Do You Know Your Strengths?

Before building your personal brand, you need to start identifying your unique signature strengths...

How to get clear about your strengths

Have you ever been in an interview, and when they ask you what your strengths are, you came up with a blank? You know you have strengths. We all do. But maybe you are uncomfortable talking about them, or you just haven’t identified what they are yet. That’s okay. Today, we’re going to make sure you can become more aware of signature strengths.

Society often trains us to focus on our weaknesses. The idea is to help us grow, avoid making errors and improve upon our shortcomings.

However, this approach often backfires. Of course, it’s important to be aware of your weaknesses, but it doesn’t help to dwell on them. Most people can quickly tell me what skills or traits they need to improve, but they struggle to discuss where they shine. You can see how this could be a serious problem in an interview. In order to have confidence in you, your interviewer needs to see that you have confidence in yourself.

Keep the Focus on Your Strengths

The original intention may not sound that bad. Of course we all want to become better at what we're doing. However, focusing on your shortcomings doesn’t lead to the progress you might think. You may see improvements after consistently working to improve it over the long term. Yet, often this just leads to a lack of motivation and ultimately feeling drained from work. This mindset sets you up for failure because when you don’t value your strengths, you are left feeling like you are never good enough.

We all want to be better versions of ourselves, but it’s better to focus on our personal strengths. Why?

Because our strengths are very likely just the things we enjoy doing, and those are precisely the things we can get better much quicker, with less effort. Plus, you will set yourself up for success and find more fulfilment in your career.

How to Make Your Personal Strengths Stand Out

Here’s the thing, your interests almost always have a solid connection to your strengths. If you’re not interested in something, chances are it’s not one of your greatest strengths. There might be something better suited to you that will pique your interest.

The good news is that your interests and strengths will help guide you to the job you are best suited for.

Listen to your strengths, and you will know where to invest your energy.

Investing in your strengths is five times more effective than trying to improve your weaknesses. So, don’t shy away from your strengths. You can stand out with your strengths, so let’s look at a few of the things you should consider when you start playing to your strengths.

Be Specific

Like your achievements, your strengths need to be articulated precisely. Saying you have excellent communication skills just isn’t going to cut it anymore. Dive deep and think about where you really shine. If you are good at negotiating, conflict management, or presenting information clearly, these communication skills are more specific and will help you stand out with your strengths.

Think About What Makes You Unique

Speaking of communication skills, about 80% of people tell me communication skills are one of their strengths when they come in. That includes engineers. Thankfully, when they leave, they have a better idea of what their signature strengths are. And we go further than that. We figure out what your signature strengths are because these are what make you unique.

Get Feedback

Another way you can gain some clarity on your strengths is by asking for feedback from someone who knows your work. This step is often underestimated, but it can be a powerful tool.

You could ask your manager or coworkers to give you feedback on where they think you do your best work.

Some larger or more modern companies incorporate feedback as part of the company culture. Sometimes other people see the ways you excel more easily. To you, your signature strengths might seem like a regular part of your practice, but others will be able to see their value more clearly.

Connect Your Strengths and Achievements

Take a look at your achievements. If you haven’t yet identified what they are, check out our blog post here to learn how to leverage your achievements for success. Your achievements will help lead you to your strengths. Look for patterns and think about what parts of the process went smoothly and felt natural. It’s not about what was difficult but rather what you thought you could keep doing forever.

With this information, you have taken a crucial step toward building your personal brand. Your personal brand is what will help you stand out in a crowd so that you can land your dream job. It’s important to keep working on this.

Your strengths and achievements are not static. They will grow with you, and so will your personal brand.

So, continue working on your strengths, update them as needed. Finding your strengths and working toward a career that suits you will be more fulfilling.