Strengths Alpinism

by Jerry Madsen

This month I had the opportunity to lead a number of two-part, "Intro to Strengths" workshops for about 50 faculty and staff members representing each of the three campuses of our region.  In part one, my focus was on the recognition and affirmation of Strengths and in part two, I spent time on the topics of development and application.

At the end of each session I had everybody complete an evaluation.  In part, I wanted to hear how well received my presentation was; I also wanted to hear what they learned.  But more than anything, I wanted to glean what the participants walked away without; what questions went left unanswered and what more did they want to learn.

Somewhat to my surprise, a number of folks walked away feeling as though I hadn't spent enough time teaching about strengths development and application.  In response to the question "What could the presenter improve on if they were to do this same seminar in the future?", I received several responses such as- and similar to the following:

"How to use/develop strengths."
"Learning how implementation of strengths play out in reality in the workplace."
"Present in a real world application."
"How to help others develop their strengths."
"How to develop strengths - and apply."
"Tell us how to use strength to improve our work relationships."

My initial response was, "Their feelings are valid, but what were they expecting from a two-hour, intro session?"

Once I got over myself and let-in the fact that this is as much a learning experience for me as it is for them, I started to consider the process of recognizing, affirming, developing and applying strengths and all that goes into it.

When I lead these sessions, I always share that the process of strengths development and application often requires more time and energy than the process of recognition and affirmation.  But as I considered the feedback I had received, I began to hypothesize that there are more dimensions to this process than what I had originally considered. 

And then the Ideation kicked-in: in my mind's eye I saw an image of two, uneven mountain peaks, sitting side-by-side.

The first - and lower - peak represents the process of recognition and affirmation (Click image to enlarge).  The path up the first slope is indicative of the energy necessary to recognize your Strengths.  It isn't a particularly taxing activity, but it is by no means passive.  It requires a degree of intention and at the very least, about an hour of uninterrupted time.

For some, the process of recognizing strengths is a simple as taking Gallup's StrengthsQuest™ inventory and printing out the results.  Others may take the Marcus Buckingham approach which I would describe as a less scientific 'exercise in introspection.'  Still, others may take an altogether different approach that no one else has thought of or that seems to fit them.

The more effortless stage - or down slope - of the first peak is Strengths affirmation.  This stage can happen in a number of ways.  It may occur as part of an "Intro to Strengths" workshop.  For others it may result from reading the "Affirming Your Signature Themes" chapter in the StrengthsQuest book by Clifton, Anderson and Schreiner.  For me, it happened in the context of a "Today's College Student" course in grad-school taught by Chip Anderson back in 2000; and who better to affirm your Strengths than Chip?!?

But whatever the vehicle, if you're able to let-in this newly realized reality about your strengths, the affirmation process tends to pass with more ease than strengths recognition... unless, of course, you're not good with compliments.

As we pass through the valley of the shadow of strengths death, we find ourselves treading where few dare to go: Developing and Applying our Strengths.  Why don't many people make it out of the valley?  Development and application requires intention, time & energy, additional knowledge, and in most cases, accountability.  In short, ya gotta want it and know how to get it.

Strengths development is tricky.  The slope is steeper.  It's a counter-intuitive process (e.g. The flawed assumptions from Now, Discover your Strengths, page 7).  This explains why it is such a foreign concept to so many or why some have no idea how to make it happen.

The other hurdle in strengths development is the notion that these are my strengths and I'm doing this alone.  True, these are your strengths and cultivating them can happen in the absence of others, but having the outside-looking-in perspective of your peers is a great way to be "on belay" - pardon the expression - going up this particular slope.  These are the folks that Tom Rath refers to as "Vital Friends".

At last, we have crested the peak of the second mountain and it's all down hill from here along the slope of strengths application... sort of.

If we have truly tapped into our strengths and through the development process, we have learned how to apply them, this will be a "down hill" experience.  It's simply a matter of doing what comes natural.  It's you being you.  That's not to say that there won't be slips and missteps along the way.  Often, for me, that comes in the form of not getting to play to my strengths as much as I like.  But ain't that the nature of work sometimes?

Lastly, I liken this pseudo-Theory of Strengths Development to Arthur Chickering's "Theory of Identity Development" insofar as it tends to be cyclical.  In the same way that an individual will revisit previous vectors in their identity development, it's been my experience that we need to go back and re-recognize, reaffirm, redevelop and reapply in order for our strengths to have any staying power; otherwise, it would be all-too-easy to revert to the old days of weakness remediation.

Please keep in mind that this idea of "Strengths Alpinism" is by no means researched.  It is simply an articulation of my own journey and my observation of others (So, feel free to knock yourself out if you're looking for a dissertation topic).

Comments

[Lori Roe]

Jerry states that "In the same way that an individual will revisit previous vectors in their identity development, it's been my experience that we need to go back and re-recognize, reaffirm, redevelop and reapply in order for our strengths to have any staying power; it would be all-too-easy to revert to the old days of weakness remediation." This is so true, and reminds me that we need to always "sharpen the saw" as Stephen Covey so eloquently puts it in his 7 Habits book.

- Lori

[dissertation write up]

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