What's up GOOD people! I am introducing a new series that I will be uncovering up until the release of my FIRST book (G.O.M.S.) This series is called "The Scouting Report." What is the scouting report?! A scouting report definition is: the activity of gathering information or searching an area. In sports this is used often, particularly in football. With this series I am going dive deep into gathering "information" of topics, but for now I'm going to focus on "us," and the opposition. Who is the opposition!? We will get to that in future blogs. For now, I want to focus on us- our strengths & weaknesses. In football, during a season- A team has on average 7 days to prepare for their opponent. They embark in a week of scouting, game-planning, and a heavy dose of practicing for that opponent, in hopes of preparing themselves for that opponent, and ultimately be victorious against that opponent.. What if we took that formula of scouting and applied it to our opponent in life? and everything else that prevents us from being victorious in our own right?? What would our preparation and ultimate success look like if that was the case?? Stay tune for future blogs touching on topics like: The Opponent, Chess Not Checkers, The NFL vs. NCAA & many more! The general idea of this is to help each of us truly understand and know who WE are. After all, we spend the most time with ourselves anyway.
For now, back to this focus on scouting. Before a team ever gets to prepare for their opponent they enter their 'training camp.' This time is usually during the late summer, for football, and is a month long training, practicing, perfecting a team's craft- in preparation of the opponent/enemy to come. In this training camp a team gets to practice, practice, practice, learn, learn, learn, and implement, implement, implement the things they feel are necessary for the success of their team. In the same breath, they also get to closely scout and assess their teams STRENGTHS & WEAKNESSES: what areas they excel in, what areas they need improvement in, who can play this position, who can play that position, and what is the best formula for our success! This should be no different for us; and I hope that by the time this blog is finished you have a closer idea of YOUR scouting report, so that you can plan for YOUR success, AND for the opponent(s) to come.
With that being said, in a general sense, I want you all to think about YOU and your character. The definition of someones character is: attribute(s) that make up and distinguish an individual. These specific attributes or traits make you who you are, some are good and some we need to work on. So, what are your character strengths !? It could be you are really good at talking, learning, have good social skills, playing a specific sport, listening to others, teaching, whatever it is write it down! At least 3. (Check out the list below for some helpful character traits.)
Have your 3?? or more?? Now think about how you use your strengths? for good or for bad?! This is useful because essentially every strength given to us can be used freely, But God wants you to use it for good. What are some things you can learn to be stronger in ? These are things you aren't necessarily weak in but can use improvements, these are things useful for your life, maybe it's fear, forgiving, self -control at work LOL, or if you are on a team- you need to perfect a specific skill to get that starting position, or prepare for that opponent- who is already ready. Write it down, and write down some things you can do to get better in that department. So that you can be a better version of yourself once training camp is finished, and your season starts :) How does your strengths fit in your life? In what areas of your life do they help you excel? In what areas in your life do they get you in trouble? if any. This is good to think about because it allows you to fully assess your strengths and use of your strengths in the world around you. For example, someone can be really good at humor/clowning and if you use that strength in the right places like: social settings, comedy shows, or family gatherings you will fare pretty well.. but if you use it in the classroom to embarrass your teacher, or during a traffic stop to annoy an officer, you may not fare so well LOL. Another example is someone can possess leadership skills, but if you use it to lead people to do bad things then you are freely using it for bad, feel me!? Being aware of your strengths and what areas in your life to use them properly prepares you for success, purposefully building up the world around you, and helps you avoid sticky situations like the ones mentioned LOL.
Secondly, what are your weaknesses?? This can be a hard thing to admit but is very necessarily for your growth. Own up to it, address, and growth can happen. For me, I have struggled with punctuality, procrastination, and lying (In my dating life LOL) But, owning up to it as well as other weaknesses is the first step towards growth. And even, it says that we should speak about our weaknesses to God so that he may display His power. "That is why, for Christ sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardship, in persecutions, in difficulties, For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12:10. This verse, I think, highlights the fact that EVERYONE has a weakness or weaknesses, and in a way keep us all humble and dependent on the LORD to overcome things. I want to encourage you to write them out, at least 3. If you are brave enough to share them, you can do it below. Let's be transparent with each other and grow. Some notable weaknesses according to (oocities.org) are: critical, judgmental, or proud; inflexible, indecisive, afraid; STUBBORN LOL, or foolish- and the list goes on, what are some of your honest weaknesses?
On a football team, during training camp, you are fully aware of your weaknesses- as a team, and as a individual. How do your weaknesses fit in your life? Are they preventing you from blossoming into the Purposeful version of yourself? Are they preventing you from taking that chance at love? For example, someones weakness may be trust, possibly from consistent heartbreak, and in turn that person may have a hard time trusting new people, genuine people, that may be there for good. Whatever your weakness is, put it in a close lens, what areas in your life is it hindering? if any. Overcoming these may be easier said then done, but with prayer, faith, and action you can do it! Knowing them during this time is helpful because you can spend camp working on strengthening your weaknesses, putting yourself in a better position for the opponent(s) to come. When the opponent scouts YOU and your team, know that they too scout and know a teams strengths or weaknesses, or individuals strength and weaknesses, and plans accordingly. Be ready for your Victory.
What should you do when you discover or understand both your strengths & weaknesses?? The same thing every other team is doing: strengthen your strengths and strengthen your weaknesses! Also, it doesn't hurt to have a lot of bit of God in there. "You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you." Philippians 4:13
Until next time,
Thank you for reading.
William A. Wallace
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