Freak Factor

The article Freak Factor discusses the ideas behind weakness, and the fallacies and facts in the nine points he makes discussing this topic. I think that weakness has different meanings for different people, or is subjective. For instance males often feel that if they don't act like an alpha male, or appear to be physically strong, they are literally weak, where as some people think if you're not especially smart you're really weak, and that both of those things are huge weaknesses. The idea of weakness, in my opinion, is very subjective, even though Rendall brings up very good points about it.

There were a couple of his points that I didn't one hundred percent agree with, but a lot of them that I think are entirely true. The one that I especially disagreed with was number four, "Don't try to fix your weaknesses." He states that some people just have their limitations, and they cannot do anything to change that. I disagree with this, and I think the majority of people would too. We are taught in movies and television shows everyday that this statement is false, because it's detrimental to ones chances of bettering themselves. How many times are we constantly told "Nothing is impossible?" I truly believe a weakness can be turned into a strength with enough attention given to making it better. You're not overcoming weakness by saying you have weaknesses, and then not trying to make them better.

The one point that I really agreed with was number five, expanding on your strengths. If one never built on what they were already good at, they have limited themselves to what they can achieve, especially in a creative world. Rendall states "You have the greatest potential in your areas of strength.These are your natural gifts and provide you with your best chances for success." This statement solidifies why some of the greats are so great. Steven Spielberg didn't make his first great movie, and then quit. He kept expanding on his strength of being a great director, working on more projects, helping others produce their projects, and kept getting better and better. If one just gave up, and didn't pursue making their strengths better, they would limit themselves creatively.

The last one "Focus. Don't try to do both" I also disagreed with. I think it's limiting especially in our area or industry to not be as literate in every aspect of the creative world as we can. If we have a strength, we should keep up with it, but we should also try to expand on our weaknesses so we can be as well rounded as possible. I think this is very possible, with enough time spent trying to do both. Get rid of wasteful time, and focus on building your strengths, and expanding on your weaknesses.

I have found that in my experiences so far trying to be creative that my strengths have become camera work, and writing. I think very visually, so when I come up with a shot idea, it inherently helps me come up with a story. When I have a shot, I think, well how did this happen, why is this character doing this, why is it framed like this, etc? It helps me come up with defining those reasons, and inherently coming up with a story idea. I really enjoy this technique, and although it might not work for some people, I have found it works for me. My biggest weakness at the moment, is editing. I do not know anything about editing, but I wish to expand on this weakness and get good at it one day. I think with enough time spent, and enough reading and practice, I can turn this weakness into a strength.