Using Your Strengths
In College, I was lucky to get an internship at a major retailer. At that retailer, I got to shadow many different managers and learn different departments. A part of the program was a weekly feedback sessions. One part of the feedback session was all negative feedback and included a list of everything I had done wrong that week, people who didn’t like something I said, strange facial expressions I made, etc. I cried every single week. As someone with anxiety and exposure to constant criticism in the past, negative feedback made me crumble into a pile of lack of self-worth. This emphasis on my negative traits and the process of fixing myself was very hard and emotional for me. Surely it was constructive and taught me a lot. It also humbled me, as a straight A college student who thought I knew everything in my 20’s (eyeroll).
The second part of the feedback session was on strengths and how to use them well. The company had developed a set of 4 strength “buckets” to place managers in according to their style. I was strong in “Maximize Execution” aka getting shit done. I am all about a to-do list. Once I understand a task, I can do it faster and better than anyone else. I am the hard worker of the group. I was especially not strong in “Maximizing Relationships.” I struggled with teamwork, collaboration, and building relationships with others, especially associates and subordinates. I came across as bossy, harsh, and too strict. My communication style was blunt and too direct.
The most valuable thing I learned from this internship was to how to use my strengths to also perform in my weaker areas. For example, part of my strength in execution is mastering a to-do list. So…if my weakness is relationships, then put relationships on my to-do list! Here is what that looked like for me: greet every associate warmly, ask them how they are doing and talk about something that is not work, offer to help an associate with their work, ask if anyone has any questions, ask associates if they have suggestions for ways to make work better, recognize at least one employee by telling them “great job” at something they have done, smile at everyone, tell associates something personal about myself, etc.
Now, I like to use the StrengthsFinders assessment and tools to understand my strengths and my colleagues strengths. In this phase of my life, I am trying to develop my skills in strategic thinking. Most of my tops strengths in StrengthFinders are in the Execution category, including: Achiever, Focus, and Restorative. Again, I have put strategic thinking skills on my to-do list, which looks like a list of questions I ask my self regularly. Here are some examples: How does this project affect other departments, customers, and others? How does this project compare to the competition’s work? What articles and books can I read that talk about trends and future projections? How will my work affect total revenue? How will my work affect profit dollars? How can I make my projects easier for others to understand? How can I make my collaborations easier for other departments? What is the risk involved in this? What does this project look like in 5 years? To maintain growth, what needs to be true? If these problems persist, what will the project look like in 1 year, 3 years, and/or 5 years? Is this sustainable? Is this scalable? Is this repeatable? Does this tie to the organization’s mission/vision/goals?
I hope this personal example helps you. If you would like help finding out your strengths and using them to maximize your performance in all areas, I would love to hear from you! Make sure you are subscribed to my email list!
StrengthsFinder Book by Don Clifton - a great read to help you understand your strengths