The Psychological Air We Breathe

There is an increasing body of research regarding the impact using (or underusing) our strengths has on our psychological well-being and success. We now know that fulfilment is found by nurturing our strengths, not by trying to better our weaknesses.

We learnt from school that we must get good grades in everything and this has created a similar pressure in adult life. We created a society where we feel like we have to be good at everything and thus end up?really?good at nothing. For so long, we’ve been working against the natural inclination of our brains - trying desperately to turn weaknesses into strengths, when we should have been using our time to nurture our innate gifts.

Imagine trying to do everything with the opposite hand: it would be a lot of effort and take a lot longer to do things, right? Similarly, using a weakness goes against a lifetime of brain programming. It’s an uphill battle! Whereas, using a strength creates ease, and actually?energises?us.

“It requires less effort to turn a strength into a talent, than to turn a weakness into a strength.”

(Michelle McQuaid, Wellbeing Lab)

Uncovering our Strengths

Many of us don’t even know what our strengths are, because for eternity we’ve been focusing on far too many things at once. In fact, a study revealed that astonishingly, only 2/10 people use their strengths every day (Gallup).

Other studies have shown that people who use their strengths, especially four or more of their top strengths, are more likely to experience satisfaction and meaning in their work, and feel happier, less stressed and more confident. There is increasing evidence of?physiological?benefits linked to utilising our strengths every day! (Wood et al, 2011).

Exercise for self-discovery:

5 practical ways to uncover your strengths today

1. Ask the people closest to you: This was a big one on my personal journey. I asked my brother, my mum, my cousin, my best friend - funnily enough, they all had similar responses. It’s amazing how difficult this type of introspection can be, but people who know you,?know?what your strengths are.
2. Examine what interests you: What you are naturally interested in, what you read about when you have the choice, what you want to learn more about, often there is a strength buried in your natural inclinations of interest.
3. Take stock of your accomplishments:?Make a list of the things you are most proud of, big or small. What have you received compliments for regarding your work? What did you excel at with minimal effort?
4. Look at what energises you: Reflect on your day from the moment you woke up to the moment you went to bed. What parts if your day gave you the most energy? Strengths are energy givers, while weaknesses drain your energy.
5. Take a strengths test:?Or two! My personal favourites are?VIA Strengths?(it’s free!) and?Clifton Strengths Finder. Tip: it sounds obvious but answer the questions as honestly as possible as to where you’re at - don’t let your ego get in the way.

I often use these strengths tests as a basis for my coaching clients to uncover their unique purpose, increase their wellbeing & ultimately turn their strengths into a career. Find out more?here.

Turning our Strengths into our Careers

We have all had jobs that, hell, we weren’t so good at. It’s laughable looking back - my first “real” job out of University was a Merchandiser at JD Sports. And I don’t mean a visual merchandiser, I mean the person who monitors product inventory levels on excel and pulls reports from the warehouse in order to ensure the there is enough stock. Wow, I was bad at this job. One, because I was stuck in a spreadsheet all day, two, because my brain is pretty much allergic to numbers. Needless to say I lasted only 6 months.

Hopefully your situation isn’t as dramatic as this one, but if it is, there are steps you can take. If your job is misaligned with your strengths, start with using?one?of your top three strengths more every day. Using my case as an example - I might begin to consciously deploy using strength of empathy every day in my work. There isn’t an obvious connection to merchandising, but I could simply use that strength to ensure my team is feeling heard and that someone cares about what they’re doing and their daily challenges.

You’ll be amazed at the impact even using one of your top strengths can have on your psychological wellbeing.

The 70/30 Rule

How great would it be if we could only do the fun stuff in our jobs every day and someone else took care of all the boring admin and all of the tasks you hate?

Although it’s not realistic to immediately switch to only doing the tasks you love 100% of the time, it’s possible to get pretty damn close! And thanks to our increasingly connected world, it’s easier than ever to find someone who relishes in the tasks you loathe.

Reflect:

What % of your day gives you energy versus drains it?

What % of your day are you using your strengths versus your weaknesses?

There are always parts of our jobs we don’t love - but as a guide, aim for around 70% or more to be using your strengths, and around 30% or less of the other stuff.

The benefits are exponential:

The more you use your strengths, the more expertise you gain and the more you can eventually delegate. Getting someone to help with my finances early on in my business was an easy decision. I can waste hours doing them myself, or deploy someone to do it and spend that time getting paid for what I am good at. It’s a win win.

If you are employed, it might mean first building your reputation, and then asking your manager if you can do more of XYZ task that you enjoy and you’re good at and explaining the benefits for the business. Once they can see where the value add is for them, it will feel like a win win for them too.

Investing in Your Strengths

Nurturing your strengths so that they become talents, or become your full-time hustle involves investing both time and money. I truly believe there is no better gift you can give yourself than to invest your hard earned money back into?you.?Making you the best, most full expression of yourself.?

Whether it’s through education, short courses, investing in a tutor or coach, or self-study - every successful artist, musician, writer or academic has invested heavily throughout their lifetime, to become the expert they are in their field. Strengths are innate, but talents and expertise requires effort, dedication and investment.

Exploring New Things

I want to emphasise that I am not saying you should only stick to one thing. You may not have used your top strengths in many ways yet and therefore want to explore a range of activities before landing on something that sticks. You may already know what you're good at, but want to add more strings to your bow. Well-rounded individuals explore multiple endeavours throughout their lifetimes.

In fact, trying new things improves neural plasticity and creates new neural pathways in the brain, which can actually reduce signs of ageing and degenerative illnesses like dementia (Forbes, 2018). And combining new endeavours alongside your core strengths, creates a skillset that is uniquely you.

At different stages of life, your strengths can change and you might feel called to a new career completely. In fact, I recommend going through steps 1-5 above every 6-12 months or so as a way to take stock of where you are at.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article. If you did, feel free to share it with a friend who might enjoy it too :)