The Hidden Danger in Playing to Strength
Kaiser, R.B. (2010, September). The Hidden Danger in Playing to Strength. Keynote address delivered at the Asociacion Mexicana en Direccion de Recursos Humanos (AMEDIRH), 45th International Congress of Human Resources, Mexico City, Mexico.
This keynote address was delivered at the 45th International Congress of Human Resources in Mexico City and sponsored by the Asociacion Mexicana en Direccion de Recursos Humanos (AMEDIRH). Kaiser was invited to speak on the topic of his latest book, The Perils of Accentuating the Positive. The Congress was attended by over 5,000 senior HR/Talent Management specialists from leading organizations throughout Latin America.
As the global economy was growing fast at the turn of the century, a popular movement swept through training and development. This movement encouraged us to focus on our strengths because it is a mistake to try to fix weaknesses. And just as bankers bet it all on toxic assets and consumers bought more than they could afford, we bought into the strengths fad. With the global economy crawling out of a near-collapse, we now recognize the folly in focusing only on upside potential while ignoring downside risk.
It is time for the training and development world to also reconsider its one-sided enthusiasm for strengths. With a blend of critical thinking, research on real managers and their development, and a heavy dose of common sense, this presentation will help balance the scale. Yes, it is our strengths that make us great. And we also have to manage our weaknesses, and avoid the trap of creating weaknesses out of our strengths by taking them too far. Here is a framework and set of simple, integrated concepts and tools for building a truly stronger workforce.
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