Forget Pretending to Be Great at everything - Learn How to Love What You Do Best
Binny Langler
Career Strategist & Coach | Gallup Strengths Coaching | Leadership Development | Career Transition Coaching | Team Productivity + Collaboration | Founder & Director | Experienced Head of Digital Product
At Work: Focus on using your strengths more often.
Striving to be the employee that is great at everything, is so last year.
Today, I want to offer a different perspective on being seen as successful in the workplace.
I’m passionate about blowing up the myth of completeness in the workplace. You don't need to be great at everything, well rounded... or complete. In fact, striving for perfection is psychologically draining. What we should aim for is a deeper connection with our talents - loving the things we do well and embracing those activities that align with our natural strengths.
The Psychological Toll of Pretending
Trying to be someone you're not at work is exhausting. Whether it's pretending to be great at something, or trying to force yourself into roles that don't fit your strengths, it's a road to nowhere. It’s time to stop pretending to be someone you're not!
We all have something we struggle with at work, yet we push ourselves to appear competent in those areas. I want you to give yourself permission to let go of this fa?ade. Your first and most important relationship is with yourself. Ask yourself:
Knowing the answers to these questions is the first step toward a more authentic and fulfilling work life.
Redefining "Do What You Love"
When we talk about doing what we love, it’s not necessarily about finding one grand passion. Instead, it’s about recognising those activities that bring out the best in us—those tasks we naturally lean into. There’s an almost obsessive and joyous quality to doing work that engages our strengths. What makes you feel that way?
What Are Your True Strengths?
Strengths aren't just about what you're good at—they’re about what energises you. Think of a task that you not only excel at but also feel alive while doing. When you’re operating in your strengths, you feel:
I’ve seen this in my own life. Coaching others on their strengths, conducting research and learning more about coaching techniques, and helping others see career possibilities—these are examples of what engages my top Gallup strengths (Individualization, Learner, Futuristic) When I focus on these areas, I feel authentic, energised, and never drained. This is the kind of work we should be aiming to do more of.
Strengths vs. Weaknesses
It’s important to note that just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean it’s a strength. Many people are good at tasks they despise, which is a clear sign of a weakness.
For me, it was mathematics. I worked hard in school, but despite my efforts, the subject drained me. It wasn't a strength, even though I could do it to a level to achieve good grades. A weakness is any activity that weakens you—before, during, and after doing it. That was definitely the case with me and Math!
As Marcus Buckingham put it: “I don’t care how good you are at it, if it drains you and someone tells you to build a career around it, that’s sadistic.”
On the other hand, a strength is an activity that strengthens you. You lean into it because it excites and energises you.
How to Love All That You Do
So how do you shift from “pretending to be great at everything” to “loving all that you do”? The key is knowing your strengths and designing your role to play to those strengths as much as possible.
Here are some signs that you're working in your strengths:
By focusing on these areas, you turn your love into contribution, and your impact is not only noticed but celebrated.
The Power of Teaming and combining Strengths
Now let’s talk about a concept I’ve been passionate about for years: Teaming.?Teaming isn’t about everyone being perfect or well-rounded. It’s about leveraging each person’s unique strengths to enhance the overall performance of the team.
Rather than striving for individual completeness, teaming allows us to focus on what we do best and rely on others to complement our weaknesses.
Key aspects of teaming include:
Achieving Effective Teaming
To build an effective team culture based on strengths, follow these steps:
Blowing up the Myth of Completeness at work
We need to blow up the myth of completeness. Stop striving to be good at everything. Focus on what you’re naturally great at, and allow others to help where you need it.
Your genius lies in your specificity—those strengths that come so naturally to you, when it feels almost too easy. That’s where your greatest contribution lies.
Take a moment today to ask yourself:
By diving deeper into your strengths, you’ll not only love what you do—you’ll also contribute at a higher level and feel more fulfilled.
If you’d like to explore how to design your role around your strengths, let’s chat. We can work together to ensure you’re spending more of your time doing what strengthens and energises you. Until next time, Binny
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Binny Langler champions the radical idea that you can design the work life you want.
By coaching you on how to write the next chapter of your work story with YOU as the hero, spotlighting your unique superpowers.
As Founder & Director of The Inkling Effect, Binny has over 20 years of experience in helping professionals discover and apply their unique strengths to create more fulfilling and meaningful work.
A certified Executive, Gallup Global Strengths Coach & Career Change Coach - with a Masters of Entrepreneurship & Innovation.
Her mission is to be a change catalyst for curious professionals who are seeking a fresh start in their career journey. She uses a fast-track process that reveals your superpowers to enable you to script the next chapter of your work story with intention and purpose. Binny specialises in challenging the status quo, utilising Design-Thinking to empower her clients to embrace their potential and pursue brilliance, whether that be in their current role, or transitioning to something entirely different.
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