12 Strengths Essential to Success
Success depends on a certain amount of luck, but smart people don’t leave it entirely up to chance.
In the book Work Your Strengths (AMACOM), authors Chuck Martin, Richard Guare, and Peg Dawson identify 12 strengths essential to success. These skills are:
1. Response inhibition-the ability to think before you act: Spontaneity may be useful to spice up relationships or delve into the fun and adventurous side of life, but is much harder to line up with success. Most times, in order to make tough and powerful decisions requires taking the time to think first.
2. Working memory-remembering information while you are performing complex tasks: This falls under the multitasking bucket. Working memory gives you the ability to multiply your efforts.
3. Emotional control-not giving in to anger, anxiety, or other counterproductive feelings: A lot of people may challenge this point, from the perspective that feelings are important to one’s motivations and behaviors. However, the ability to have self control over the more negative feelings can make a large difference in performance required for success.
4. Sustained attention-the ability to focus on the immediate job: In recent times as the economy has struggled, today’s knowledge workers often have increased workloads. Having the ability to focus will be a critical skill set.
5. Task initiation-just get started: Procrastination is still a major enemy to success.
6. Planning and prioritizing-knowing what’s important and what to do first: Prioritization is a tough concept since it may differ between knowledge worker, manager, and executives. A big part of planning and prioritization is communication.
7. Organization-having all the tools and resources available whenever you need them: One of the first skills a company will recognize in an employee is their level of organization. Without this skill you are leaving yourself in unnecessary danger.
8. Time management-using your time as efficiently as possible: Very few people actually plan out their days in advance. If you could see a chart outlining where all your time goes how would you feel?
9. Goal-directed persistence-setting goals and moving steadily toward them: The world is growing more and more competitive, barriers are being broken every day and if you aren’t moving forward you are moving backward. If there is one cure for failure it’s being goal directed.
10. Flexibility-the ability to adapt to changing circumstances: Moving up in your career, finding a better job, balancing work and family, all require flexibility.
11. Perspective-seeing the big picture and your role in it: The Google’s, Apple’s, and McDonald’s of today all got to their success because they understood the power of perspective.
12. Stress tolerance-ability to deal with stress: Unfortunately, success doesn’t come without it’s share of stress for most people. Often the difference between the successful and the unsuccessful is that the unsuccessful gave up when the stress became too much.
How About You?
Which of these points stood out to you? Is there another one you would add? Share in the comments below.
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