No Sweat Strengths Training

It’s been the Summer of Strengths. Watching the Olympic Games, I am awed by the incredible physical and personal talents and strengths of these world-class athletes. I have a new lens on talent and strengths since attending an Accelerated Strengths Coaching class run by Gallup in June. The program opened my eyes to the many ways we can harness our talents and strengths to reach our full potential, whether Olympic gold or our first internship. The journey begins with self-awareness and understanding. What are our natural talents that give us power and edge? How do we tap into those talents for our greatest potential for success? The course has helped me to think about the optimistic and positive nature of a strengths-based approach, especially in coaching students. And it works. Individuals are more engaged and productive if we focus on fixing what is right with people than what is wrong.   Unfortunately, many employers still focus on weaknesses during a job interview. That’s ok. The more you know yourself and your talents, the easier it will be to address blind spots or barriers. My advice: flip the question and focus on your strengths. To learn more, check out my latest Business Insider column and let me know what you think. And go for gold!