What will be the cost of turning my weakness into strength?

• What will be the cost of turning my weakness into strength?

My first consideration is whether or not resources are used to invest in weaknesses. Here, I refer to four variables: time, money, bandwidth, and the cost of opportunity.

Time and money are apparent. If it's going to cost me years of my life and thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of dollars to turn weakness into strength, I'm going to ask, is this an investment worth it? Of course, a weakness that can be addressed in a few weeks — at a much lower cost — can be a different storey.

Money and time. Self-help author Steve Paulina put a few hundred dollars into a basic setup when faced with a lot of weaknesses in making videos — using clothing pins instead of fancy clips, and a shower curtain as a light diffuser, to determine whether or not it would be worth a higher investment down the road.

With the bandwidth. For me, personally, "bandwidth" takes into account the investment of time and money in light of everything else going on in my life. Even if I am prepared to commit to a long-term project — and I have the capital at my disposal — how does that commitment stack up against everything else I do? Which of my current projects would influence a new weakness, if any, to address it?

Cost of Opportunity. At once, you can't do everything. Focusing on one vulnerability means letting others slide (or scaling down your investment on a wider scale in other projects). To justify the cost of opportunity for other weaknesses, that investment needs to be worth it.

I let my health slide when I first started my former agency, Single Grain. I was going to put on 40 pounds and I was so out of shape that I was winded just going to our office upstairs.

I ran through the above four factors and I knew that — even though it would take an energy commitment and a compromise in the bandwidth I would have allocated to other projects, it was too great to ignore the cost of opportunity of being unhealthy. I changed my diet radically and made time for kickboxing, weight-lifting, hiking, biking and rock climbing.

• How important is it to me that this weakness becomes strength?

I'm not a great cook. I can handle basic dishes, but with anything more complicated than spaghetti, I struggle.

But for me, that's not really a problem. And when I'm travelling, I'm surrounded by great food in Austin. Not being able to cook something by myself doesn't significantly change my quality of life. But one of the weaknesses that is an issue? My fear of talking in public.

Back when I was thinking about this, I knew I needed to be out on the conference circuit in order to build a brand for myself and my companies. And I always loved sharing my knowledge on my blog and YouTube channel and the lessons I've learned. I just hated sharing it on stage, in front of hundreds of people.

It never made sense to invest in my weak cooking abilities. I may not be a great cook, but there's no need for me to be. On the other hand, getting over my public speaking weakness was hugely important in my ability to grow my businesses. All the sacrifices I've made and the discomfort I've faced to become stronger in that area has been worth it.

• Is my weakness an opportunity for somebody else?

I'm not saying that your top priority should always be an issue for others. But there are definitely instances where it makes more sense to let others shine than to attempt to become strong on your own.

I used to compare my sales style to his, thinking that, by comparison, mine was weak. What I eventually came to realize was that it was not only my different sales style that worked fine

For me, but it would be a disservice to him to try to turn me into AJ. I allowed his strength to complement my weaker areas by letting him take the lead on sales.

For it, the business was better, and my time was released to work on other weaknesses that really moved the needle for us.

Investment prioritization in yourself

Typically, vulnerability is not an emergency. You do not have to fix everything you see as being "wrong" with yourself, despite what external forces would have you believe.

Alternatively, give priority to your investments in yourself. Keep in mind the resources available, weigh the effect of solving one weakness over another and verify the broader perspective. The answer will become clear as to when to invest in your weaknesses and when to save your time and money.