My Biggest strength and greatest weakness

My greatest strength and my biggest weakness are the same thing: stubbornness.

I can dig my heels in like no other. In the therapy room, this is an asset. It makes me a fearless ally, willing to face down fears before a client is ready to speak their names. It allows me to stand still while the emotional current roars around us—modeling that topics like sex, money, and the therapy relationship itself are safe to enter.

But as an adult, I’ve had to learn that standing firm doesn’t require hardness. I can stand my ground and remain kind at the same time.

For a long time, my stubbornness looked like persistence at all costs. I believed that if I just worked "hard enough" at therapy, I could outpace what my body was asking of me. I missed the lesson:

Slowing down wasn’t a failure of effort. It was the work.

I’ve learned that stubbornness is only generative when paired with curiosity. When I stop to ask, "Is this actually helping?" it shifts from a limitation into something soulful.

I wonder what that duality looks like for you. What strengths do you carry that also become obstacles? And how do we navigate that tension together with care?