Have you ever wondered why someone known to you and successful in his career has steadily deteriorated and is now a pale shadow of their past? The most generalized attribution would be not having kept pace with time, getting into a comfort zone, competition hotting up, etc. But more often than not, it is not just a flaw, it’s a lesser known but more dangerous form of flaw – A Fatal Flaw.
Fatal flaw refers to that one core flaw which has the potential to derail your growth and potentially cause your downfall. It is so deep seated that it requires conscious and painful effort to identify it. It camouflages itself as a personality trait which is often overlooked. It is often a pattern of behaviour which can derail career and or relationships. The mindset of a person with a fatal flaw can result in him/her doing self-sabotage or self-negotiate all the time, preventing him from fulfilling a task to its natural completion.
The Fatal Flaw shows up slowly, and regularly at irregular intervals first but consistently over a period of time. It camouflages itself as a personality trait. It identifies itself as a weakness, but it transforms into a raging problem which can be, in worst case scenario, a debilitating one.
All fatal flaws are rooted in a core thing – They are usually stuff that you don't like doing. And this is because your mind, instead of working on the task, will make you “self-negotiate” to avoid the job. And over a period of time, this “self-negotiate” behaviour will end up making you “self-sabotage” your career.
Identifying your fatal flaw is a 3 step process: One of the most potent ways is to look for patterns in your work style which is affecting your productivity of late: e.g, missing deadlines or becoming short-tempered.
It’s a herculean task to find flaws in yourself! Take feedback from close colleagues who have known you for a while in your office. Ask them pointed questions like – what has changed in your style of work or approach to work lately which isn’t helping you?
Are you getting too emotionally charged more often than not to mundane things like, for example, a meeting getting rescheduled or getting defensive on a casual feedback?
How do you work on your Fatal Flaw?
However big or small, boring or repulsive, the task is to take action immediately whenever it comes to your mind, desk, or mailbox. Just take the first step on it.
Set a small reward for the behavior that you are trying to correct.
Be forgiving. Don’t beat yourself up for behaving in this manner.
So get going. Find your fatal flaw and work towards eliminating it.
By:
Amit Adilabadkar,
Brand communications veteran with over 24 years of experience. He can be contacted at adilabadkar@gmail.com