First of all, let me thank you for your kind words. I hope that we wil have soon again an opportunity to meet each other in Bangkok during one of your holiday trips.

The weakness-based approach is still widely used in many areas. For example, any consultancy firm that you hire will start with the question “What is your problem? What is going wrong?” Of course, if you look for problems, you will find them. And if you look for more problems, you will find more of them , bringing you into a negativity spiral.

With people management, it is often similar. Feedback talks focus often on what was going wrong (the weaknesses) rather than what was going right. And as you rightly pointed out, it is undermining our strengths and can lead to lots of frustration.

Thanking you again for your comments.

Best regards,
Heinz Landau

First I want to say that I highly appreciate, as maybe many other readers do, that you and the other authors regularly share your thoughts and give us the opportunity to learn from your broad life experience. Second, now I just want to share my little thought/comment with you regarding the written article above.

I’m just wondering about your statement that management level of firms used to lead their people based on the so-called “weakness-based approach” . Isn’t it a rather logical and natural thought that it is much better to put people on tasks/problems that we know is best for them, or in other words that fits best their skills and capabilities? Thought it was by all time the unwritten law to recruit people only when we believe that they are the best or show clear strengths for certain tasks & responsibilities, though (as you said) certain weaknesses must be lifted to an “acceptable” standard. So, every leadership style that is merely/largely focused on “weakness-based approach” must be doomed to fail as it causes fear and uncertainty, undermining the unlifted potential of strength that is within everyone of us.

Good article, hope to get further input from you and the others. Wish you a good business week with your new employer Mr. Landau.

Best regards from Germany/Munich

Stefan Wallrapp