Get a Second Opinion

It’s possible to have a blind spot about your own strengths and weaknesses. Personal insecurity may prevent you from recognizing some of your strengths – but sometimes a bit of over-confidence can mask your own weaknesses too.

One of the most valuable activities you can do is to get some input from people who know you well. Choose a half-dozen people – or ‘respondents’ – to give you some feedback.

Choose respondents carefully

Don’t just pick people who unconditionally love you – sometimes family and friends aren’t the right people to tell you about your weaknesses. You need to choose people who:

• you think will be honest with you;
• you have respect for and listen to.

So try to pick a variety of people from different spheres of your life:

• current colleagues;
• ex-colleagues;
• an ex-boss or maybe your current manager (if you have a good relationship);
• a couple of friends and family members.

Respondents can be wary of appearing to be overcritical of you. So you need to give them license to talk about not only your strengths but also your weaknesses. You might want to think carefully about a ‘script’ for what you might say to each person.

You might want to:

• Explain that you are trying to make some career plans, and explain that you would really
• appreciate their honest opinion.
• Ask: ‘What do you think my strengths are?’
• Ask: ‘What do you think my areas of weakness are? What could I do better?’
• Whether you agree with the feedback you get or not, make sure that you don’t react negatively – angrily or sulkily – to their feedback.
• Thank them for their time and effort.

How do other people’s perceptions of your strengths and weaknesses compare with your own appraisal?

Ring round

As a quick (but not so insightful) alternative to talking to these various people in person, just consult your address book. Pick up the telephone and ring twenty people that know you well. Get a sample of different people – friends and family, colleagues and business
acquaintances. And then ask them:

• ‘What do you think is my greatest skill or ability?’

Write down the responses and look at whether there are any patterns. It’s as simple as that.

Remember to...

• Take your time to think about all your skills. Which of your skills do you enjoy using?
• Be honest with yourself in considering your weaknesses – there’s no point pulling the wool over your own eyes when it comes to your career.
• Get some advice from people who know you well. But bear in mind that family and friends may not be as candid as you really need them to be.