Blog 10

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


"The Freak Factor: Discovering Your Uniqueness by Flaunting Weakness" by David Rendall is an insightful look at your personal strengths and weaknesses. Weakness is considered to be a flaw, or something that is wrong with you and a strength is considered to be a powerful trait you possess. However, Rendall explains to us that a weakness is also a powerful trait we possess but unfortunately it is frowned upon. Rendall tells us to work with both  of our strengths and weaknesses to reach highest potential without being mediocre at everything.  The three suggestions I found most interesting were numbers three, six, and nine.

Number three was the most compelling suggestion because I never really looked at strengths having a reciprocal . So after I read his strengths/weaknesses, I thought of some others. If your weakness is worrying, you are most likely cautious and if your weakness is slow, you are most likely precise. The two strengths and weaknesses Rendall mentioned that I found most interesting were patient/indecisive and reflective/shy. I found these most interesting because I have noticed these strengths and weaknesses in people and in myself. I am a fairly shy person the first time I meet someone, (Rendall talks about don’t try to fix your weaknesses in suggestion four but I do think being shy is a weakness you should work on because you end up holding yourself back if you don’t) but after awhile I loosen up. On the contrary, I realize I am a very reflective person which causes me to be a patient person, but at the same time I have become very indecisive because I think about each end of the spectrum and their consequences before I make a sound decision. Which takes entirely way longer than it should.

Suggestion six “Focus: You Can’t Do Both” was another engaging slide. The thing I liked most about suggestion six was the “Freak Fallacy: I need to be well rounded” and the “Freak Factor: No one will pay you for being mediocre”. I think this is completely true. In our study, its good to know a little bit about everything. Know how to work audio, know how to work lighting, know how to work set, know how to do programs, know principles of photography, know principles of multimedia. Be able to speak the lingo, but be able to shine in at least one of these areas. Our whole education is centered around a major that we chose so we can gain the knowledge to create our ideas. So along the way to graduation, take classes that you will benefit from that will help you create your most ultimate work in an area you need to be exceptional in. For me, video production. I chose video production so I must now understand everything I am doing or every class I’m taking will and should correlate to my major and I will learn from it so I can become exceptional in my field of study.

Number nine was my third favorite suggestion. The sub-suggestions I liked most about “Freak Factor: Putting Your Quirks to Work”  was number 2 “Engage in permanent procrastination”.  I like number two because I think it is truthful. If you are forcing yourself to like something, and telling yourself to do it while pretending to like it...its a total waste of time. There is no reason to forcefully pretend to like something or do it. It is also a waste of valuable time that you could be putting towards something you are interested in. For example, I keep telling myself to get involved with AVW but when I look at the projects I just think they are cheesy and cliche, (not trying to be offensive, just a personal opinion), and I think the material they are producing does not meet college-level expectation. So instead, I shouldn’t participate in something I don’t like, I should find a group of people or organization that I share similar interest with so I can work with something I do like.

After doing blogs concerning strengths and weaknesses, ideas, and “acknowledging the lizard” I have come to believe my biggest weakness in “the creative process” is being timid. When it comes to creating with other individuals in a group, I don’t usually express my ideas until there is a window of opportunity. I’m not exactly sure why I don’t mention my ideas. I’m not afraid of critique but it may be directed towards a lack of confidence (?). Sometimes in groups I tend to believe that other people have better ideas than mine but if I don’t voice my exact opinion, I will never know. I need to start doing this and I think with the start of media 240 in spring quarter, I will have to.