SWOC for Self Introspection

Self Introspection provides access to know own mental states. When the time comes to make decisions regarding career path, career growth/ progress, self-introspection plays a very important role in decision making. Most of the time we have seen that mentors suggest to go for self-introspection but people get difficult to analyze themselves. SWOC (Strength, Weakness, Opportunities, Challenges) analysis will play a very important role in self-introspection. 

I found some questions in one published material i.e. Personal SWOT Analysis by Bella Zoditama on June 23, 2015  to analyze personal SWOT. The following questions will help everyone to understand their area of interest and decide what to do in a career.

Strengths

• What advantages do you have that others don't have (for example, skills, certifications, education, or connections)?

• What do you do better than anyone else?

• What personal resources can you access?

• What do other people (and your boss, in particular) see as your strengths?

• Which of your achievements are you most proud of?

• What values do you believe in that others fail to exhibit?

• Are you part of a network that no one else is involved in? If so, what connections do you have with influential people?

Weakness 

• What tasks do you usually avoid because you don't feel confident doing them?

• What will the people around you see as your weaknesses?

• Are you completely confident in your education and skills training? If not, where are you weakest?

• What are your negative work habits (for example, are you often late, are you disorganized, do you have a short temper, or are you poor at handling stress)?

• Do you have personality traits that hold you back in your field? For instance, if you have to conduct meetings on a regular basis, a fear of public speaking would be a major weakness.

Opportunities

• What new technology can help you? Or can you get help from others or from people via the Internet?

• Is your industry growing? If so, how can you take advantage of the current market?

• Do you have a network of strategic contacts to help you, or offer good advice?

• What trends (management or otherwise) do you see in your company, and how can you take advantage of them?

• Are any of your competitors failing to do something important? If so, can you take advantage of their mistakes?

• Is there a need in your company or industry that no one is filling?

• Do your customers or vendors complain about something in your company? If so, could you create an opportunity by offering a solution?

You might find useful opportunities in the following:

• Networking events, educational classes, or conferences.

• A colleague going on an extended leave. Could you take on some of this person's projects to gain experience?

• A new role or project that forces you to learn new skills, like public speaking or international relations.

• A company expansion or acquisition. Do you have specific skills (like a the second language) that could help with the process?

Challenges

• What obstacles do you currently face at work?

• Are any of your colleagues competing with you for projects or roles?

• Is your job (or the demand for the things you do) changing?

• Does changing technology threatens your position?

• Could any of your weaknesses lead to threats?

A Personal SWOC Example

What would a personal SWOC assessment look like? Review this SWOC analysis for Mr.Vishal, an advertising manager.

Strengths

• I'm very creative. I often impress clients with a new perspective on their brands.
• I communicate well with my clients and team.
• I have the ability to ask key questions to find just the right marketing angle.
• I'm completely committed to the success of a client's brand.

Weaknesses

• I have a strong, compulsive need to do things quickly and remove them from my "to do" list, and sometimes the quality of my work suffers as a result.
• This same need to get things done also causes me stress when I have too many tasks.
• I get nervous when presenting ideas to clients, and this fear of public speaking often takes the passion out of my presentations.

Opportunities

• One of our major competitors has developed a reputation for treating their smaller clients poorly.
• I'm attending a major marketing conference next month. This will allow for strategic networking, and also offer some great training seminars.
• Our art director will go on maternity leave soon. Covering her duties while she's away would be a great career development opportunity for me.

Challenges

• Rohit, one of my colleagues, is a much stronger speaker than I am, and he's competing with me for the art director position.
• Due to recent staff shortages, I'm often overworked, and this negatively impacts my creativity.
• The current economic climate has resulted in slow growth for the marketing industry. Many firms have laid off staff members, and our company is considering further cutbacks.

As a result of performing this analysis, Vishal takes the bold step of approaching her colleague Rohit about the art director's maternity leave. Vishal proposes that both she and Rohit cover the job's duties, working together and each using his or her strengths. To her surprise, Rohit likes the idea. He knows he presents very well, but he admits that he's usually impressed by Vishal's creative ideas, which he feels are far better than most of his.

Kindly use the model to do your self Introspection and comment on your experience. 


Dr.Ganesh Pathak
Associate Professor


Reference: Personal SWOT Analysis - 

https://bellazoditama.wordpress.com/2015/06/23/personal-swot-analysis/

https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_05_1.htm