My post on 4/3 tackled getting into alignment at work and it was a doozie! Many of you had requests to go a bit deeper into the content, so I will break it in pieces and share a bit more about each of the “7 Ways To Get Alignment At Work” (and in life!). This is an expansion of tip #2: Know Your Talents.
Flex Your Superpower Muscles
You’ve got them. I’ve got them. These awesome, very personal, superpowers. Your talents. Your strengths.
I believe in the nature versus nurture argument that nature would win here, as your superpowers are innate. They come natural to you. “Second nature.” They can certainly be developed and grown, but regardless, they are in you – either dormant or leveraged.
After years of a variety of personality and performance assessments, all of which add different value, I decided to settle down with StrengthsFinder by Gallup. Here’s why:
It looks at your good side. Gallup’s research backs up that focusing on your negatives rarely gets you where you want to be. You can spend years wasting time trying to “improve weaknesses,” but you’ll be ignoring all that is natural and has the ability to be truly great. Please focus on what you’ve got going instead of what you don’t.
Your life improves. When you focus on your strengths you are three times as likely to have a higher quality of life. Enough said.
It helps you see the good in others too. We’re all full of judgement. I get it, we’re human. My last post even gave us a mascot for this behavior. Judgey McJudgerton. He wears a top hat and always has his pants in a bunch. It’s time to reject his influence and start to show compassion and appreciation for what others bring to the table. In her recent book, Judgement Detox, Gabby Bernstein does a great job in sharing more on how to let go of judgement and move into appreciation. I highly recommend it!
Amazing research and support. Check it out yourself.
Claim Them, Invest, and Put Them to Work
Authenticity is a big buzz word and it’s actually one of my values. You get authenticity when you stop trying to be what others want you to be, you take ownership of yourself and you leverage what you’ve got. Claim your strengths. You can label your strengths whatever you want. (Personally, I’m going with “Beyonce-Like” lately.)
Don’t just pay attention to your innate talents, turn them into strengths by investing in them. Seek exposure, education and experiences that are going to enrich who you are. EnRICH. Truly.
Apply your talents strengths to help you get big and small things done. Aim them towards big goals you are going to accomplish and be intentional about what strength “muscles” you are flexing when, how and where. One of my favorite ways to use my StrengthsFinder strengths is to apply my dominant strengths to specific tasks. If I need to get a proposal done, I get to let a few of my more relationship-based strengths take a break while I pull up on my strategic thinking and influencing strengths. I get it done faster and better and with less effort.
If you want to get official, email me to get moving on this (anna@theoakesco.com). Taking StrengthsFinder has been called “life-changing” by so many that I’ve worked with.
Peace and Progress,
Anna
Strategic | Futuristic | Maximizer | Individualization | Relator
(In case you were wondering about my top 5 Gallup talents)