5 Clues to Identifying Your Strengths

One weekend I moved all the contents of my office temporarily to paint the walls. Even I was amazed at what got pulled from the space. The stack of books was towering — and that did not include books in my family room, on my nightstand or tucked other various places in my home. And all the 100 plus books in my Kindle library.

I had to chuckle, as this was such a visible reminder of one of my strengths — which is input. Here is how the Clifton Strength Finders describes this strength:

People strong in the Input theme have a craving to know more. Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.

I’ve known that input was a strength for over five years, but never have I had such visible proof of how that strength shows up in my life.

Why is knowing your strengths important?

When I am using my strengths, work is fun. It is easy. My energy level is high. And I get good results. I’m highly productive. And all that creates a virtuous circle — ease enables more to be accomplished, more accomplishments spur better results, better results leave me fulfilled and energized. And so it goes, over and over and over again.

Contrast that to work in a non-strength or challenge area. It is arduous. My head hurts. I search for distractions. I do not get much done. I am exhausted and unproductive, and the quality of my work is marginal.

How Do You Know What Your Strengths are?

I suspect when asked what you are good at — you may tend to mumble, divert eye contact, and offer some apologetic and non-committal response that includes words like luck, not that good, and “just OK”. I am not sure if this is the outcome of a culture fixated on identifying and fixing problems or a global human tendency. I do know, that once I got clarity on my strengths and began to draw on them more in my work, life got better.

So how in the heck do you know what you are good at? Not just good at — but better than average, able to do things others cannot.

Here are five clues that can help you unearth your areas of strength.

1. Look at your surroundings.

Believe me, just like my office, clues abound. Photos everywhere? Perhaps relationships is one of your strengths. Awards and trophies? Perhaps you are an achiever or a competitor. Inspirational messages — you may well be strong in positivity. Look around your home, your car, your office. What do you see?

2. Monitor your energy.

Where do you feel the most energized and engaged? When is it, that even after a long day, you feel deep satisfaction rather than weariness and fatigue? What are you doing when your energy is high, when you have amazing stamina, when you look forward to something with anticipation? Love working on a team to achieve a bit thing — you may be a relator. Get energized by resolving a thorny problem that takes much thought- you may have the strength of deliberation.

3. Ask those who know you well.

Often others can see things about ourselves that we are blind to. And we make the mistaken assumption that if we can do this well, it must be easy for others. Not the case! Ask close friends, co-workers, or family what they think you do especially well. Ask them what they see as your gifts. Listen hard, thank them, and then notice the patterns that emerge.

4. Examine your best work.

Make a list of some of your best work. This is work in which you both got good results and enjoyed doing it, with a deep sense of satisfaction. What makes the list? What are the similarities? What skills did you need to accomplish these results?

5. Monitor the feedback you have gotten in the past.

Reflect on the feedback you have gotten in the past — from bosses, teachers, friends, family. Sort out the corrective feedback and think about the affirmative, positive feedback. Again, you are looking for themes and patterns.

To help you put some words around your strengths, you might want to review this list of strengths from the Strength Finders work. You may be surprised to find that they are a bit different view of strengths. You won’t find spelling or math or science on the list. You will find the ways in which you navigate the world — like connectedness and learner and harmony.

The Power Play: Move Beyond Just Knowing

Just knowing something is only the very first step. Move into doing. Find ways to use your strengths in your work, at home and in your community. Even a 10% increase in time spent in your areas of strength will yield great results.

I have the good fortune of being an entrepreneur, so I have actually built my business model around my strengths: relationship, strategy, input, learner and maximizer. Once I did that, work got amazingly easier, more fun and my services to clients was better.

So my hope for you is that you uncover your strengths and put them to good use. You and those you work for and with will be glad you did.