How can I identify my strengths and weaknesses?

Ever freeze up when someone asks what you're good at? Yeah, me too! For the longest time, I'd just mumble something about being "pretty organized" and change the subject. But hey, I finally cracked the code on figuring out my strengths and weaknesses, and let me tell you - it's actually kind of fun once you get into it!

Here's what really works (and no, it's not taking random personality quizzes online 😅):

Pay attention to what makes you tick. You know those tasks where you look up and suddenly it's three hours later? That's a clue! For me, I totally geek out over solving puzzles and fixing problems. But put me in charge of organizing a team event, and I'm like a deer in headlights.

The scary-but-worth-it move? Ask people to be straight with you. Not your mom (love you, Mom, but you think everything I do is amazing), but maybe a coworker you trust. My friend Mike dropped this truth bomb on me last year: "You're amazing at explaining complicated stuff, but dude, you really need to stop cutting people off mid-sentence." Ouch... but fair!

Quick tip that's helped me tons: I keep a running list on my phone of stuff I nail and stuff I mess up. Super simple, but it works! Speaking of which, I've been messing around with TestHQ lately while job hunting, and wow - turns out I'm way better at logical thinking than I thought! Though maybe don't ask me about the math section... still working on that one 😬

Want to really shake things up? Do something that scares you a little. Last month, I joined this public speaking club (my palms are sweating just thinking about it). But guess what? Didn't die! Actually found out I'm not half bad at thinking on my feet.

Look, nobody's good at everything. I mean, my attempts at singing make my dog leave the room. But that's totally fine! Some of your "weaknesses" might actually come in handy - like how my obsessive double-checking everything used to drive me nuts, but now it makes me really good at catching mistakes.

Just be curious about yourself, you know? Try new things. Make mistakes. Laugh about them. Then try again. That's pretty much all there is to it!

And remember, we're all works in progress. Your "weaknesses" today might turn into your strengths tomorrow. Or they might not - and that's cool too. What matters is getting to know yourself better and working with what you've got!