In 1982, scientists pulled a shipwreck out of the sea and swarmed the former “bodyguards” on board.
But these were no ordinary bodyguards. These were english archerssome of the most feared warriors of all time. They had the power to smoke out a target 500 years away, requiring 150 to 200 pounds of pulling power (three times the drag of an average bow). This meant that these warriors passed the majority of his life simply building up enough strength to use the longbow.
However, this brutal training took a serious toll on your body.
In fact, researchers can easily identify longbowmen by their “slick skeletons” and bulky arm (typically 48% larger). Additionally, many exhibited overuse injuries to the shoulder and lower back.
So his superhuman strength came in a major cost.
Reminds me of a quote a friend once hit me with,”It’s like our greatest weakness is our greatest strength.” It was true for English archers. And it’s true for most people too. Often what we call a weakness is Really A force.
(And this is sometimes why we cling to it).
For example, let’s say worrying is your Achilles heel. And in many ways it hurts…
…But at the same time, worrying can actually to serve you. It can allow you to anticipate future consequences and take action in advance.
Or maybe your downfall is perfection. And maybe sometimes it paralyzes you and stresses you a lot…
… But at the same time, most likely perfection what’s more it serves you in some way. For many people, it pushes them to push their performance into high gear.
So the question becomes:
Has your strength turned into a weakness?
Has it become a “bulky arm” like our friends archers?
If so, restore balance on the opposite side.
Take perfectionism, for example:
One way to restore balance is to lower your standard a couple of levels to the “good enough” line. Not the ‘slope line’. Good enough. (If you give an assignment another day…another week…another month…it’s forever it will be better). Work until you get to that line, then submit it. In Chapter 17 of Primal Panic Solutions, I share five additional ways to perfectly restore balance and become plus productive in the process.
But first of all, find out what your “weakness” does for you… how it serves you… what it gives you…
You can think, It does nothing for me!
But you may be surprised.
Let this one stay in the background and see what happens to it.