that isn't necessarily a negative. However, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 those weaknesses or areas you need to improve can be a fatal flaw that leads to unnecessary losses.

When a weakness is identified, you have two options: either improve or outsource.

When I started Perfectly Hedged LLC, my weakness was marketing. I was a good trader but I had never built a brand. Instead of shying away from that, I leaned into it and focused on improving. I brought in experts like Joe Blunden and James McCaffrey to help guide me and accelerate my understanding. The alternative would have been to outsource, but I didn't want to lose the personal touch.

Most companies don't 𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘦 weaknesses they simply fail to identify them, turning them into blind spots. These become consistent sources of risk and inevitably large losses.

Instead of being proactive, companies tend to be reactive which is much more costly...𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘦!

It's human nature to double down on what we're good at. Success creates a positive feedback loop and we focus on areas that make us feel competent. Areas we need to improve on often take a back seat. Or we aren't honest about where those structural weaknesses actually lie.

This time of year, people will set targets for next year, be it work or personal. But these targets often focus on things we are already good at.

I'm sure you've heard this from a boss, "This year was great, numbers were up 20% YOY, next year we're aiming for 30%!"

What I find more valuable is to list out my weaknesses - what is holding me back, where do I need to seek out help?

Needing to improve is not a fault, but failing to truthfully assess where you need to grow is a disservice to yourself.