Freak Factor

http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/45.02.FreakFactor

This article, "Freak Factor: Discovering Uniqueness by Flaunting Weakness" is about how no one can actually be a freak. Each person has different strengths, weaknesses, and desires in life. People grow up believing that they need to be a certain way and have certain strengths and no weaknesses and if you have a weakness than it needs to be fixed. Really it's a focus of self-improvement.
Three of the nine suggestions I found to be interesting include:

1). What's Your Problem?- This is simple, what is your weakness? A weakness is seen as a problem and people try to fix it. At the same time, people want to build up their strengths. Fixing a weakness and building a strength gives "well-roundedness" to people that David Rendall refers to. Reality is that we as humans are not perfect and flaws make us uniquely who we are. My own flaws give me the characteristics that make up my personality. I found this to be rather uplifting because it means that fixing problems is just a waste of time. Fixing weaknesses are often ineffective and the ideal to be well-rounded is unattainable. As children in school, as Rendall points out, if you are lacking in an area whether it be sports or academics, then it needs an improvement plan to be well-rounded. This idea is crazy because of the unattainability to be well-rounded.  Overall this suggestion is valid in my opinion. Instead of trying to overcome a weakness, it should be embraced. By realizing that it is impossible to be well-rounded, then it becomes easier to see that uniqueness comes from some of these "flaws". If more people realized this like Rendall, then I think that people would strive to be creative in their own ways rather than the ways society tells them too.

6). Focus: You Can't Do Both-  To focus on strengths and weaknesses takes a lot of effort and not to mention time. It is even difficult to do and fixing them will not work out well. By working on a strength and fixing a weakness it limits progress. By doing both it prevents us from becoming exceptional in another area according to Rendall. Weaknesses and strengths are linked so by the attempts at fixing the weakness, you're actually diminishing the corresponding strength. Therefor it is better to focus just one, and preferably a strength. Since we already know that fixing a weakness is pretty much just a waste of time, than we can focus on improving one strength. By doing this you build up what needs to built up and it then gives you and extra bit of uniqueness. No one is paid  to be mediocre. I think this is a very valid point. If people spent more time focusing on their strengths, and less time on their weaknesses, then I think they can be truly amazing people rather than striving to be mundane. For me personally I think that if I spent less time fixing my weaknesses than I can stive for excellence at something else, more importantly something that I love. I would not want to be mediocre.

3). Flawless: There's Nothing Wrong With You- This step basically states how every strength has a corresponding weakness and vice versa. Benefits are gained if you harness the power of your weakness. Instead of seeing a weakness as natural, we see it as a problem to fix. This is just going to fail because of particular advantages and disadvantages that give characteristics to our strengths. An example is if you are creative, then you are unorganized. I find this to be true, as far-fetched as it may sound. But because people are not good at everything an inherently have flaws and weaknesses it makes sense. I see it as a balancing act. To make up for a weakness you have a strength. You can even find strength within your weakness. I see that with my own weaknesses. Each weakness is counteracted with a strength.  

My strengths and weaknesses- I have a weakness of being really shy. As I have read this Freak Factor, I have noticed that although I'm really shy, I spend a lot of time reflecting on things. All this time I thought I should try to be more outgoing when really I should work on reflections. I am also a fairly awkward person but my strength is I can understand others emotions and how they are feeling. I am also really indecisive but through that I have patience. These strengths I have are related to the creative process because I can be patience while working on something and I can play into others emotions for an artistic response. I can also reflect on my own work as well as others and see the creativity behind it. I think that this was a good article in understanding that it is okay to have weaknesses because in them there is strength and uniqueness.