Our Inner Goliath

If I were to ask, "Who do you most relate to -- David or Goliath?", most of us would answer, "David".  And that's a good thing.

But before we go in-depth (in another post) on the David archetype, let's consider for a moment that we might want to -- and can -- tap into our inner Goliath as well.   

In Malcolm Gladwell's May 2009 article How David Beats Goliath, he cites political scientist Ivan Arreguin-Toft who has analyzed every war fought between strong and weak combatants over the past 200 years.  "The Goliaths, those in which the stronger side was at least 10x more powerful, in terms of armed might and population", he found, "won in 71.5% per cent of the cases."

You may be thinking -- I like those odds, but when am I ever in a situation where I am 10x more powerful than my opponent?

More often than we believe.

Whether making something happen for ourselves, our family, business, or community -- power comes when we play to our strengths.  In war, strength is defined as "armed might and population".  In tacking life's challenges, strength(s), according to Dr. Laura Morgan Roberts, can be defined as:

1.    Our innate talents.
2.    The competencies we've developed;
3.    What we believe (our principles);
4.    Our identities (gender, race, ethnicity, religion).

What are your strengths?

Are they so much a part of who you are you don't recognize them?

Once you identify them, will you own them?

If we really believed that the odds of success were in our favor 7 out of 10 times, as did Goliath, how much more would we take on?

Comments

[Matt Langdon]

Am I the only one that thinks 71.5% is a low success rate for someone 10 times more powerful?

[Janna]

I think roughly 70% chance of winning is pretty high. If someone had told me that there was a 70% chance that my business would be successful, I would've done it. (In reality, I was told that my business had a 50% chance of being successful, and I still did it!) I did it because I knew I had the experience and education to be successful, which I name as my strengths.

I wonder if Whitney's point is that we are powerful, so with that strength plus 70% chance of winning - why not do it?

[Amy J o]

I just love how your posts always make me feel better about myself than before I read them. Am I really that powerful, and what are my strengths?

[Jenny]

I can identify that "what I believe" is definitely my biggest inner strength, and I WILL claim it. I recognize that I don't feel as much strength as I would like to defend my beliefs, but I'm working on that. Does strength=confidence?

[Chrysula Winegar]

It comes back to your recent post on power and how women feel it and express it in ways that still honor us being women. The trick is to combine the gifts of both of these warriors. Brute strength without creativity and thoughtfulness is just brute strength.

Which is why I think Matt Langdon's thought is interesting - for TEN TIMES the strength, 70+ % is not high enough. That means armies with 1/10 of the fight power won almost 30% of the time! Actually good odds for the underdog. Pure strength is not sufficient. Strength with application, is a whole other story.

Women need to be confident about trusting and wielding their power in ways that make sense for women, not cloning the male approach.

[EHD]

I have to agree with Matt and Chrysula--my first thought was that a 70% chance of winning was a low return for such an overwhelming power imbalance. What this says to me is (a) don't be discouraged if you feel like a David, and (b) don't ever take your situational advantage for granted! Intelligence and courage can count more than ammunition on hand, and pride (or complacency) go before a fall.

[Luisa Perkins]

Excellent. I often take my strengths for granted; I need to be more grateful for and appreciative of them. I think gratitude enhances confidence.

[Science Teacher Mommy]

Loved that article. (And Gladwell in general.) As soon as I saw your title it was automatically what I thought of. What I mostly took from it, however, is like Matt said: how is it possible that the underdog wins so often? Gladwell's hypothesis makes for fascinating reading.

Taking the analogy further, as you have here, in thinking that every individual there is a David side and a Goliath side. I was Goliath this week, and I'm wiped out. Next week I might something less even than David. Like a slug. :)

I love the idea that hard work and discipline can often matter more than talent. Having lots of the former and little of the latter often left me disgruntled when I was younger. But now that I have a little bit of life experience behind myself, I can see that diligence (dogged stubbornness) might be the best "talent" of all.

Not to threadjack, but did you see the TNY article a week or two after the above referenced that was about children and delayed gratification? It was simply called "Don't!" More on the self-discipline aspects of success.

[Robin Dickinson]

To Dr Robert's list of strengths, I would add 'Physical Gifts' e.g.
body size, shape, appearance, voice quality.

These can also be used as part of your strengths inventory.

"Stacking" your unique physical gifts (strengths) with your other strengths can be very powerful indeed.

For example, observe how Tony Robbins uses his size, presence and voice tonality to full effect.

Best, Robin