What Are Your Strengths?

Last night I went to a class on being a leader. It was taught by one of the professors of the MBA program.

And it was amazing.

He taught that there are basically two ways to lead. You can focus on the areas that you need to improve and work hard to fill those gaps. Or you can focus on your strengths and use those to the best of your ability to lift and lead those around you. He was a proponent of the latter. He encouraged us to look at what we are naturally good at, then to evaluate whether or not we're using those skills on a daily basis.

He asked, "Are you an artist that doesn't paint? Are you a writer that doesn't write?" That resounded with me. Are there things that I should be doing on a daily basis that I'm not? Absolutely. I've got a mental list going that I keep adding to. I came home and asked Bryan if there's any real world application to being extremely social. I was half joking, I know I have other talents that I should really work on. But he looked at me seriously and said, "Yes, networking."

Networking is something that MBAs have had drilled into their heads. And it's true, I network naturally. I can remember details that people tell me about themselves so that when I see them again I can introduce them to new people and make new connections for them. In high school my mom called me "the Cruise Director" because at dances and social situations I was the one flitting from group to group, seeing that everyone was happy. I've never really thought of this as a serious talent. I thought the talent part was including people and making them feel wanted and welcome, and that's definitely part of it. But that's not all of it.

I also thought about my role as a leader in my home. Which leadership strategy do I employ? Sometimes it's the first, sometimes it's the second. I want to shift what I've been doing and focus more on strengths. I know that sometimes we have to point out what's missing, but I'm afraid I do that too much.

So tomorrow I'm going to actively search for my strengths and the strengths of my children. I'm going to highlight them and see if we can make time for them.

I'll let you know how it goes.