Your “weakness” is your opportunity.
For entrepreneurs, the problem that haunts you may just set you free.
It’s tough to be vulnerable.
It’s a rough world out there, and it’s only natural to armor up.
Keep your weaknesses close to the vest.
They could be used against you, right?
But what if your “weakness” is actually your unique opportunity?
As entrepreneurs, we’re always searching for the right problem to solve.
It can be tempting to pick something that’s hot right now or something that could make you rich.
But if you’re just chasing fads and fortune, you’ll have endless competition and little advantage.
Instead, ask yourself: in a world of 7.5 billion people, what problem were you uniquely put here to tackle?
Hint: it might be the thing that haunts you.
Since I was a kid, social anxiety has been my “weakness”.
It’s the thing I was deeply ashamed of and the thing I tried to hide for most of my life.
It was from this place of vulnerability that I created Pacifica1 in 2015 to help others like me.
In doing so, I outed myself as an anxiety sufferer.
I was terrified that I’d be ridiculed or that my career would be over.
The opposite happened.
Millions of people signed up for the app and for the first time, found a place to connect over shared experiences.
We won awards (Apple’s Best of 2017, Google Editor’s Choice) and were featured in The New York Times, BuzzFeed, Forbes, and the like.
Far more importantly though, I learned that our most personal struggles are the same ones that make us human.
The same ones that connect us and endear us to others.
No one is perfect. Everyone is flawed.
But no matter what you're going through, you're not the only one.
This revelation became the mission of the company and served as our north star, through good times and bad, until the end.
Pacifica was acquired in late 2018, and looking back, it exceeded even my wildest expectations.
I’m here to tell you first-hand that your “weakness” may just be your opportunity, your million dollar insight, your problem to solve.
Lucky for you, you know this problem intimately, inside and out.
You don’t just understand it. You embody it.
How much research would it take to replicate the knowledge gained from your experience?
A lifetime’s?
Good, this is your competitive advantage.
That and being brave enough to solve a problem you actually have.
Even when it's uncomfortable to do so.
You see, everyone has a cross to bear.
The root of their worries. The source of their pain.
The hidden thing that keeps them up at night.
Then along comes your product to address it head-on.
And there you are front and center, brazen enough to say “Hey, this is me, and I’m doing this to help others like me.”
And in doing so, you instantly serve your audience with genuine empathy and care.
It can’t be faked.
They’ll feel your vulnerability.
They'll value your authenticity.
If someone is willing to share something so revealing of themselves, and deep down, I share the same problem…
Then I innately trust you.
In a world of billions, your “weakness” is what separates you, but it is also what connects you.
And as an entrepreneur, you’re going to succeed by understanding your problem better than anyone else.
For me, it was social anxiety.
For you, it could be anything.
So what secret are you hiding?
What keeps you up at night?
I don't know, but you certainly do.
So take the leap into the unknown.
It’s okay to be scared.
You're the one to do this.
For if not you, who will?