Has my perspective change or have my standards lowered?

I'm Angela Duckworth.

I'm Stephen Dubner.

And you're listening to No Stupid Questions.

Today on the show, is it better to invest in your strengths or improve on your weaknesses?

You might think I'm really funny, but then other people might say,

uh,

also, why do we like and dislike the things that we like and dislike? For two years, I had the exact

same lunch. On purpose?

Angela, this is a classic question from a listener.

It's an essential question, I would argue.

Okay, shoot.

What is it?

Did I build it up too much?

I know.

I'm kind of like no question can live up to this introduction, but I want to know what it is.

So this is from Emily Ward, who lives in Richmond, Virginia.

Should we capitalize on our

strengths or work on our weaknesses? This is a great question. Is that not the universe in one question?

It is the universe in one question. And it's a question I've been thinking about since the first day of

graduate school, because when I went to repurpose myself as a psychologist,

I discovered that my advisor, Marty Seligman, was the founder of positive psychology.

...