Unlocking Personal and Professional Growth through Strengths Awareness

It’s the holiday season here in the United States and this time of year people often reflect and think about how they can do things differently in the new year ahead. Maybe they want to rethink elements of their job, personal life, habits or the way that they do things.

In this episode, we delve into the world of understanding and leveraging personal and team Strengths. We share excerpts from our course called Seeing Strengths from a New Perspective and highlight the first three lessons. It’s a fascinating way to think about your Strengths in a new or different way, or perhaps even consider things you’ve never considered before.

At Leadership Vision, we believe understanding our Strengths can help us navigate personal and professional growth more effectively. We encourage you to engage with these ideas over the holiday break and into the new year. Enjoy!

Lessons from a New Perspective

Below, we detail the first three lessons from our course, Seeing Strengths from a New Perspective and provide activities and reflection questions to help you put them into practice.

Lesson 1: Strengths are Sensory

Our strengths are sensory and can be observed. They manifest in our reactions to the world, offering insights into our deeper selves and how we interact with others. By being attentive to these sensory indicators, we can gain a deeper understanding of our own strengths and those of others.

This newfound awareness can influence our attitudes, beliefs, feelings, and motivations, fostering greater self-awareness and acceptance. When we know how and where to look for examples of Strength in these areas, we can learn more about ourselves, our co-workers, and how we can best collaborate to complete our tasks and find fulfillment. This perspective not only enhances personal growth but also contributes to professional development.

Reflection:

Pick a situation and reflect on how you reacted. Were you having an emotional response? Were you feeling motivated to get involved or to do something? Was there a belief or something getting triggered?

How do your Strengths manifest in your sensory reactions? What insights can they offer about yourself and how you interact with others?

Lesson 2: Strengths Work in Pairs and Combinations

All 34 Strengths are organized into four categories or Domains. Think of them as big buckets where we group similar themes into Strengths that help us relate to others, Strengths that help us get work done, Strengths that help us influence others, and Strengths that help us think into and solve big problems.

Strengths do not work individually, they work in pairs and combinations. The Domains can help us really understand easily how to categorize or understand how a person is being perceived by others. They also serve as categories to help us understand our Strengths better.

Reflection:

Pick one of your Strengths. How does this Strength demonstrate the characteristics of the influencing Domain?

How do your Strengths demonstrate characteristics across different domains?

Lesson 3: Strengths Exist on a Continuum

Sometimes, when we share information about Strengths, we like to give extreme examples because, honestly, it’s just more fun. There’s a person with a strength of Futuristic® who only talks about plans 20 years in the future, or that person with Deliberative® who might take five years to decide what new car they’re going to buy. But here’s the thing, all Strengths are experienced on this continuum and some might look really extreme.

By appreciating the unique expressions of our Strengths and understanding how they show up on a continuum, we can foster stronger relationships and deepen our understanding of ourselves. Understanding how our Strengths show up on this continuum of extremes can take our personal Strengths awareness to a deeper level. It can also help us better understand those we interact with on a daily basis and, ultimately, be more effective in our work.

Reflection:

Think about a couple examples from your own Strengths that are extreme. How do your Strengths manifest along this continuum?

Your Strengths Awareness

Understanding and leveraging Strengths is key to personal and professional growth. We hope this post has sparked new ways of thinking about your Strengths and those of your team. You can learn more about “Seeing Strengths from a New Perspective” and all of our other courses and offerings on our website or connect with me at nathan@leadershipvisionconsulting.com. We’d love to hear from you!