The following is an excerpt from my essay published over on my blog, which you can find here.
We as humans (what else would we be?) discuss strengths as though they’re infinitely transferable, almost portable, as though the systematic thinking that makes one excellent at debugging code will serve us just as well when one’s body is demanding rest. Or as though the determination that propelled you through university will be precisely what’s needed when you’re recovering from burnout (it won’t). This assumption is, I think, one of the more insidious lies we tell ourselves about personal development, right up there with “just be yourself” and “everything happens for a reason”; advice that sounds useful and profound on the surface, but is often said with as much vacancy and hollowness as the mug whereon it was printed.
The problem (and this becomes obvious the moment you examine what we really mean by “strength”) is that we’ve muddled capability with virtue. …
Read more where this essay was originally published on my website.