Great workers often have extreme abilities in particular activities. They then take certain steps to manage these abilities and deliver excellence in their areas of expertise.
Such people may also have extreme personality traits. They are not necessarily well-rounded and may have lop-sided personalities. This can take different forms.
They may be brilliant in some activities but have blind-sports in other areas. This can produce both pluses and minuses for themselves and other people.
Great workers sometimes learn how to recognise, manage and develop their abilities. Let’s explore these themes.
They Can Recognise
Their Extreme Abilities
Great workers have extreme abilities. Some may also have extreme personality traits. They may be deeply introverted or have elements of OCD, autism, dyslexia or other kinds of behaviour.
Many people have been helped to recognise and accept these elements relatively early in life. They may have had supportive parents who encouraged them to build on who they are as individuals rather worry about who they are not.
Different people learn about their personality traits – and the potential implications – in different ways. One person described this in the following way.
“My parents taught me to concentrate on the areas where I was confident and did good work. Being an introvert, I was happier reading and writing.
“When I was in big groups I went into my shell. This did not sit well with teachers who consistently reported that I needed to be more social.
“Later on I recognised that I felt more at ease doing work by myself or with a couple of people that I trusted. I did not like playing team sports or being in big groups.
“One reason was that I didn’t like to be judged by certain kinds of people. I am happy to learn from people I respect but no longer pay attention to some kinds of critics.”
Different people have different extreme traits. Warren Buffet describes how he is brilliant at reading spread sheets and forecasting potential trends. But he cannot tell you the colour of the wallpaper in the offices he has worked in for the past thirty years.
Warren chooses to focus on the area where he can see patterns and do fine work. This takes us to the next step taken by some people who have certain abilities.
They Can Manage
Their Extreme Abilities
Some people learn to manage their extreme abilities and traits. This calls for building on their talents and, if appropriate, recognising the consequences of their behaviour. One approach involves finding ways:
To build on the pluses of their personal abilities and traits;
To manage the consequences of any minuses.
Stephen Fry, the actor, has shared his own experiences with bipolar disorder. Sometimes this can lead to great highs but also deep lows. During a television programme he described how twenty people with this condition were asked:
“Let me pose a hypothetical question. If you were given the chance to get rid of the lows but, at the same time, lose the highs, what would you do?”
Stephen reported that only one of the twenty people said they would take up this offer. Every person has things they need to manage in life, said Stephen. Bipolar was one such thing for him.
Many websites have been created by people who experience such mood swings. These provide practical tools that people can use to manage this trait. These include the following.
Set and follow a chosen routine … Plan ahead … Do things that give you positive energy … Exercise in way that works for you … Recognise and manage triggers … Learn how to manage your moods … Set and reach achievable goals … Focus on improvement not perfection.
Different people use different ways to manage their extremes. This takes us to the next step taken by some people who have these characteristics.
They Can Develop
Their Extreme Abilities
Great workers learn to develop their extreme abilities and deliver excellence. They may also learn how to develop and make good use of their extreme personality traits. Different people do this in different ways.
People who demonstrate some characteristics of autism, for example, may build on their strengths. They may have deep knowledge in their areas of interest, great attention to detail and the ability to deliver high quality work when doing repetitive tasks.
People who demonstrate characteristics of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder also have strengths. The ADDA website describes these in the following way.
Each individual with ADHD has unique skills and advantages
Within the ADHD community, these advantages are often referred to as ADHD Superpowers.
They Are: Quick Starters … Creative … Adventurous … Courageous … Focused … Intuitive … Detail Oriented … Good In Crises … Entrepreneurial … Driven To Achieve.
Different people develop different ways to build on such traits. Some take the following approach.
They put themselves into places where they can do positive work … They find ways to take a positive role and make a positive contribution … They build on their strengths and do their best to get positive results.
Let’s return to your own life. Can you think of a specific activity where you may have the potential to develop an extreme ability and deliver excellence? How can you do this in your own way?
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to complete the following sentences.
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