Episode #135 Know Your Strengths

Three Problems

• Knowledge of our strengths and weaknesses is often inappropriately used to justify unhealthy choices and harmful behaviors.
• We don’t see ourselves as clearly as we would like to believe.
• We often fail to grow from strength and personality assessments because we allow one inconsistent result to invalidate the entire experience.

Seven Principles

• In order to become the best version of ourselves, we must first understand ourselves.
• We are more than merely the accumulation of our strengths and weaknesses.
• Investing in our weaknesses can be exhausting and unhelpful, but investing in our strengths is consistently empowering.
• When we are mindful of our weaknesses, we can be more strategic as we perform those difficult tasks and fulfill those draining responsibilities.
• There is nobody else in the entire world with our exact set of strengths.
• Awareness of our strengths can help to clarify our purpose, profession, and passions.
• We are never too old to learn more about the way we are wired.

Four Assessments

• CliftonStrengths
• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
• Enneagram
• Working Genius

Three Practices

• Take one or more of the above assessments, and carefully review the results to identify the themes that most resonate with you.
• Ask a close friend or colleague to share what they consider your greatest strengths and weaknesses both personally and professionally.
• Schedule an appointment with a life coach to explore how your strengths can be leveraged to help you become the best version of yourself.