The importance of recognising your strengths and weaknesses in business
Whether you’re launching a new startup, after going it alone for quite some time, or want to assess your chances for successful self-employment, identifying your specific strengths and potential weaknesses are key to making informed decisions.
More usually applied to organisations as a whole, SWOT analysis is an excellent framework for assessment and planning: By identifying your own personal skill strengths and finding the obvious weaknesses, you will be able to fill in the gaps in your experience.
What is SWOT, and how does it benefit my business?
SWOT analysis, also known as the SWOT matrix, is a strategic planning tool that starts with a list of desired objectives, then identifies four categories of impact that might either help or hinder progress towards these goals. These categories are divided into internal and external focus points.
Internal
- Strengths: Characteristics that give a business an advantage over the competition.
- Weaknesses: Characteristics that cause a business to have a disadvantage when compared to the competition.
External
- Opportunities: Environmental or market-based elements that a business can exploit.
- Threats: Environmental or market-based elements that could negatively impact a business.
What is most important of all, however, is the leadership of the business, which means that your personal strengths and weaknesses will shape the business and have a huge impact on the success of your enterprise.
What is the most valuable personal strength?
Depending on your personality type, industry and role, the most valuable personal strength you possess will be a strong indicator of your company culture. If you are a hard worker, then that will influence your employees’ attitude; if you are a perfectionist, others will be inspired to focus on achieving appropriate outcomes. If, however, communication skills are your most evident strength, you will be able to:
- Effectively inform all parties of future goals and expectations.
- Clearly state the benefits of your business to potential investors and the target market at large.
- Efficiently instruct other people to ensure that objectives are reached through your preferred process.
No matter what your other skills and strengths, self-awareness is arguably the most valuable tool in your arsenal.
How do I overcome my personal weaknesses?
It can be hard to recognise personal weakness, but by making a truthful list of where you lack positive traits, you can find other people to help fill in the gap/s. For example, if you find it difficult to conduct job interviews or create effective job descriptions as part of the hiring process, consider using a hiring manager to build your team.
Someone with an aptitude as an interviewer can improve the quality of your workforce by conducting the job interviews in your place. By providing your hiring manager with a list of sample answers that you would consider a requirement for a successful candidate, you can be sure that they are acting in your best interests and have an appropriate guideline as to who you consider a suitable employee.
If you find it too challenging to be so personally analytical, ask someone you trust to offer constructive criticism and apply this insight into your decision-making processes.
What if a situation is both a strength and a weakness?
To be detail-oriented is a prime example of a personality trait that is both a strength and a weakness. When planning a launch or making an important decision, having the ability to apply true focus to the minutiae means that you are less likely to miss something important. When rolling out a new process or product, however, there will come a point at which you need to have confidence in your planning skills and let others involved in the business do their job without interference.
Similarly, confidence is definitely a strength, but an overly confident approach means that criticism might be ignored and a poor decision might be made that will negatively impact your business. Rather than only considering your own opinions worthwhile, have the self-awareness to appreciate that you might be wrong, and that other people’s suggestions can have great value. Use your confidence to motivate your team, encourage communication, and collectively assess any opportunity or threat to see how best to proceed.