Many of you have read my blogs about my strengths: Positivity, Empathy, Woo, Developer, Activator. I didn’t come up with these “strengths” myself. I took a test called the Strengths Finder in my twenties during a ‘Ministry by Strengths’ class. I decided to take the test again when I asked my team to take it a couple months ago. I was shocked… My strengths had changed. Part of me was upset that the guide I had been living by had changed, but at a deeper look… I found it just was an extension of the traits I had. Which means improvement!
I believe my first writings about my strengths was to help me understand what I needed to do to build my career and truly discover my passion. I think I have a good handle on that now. I am extremely thankful that my first test had positivity as my first strength. I really needed to believe in the positives when building my business. The world and even your most supportive friends and family cannot always make you believe in positive outcomes – thankfully I was able to lean on that inner voice that says “I can. It is Possible!”
My new strengths list is Woo, Maximizer, Futuristic, Strategic, and Communication. I was so happy to see the Communication strength appear. I have been working hard on improving the ways I communicate with our audience. I have been forcing myself for several years to reach outside my comfort zone. I have been presenting at tradeshows, taking on committee leadership roles, and writing when honestly I felt… I had no business doing so… Thankfully, I have a very supportive team and the encouragement and support helped me strengthen that muscle.
I believe that positivity is still there in my Communication strengths. I am focused on sharing positive messages to help build up others in my network as well as educate on the benefit of using digital media tools. I look forward to continue to work this muscle and make it stronger. You will see more writing, live coverage, and presentations from me this year. That brings me to my next strength: Maximizer. I really love helping others find the strength inside that drives them. And now, I am working with others who have a common mission to actually help them discover how to build from that knowledge of their strengths and use it to accomplish their career goals.
When I look at my next strengths, Futuristic and Strategic, I see them as a product of owning a company. I also see it as an extension of my Activator trait. Because I am one to get things started and with a “want to do it right now” attitude, I have had to force myself to be strategic and not jump before thinking about the future or the opportunities that might be lost if I “jump”. The experience of building a business and running an established one has given me insight that I will hopefully be able to share with my network, help them through some of the obstacles, and identify opportunities.
Lastly, WOO! I like the definition of Woo; it means “ to seek favor and support”. I am still working to Connect, Inform, and Educate the industry. I will continue to seek support from strategic partners that have this common mission to amplify the voice of industry and the systems and people that make it all possible!