On Being a Two

I had a lot of feedback from you, my beloved readers, on my “What Are You?” post from a week or so ago. Some of the most asked questions were:

• Can a two be a one and visa versa?
• What does it look like to be successful as a two?

Can a Two be a One and Visa Versa?

The answer to this is definitely yes, though I think it requires more effort and stepping outside your comfort zone. For example, twos usually don’t mind being in the background and not being in the spotlight. Perhaps you don’t like speaking in front of people or selling your product / service / idea. I knew this was a weakness for me, so I took a class on public speaking and have been working on building my sales skills.

For those of us who don’t like drawing attention to ourselves, this can feel really unnatural, but it’s part of professional growth. The bottom line is the more you understand and can do, the more valuable you are regardless of your “official” role at the company.

I also am now quite comfortable simply saying out loud that I don’t need to be out front. I know I can be if it’s required, but if someone else loves doing that, all the better.

As far as ones being twos, I get the feeling that’s probably a bit harder. The best ones have such clear vision about the future that ceding that future to anyone else seems completely unnatural. However, the good ones realize that they need twos just as much as twos need ones.

Perhaps one and two is more accurately defined as “1” and “1A”, as a good friend of mine said last week.

How Can You Be a Successful Two?

Of course it depends on how you define success, but here’s my thoughts:

• Always be looking for ways to acquire more “1” skills (see above for examples)
• Pay attention to the people in your network or area who are doing work you find interesting and get to know them. No strings attached.
• Find 1’s who clearly have blind spots where you excel. For example, if you’re a technologist, find people who are looking to build tech companies but don’t know how to code.
• ABL – Always Be Learning. This is the case regardless, but remember that 1’s don’t naturally think they need help. That’s why they’re 1’s. They’re much more apt to go it alone. The more you know about the problem being solved, the better.

A trap us twos fall into frequently is devaluing our contribution. Don’t believe it. The contribution can, and should be, equal. It’s just different.