Finding strength

If I were to ask you to point out your top 3 weaknesses, what would you say?

Now, if I were to ask you to tell me your top 3 strengths, what would you reply?

For most of us, we are very good at noticing our weaknesses, and do it on a regular basis. I must do this more, I should be more…, I wish I was… On the contrary, we spend very little time thinking about our strengths, let alone thinking about how we can optimise these or talking about them to others. This is partly an innate part of human functioning. We have what is known as a negativity bias which means we are primed to notice negative in our environment, threats, concerns and deficits. We have to work harder to notice the positive, the opportunities and success we achieve. In addition to that, traditionally feedback has been deficit based, from school reports and parents saying “stop doing that” to performance reviews and workplace development plans.

However, research over the last 25 years has clearly shown that this is not the best way to improve performance, health, resilience or morale. In fact, the exact opposite is true. Countless studies have shown that strengths-based conversations and training are the most direct path to motivation, innovation and job satisfaction. As a leader, these are the key to you building a more adaptable, collaborative and loyal team. As an individual, these are the fast-track to improving your performance and enjoying your job again.

To help you do this, here’s the top 5 things you need to know about strengths and ways to use them:

1. Strengths are different to skills or talents. You learn skills over time, through practice and repetition. Talents are something you are innately good at, however, they may not always have positive outcomes. Character strengths are the qualities or traits that you bring to everything you do which have a positive impact on both you and the community around you. For example, your curiosity might enable you to be solve problems or to build strong relationships with others. Your Love of Learning might have helped you in your career as well as inspiring you to visit galleries on your weekends. You can download a simple strengths wheel here to start to explore your strengths.
2. To identify your strengths, think of a time you felt "at your best". A time you felt like you were inspired, energised, motivated and felt good about yourself. Think about the time preceding, during and after that. What qualities did you demonstrate? You can do this alone or do this as an activity in a team meeting or with a colleague. Get people to pair up and share their stories before working together to notice strengths in each other. Again, the strengths wheel might be useful to help you.
3. Strengths are like muscles, which means they can be developed through use and repetition. They can also be underused and get weak. This often happens as a result of our environment or through stress. For example, if you were told as a child you were "just not creative", you have probably not been inspired to try to build that strength. Likewise, when we are under pressure and feeling stressed, we limit our capacity for creative thinking or social intelligence due to changes in the brain function. So, ask yourself, which strength am I underusing right now? And then challenge yourself to remember times in your life you DID show that strength. Research shows we all have all these strengths, we just forget to use them. Try this in one to ones with team members, encouraging them to identify times in the past they used their strengths.
4. Our negativity bias often extends to how we view others. “I wish they would just be more…” or “Why won’t they start…?” This is something that not only makes our relationships challenging but it also adds to our stress levels, having a negative impact on our health, performance and mood. In the workplace, this approach can lead to mistrust, low morale and a culture of blame or fear. Learning to "strengths spot" on a daily basis is a powerful way out of this trap. For every person you speak to today, try to notice a strength in them. If you are in a video meeting, try to comment on a strength in someone else or run this as a group activity of "strengths nominations".
5. Building our mental strength is just as important as maintaining the physical health of our bodies. The best way to do this is to focus on one strength you want to develop for the next week. Now, commit to use this strength in a new way each day. The key is trying to bring this strength into all areas of your life so, rather than just try to be more creative at work, think about being creative with where you work at home, with what exercise routines you do, with what you eat, with how you use your breaks. If you want to build kindness, consider how you can be kind to strangers, colleagues and friends, but also ensure you think about being kind to yourself through your routine, eating or daily habits. To enhance perspective, you could go for a walk in a different part of town, you can call a colleague who has worked abroad and ask them about this experience, or ask everyone in a meeting to share their perspective on the same topic or book. For more ideas, download this strengths guide with more ideas on how to build each strength.