Discovering your Strengths

What are your strengths?  It’s no secret that playing to your strengths can help you be successful.  Everyone is good at something and struggles in other aspects of their life.  The trick is figuring out what you are good at and doing more of that and either delegating the other parts you’re not so good at to other people or working to improve them.  

What about if you don’t know what your strengths are?  How can you find out?  There are two relatively easy ways to figure them out.  The first way is for you to sit down and reflect.  Think about your job, activities, hobbies, family life, and everything you participate in.  Write down everything that you think you do well.  It could be everything from consoling a family member, to swinging a sledge hammer, and everything in between.  When you have a number of items listed, then break them down even more.  What makes you good at them? Are you strong, do you listen well, can you type fast, etc.  These are your strengths.  Then think of the parts of your life that are difficult.  What things do you struggle with.  This list is usually easier for people to come up with.  Don’t hover over it, just write them down and move on.  You can break these down into items you can delegate to other people and ones you can improve.  Then figure out who you would delegate them to and/or how you will improve those parts of your life.

The second way to learn what your strengths and weaknesses are is to ask a trusted family member and coworker.  Doing it this way may be a little harder to hear, especially for your struggles, but that’s ok.  You are asking a trusted family member, friend, or coworker with the goal of delegating some of them and learning to improve the others.  Make the same list as you would if you sat down and thought about them and break them down.  

Now doing this is great and will make you aware of your strengths and weaknesses, but it won’t do you a lick of good if you don’t do something about it.  As already mentioned, you delegate or work to improve your weaknesses.  For your strengths, play to them.  Do them more often, focus on utilizing them to their full potential, and share them with the people around you.  Not only will you feel great sharing your talent, you will get more accomplished and move farther along in your career.

I’d love to hear your strengths!  Please post them in the comments below!