Supercharge your Effectiveness

Hello, my friends!

Have you ever done something that’s so simple for someone else and thought, “why is this so hard for me?!?”

And then proceeded to beat yourself up for not knowing how to do that thing perfectly.

Yep, I hear you. Me too. 

For me, it’s spreadsheets. I like looking at them; I loathe creating them. I had to work on a doozy of one this week. The whole time, it sucked my energy. I knew it wasn’t the best use of my time. Ugh.

But I didn’t beat myself up because I know my strengths and know how to work with them, and have accepted the areas that are not my strengths instead of trying to power through.

If you’ve worked with me you know that I LOVE strengths work! Cannot get enough of it. Why? Because knowing your strengths is life changing.

We are not good at everything. No, not even you, my perfectionist friend! I know, I hate it too. We are collective beings. Humans were never meant to do everything on their own; we need each other, despite what modern politics might lead you to believe. 

We all have strengths. Have you ever done something at work and been energized by it? (If your answer is no, we need to talk!). That energy you felt is probably because you were using one of your strengths. 

When we’re using our strengths, we’re getting energy back from the work we do. 

Conversely, think of something that drains you when you do it. (I see you, spreadsheets.) When we do work that doesn’t use our strengths, we expend energy.

The easiest way to think about this is that we work essentially like batteries. We deplete our energy and need to recharge through food, sleep, etc. When we use our strengths, we are repleteing our energy; meaning replenishing it instead of depleting it. We’re recharging. Like a plug-in car.

Strengths are things we naturally like doing, but strengths are different from skills or talent. Skills are learned. I could learn the skill of making amazing spreadsheets. But it would never give me any energy because focus is not one of my strengths. I will always expend energy making a spreadsheet because it requires focus.

Talents are things you are naturally very good at. You and I could both develop skill at playing baseball, but you may have a talent for hitting the ball very far. We can both improve our skills, but you will always have more talent in that area. Talents are inherent. 

How do you know your strengths?

Well, good news. There’s an entire industry that can help you with this! Approximately a bazillion companies offer strengths assessments. You’ve probably heard of many of them. Meyers-Briggs, for example. The two I like best are:

Gallup Clifton Strengths. Clifton, now Gallup, has been assessing strengths and collecting data for decades on how people work and the strengths they bring to work. I like this assessment because although it is very focused on your strengths at work, those strengths tend to translate into your whole life. And, the tool is easy to use and highly validated (see: decades of data collection). 

For example, I have the strength of being Futuristic, meaning I love to think about what the future could be. This is part of what makes me a good coach, because I can help clients envision the life they want and then, using my strength of Individualization (deeply understanding individuals), assist with the changes they specifically need to get there. 

VIA Strengths. VIA stands for Values in Action. It is a strengths assessment created by Martin Seligman, often referred to as the father of positive psychology, to determine what values you most rely on to live a thriving life. These are strengths that lead to positive emotions. I like to use Gallup and VIA together. You could use your Gallup strengths all day long, but if you’re in an environment that doesn’t value what you value, it’s not going to feel like a great fit. 

One of my top VIA strengths is gratitude. If I’m working in an environment where no one is grateful or I’m made to feel bad for expressing gratitude, then I will not be happy in that workplace.

If you need help interpreting your results or determining how to maximize your strengths, book a session and we’ll do a deep dive. 

Turning toward your strengths

Once you know your strengths, how do you begin using them more? 

This is the hardest part because it requires you to accept that you are human and you are not amazing at everything. The first step is to stop feeling guilty that you aren’t strong in everything. It’s not possible, and that’s your perfectionism talking. Like Elsa says, let it go.

Here are a few tips to help you turn towards your strengths.

Prioritize work that uses your strengths. This means saying no to work that drains you, or at least delegating it to someone who is energized by it (we all have different strengths). Find those people in your workplace who have strengths that are different from yours and see if you can work together to get something done - each of you focusing on your top strengths. In my spreadsheet example, I could ask someone who loves spreadsheets for help, or even hire someone to help me. Ask for support in the areas that are not your strengths. 

Do work that drains you when you have the most energy.  You know when you have to do something that you don’t really want to do, so you keep putting it off. Then when you finally do it, you are absolutely drained and it takes much longer than you thought it would? That’s in part because you saved the most energy-consuming work for when your energy is lowest. 

Instead try doing that work when you have the most energy. It will feel less depleting, and you can follow it up with something energizing - perhaps a walk outside and then an hour spent using your strengths.

Adjust your schedule. Align your schedule with your energy and your strengths. For example, I like to write, and writing also requires a lot of focus. My ability to focus decreases throughout the day, so I prioritize writing in the morning, and do most of my strategic thinking (a strength of mine that requires less focus) in the late morning and afternoon. When I adjust my schedule to take account of my energy and my strengths, I am not exhausted at the end of the day. On days when I don’t - or can’t - prioritize my strengths, I am completely spent by 5pm. 

Like I said, knowing your strengths can be life changing. Once you lean into your strengths and let go of the pieces that are not your strengths, your work life will likely feel easier and more satisfying. I now regularly think to myself, “I can’t believe I get paid to do this!” Turning toward my strengths has been a big part of that shift. 

Okay! Go find out your strengths and start supercharging your effectiveness! And let me know if you need help. Like I said, I love this stuff!