Makes you stronger

Ok, so back to strengths… For the same collegiate leadership program mentioned before, we make each student participant read the StrengthsFinder 2.0 book and complete the assessment. Many colleges are requiring students to take it because it’s importance. Why? Throughout the course of the program, we teach the students to not only know their strengths, but how to use them to their advantages, specifically in the work world… in team work, in understanding coworkers’ quirks and differences from yourself, in a company culture and/or your specific role, etc. So since we teach this, what kind of program leader would I be if I didn’t take the test myself?

Once you do the “answer which describes you most” question, zillions of times it pops out a report on your top 5 “strengths” out of a list of 34 options. In theory, these strengths should be things I’m able to use on a daily basis… because I will be a better employee and coworker if I can.

Here are my results. And they are ridiculously dead on.

• Empathy – sense the feelings of other people by imagining themselves in others’ lives or situations.
• Developer – recognize and cultivate the potential in others.
• Woo – love the challenge of meeting new people and winning them over
• Positivity – upbeat and can get other excited about what they are going to do
• Communication – easy to put their thoughts into words (written)

After typing all of these out, I realized this comes across as ‘tooting my own horn, look at me’ when in reality, think of the power I now have in knowing these things about myself. And how much power you’ll have too when you take the test. I must drink the water because I think every employee in every organization should take the test and then under go some training to better understand all of it. I know my organization would probably have much less drama, gossip and stress if we knew the ins and outs of how the other operated. You dig?

Ok enough about work life and strengths consider the potential in personal lives. Example: Brian could never understand why the hell I talked so much. On road trips, shopping trips, movie previews, and sometimes during the movie itself… then I showed him my list. Hello… this is how I’m wired, no can do about the situation. SO now he has a little more patience with me because of the above list. And I made him take the same test, for the same reason. And it’s insanely helpful.

Make the StrengthsFinder 2.0 the next “adult book” you purchase (and pick one up for your significant other while you’re at it)… an access code is included in the $20… what a bargain. I’ve seen people put their strengths list on the top of their resume, used in interview situations and in the signature of emails… all of which is much more useful than the 5 beers you could buy with the same $20. You'll seem interested in developing yourself, your company... With something so widely accepted, why wouldn’t you want to jump on the band wagon?