Can you bring out the strengths in others?
Have you ever tried to motivate someone to realize their potential at work? How did it go? Did they magically start listening to your words of wisdom and behaving differently? Or did your insights and advice end up sitting on the “maybe one day” shelf?
Let’s face it helping people to realize their potential can be hard work. The truth is most of us lack the knowledge and skills to support someone in making lasting changes when it comes to the way they think, feel or act at work.
Finding Resilience in Hard Times
“If you feel lost, disappointed, hesitant, or weak, return to yourself, to who you are here and now, and when you get there you will discover yourself, like a lotus flower in full bloom, even in a muddy pond, beautiful and strong.”
― Masaru Emoto
Holding up a card from a woman whose husband, the father of their 4 year old son, had suffered a stroke, my yoga teacher Susan[1] reverently opened class. The card simply said: “No Mud, No Lotus”.
Engage and energize your staff by helping develop their strengths
Have you ever tried to motivate someone to realize their potential at work? How did it go? Did they magically start listening to your words of wisdom and behaving differently? Or did your insights and advice end up sitting on the “maybe one day” shelf?
Let’s face it helping people to realize their potential can be hard work. The truth is most of us lack the knowledge and skills to support someone in making lasting changes when it comes to the way they think, feel or act at work.
Authentic Resilience: Moving from “Wrong” to “Strong”
Imagine you found a flower bud in your garden – you see the bud but are unsure what flower will unfold from it. If you have a pre-determined expectation for it to be one vs. another, such as wanting a tulip to be a rose, you will be disappointed when the “wrong” one unfolds. You will focus on what’s “wrong” with it. In so doing you may harm it and prevent it from reaching its potential. It will wither.
Unfortunately, the world is full of withered and withering people who are not connected to their own authenticity, who feel overwhelmed and discouraged. When we experience turbulent times, as we are now, these feelings can be magnified. People are stretched to their limits, losing sight of their innate character strengths—temporarily blind to their uniqueness. Often, the loud inner critic joins in the game by suppressing one’s confidence—amplifying fear instead. During this pandemic, we see, hear and sense fear all around us like never before.
An opioid crisis hits home
Review what you are teaching students about resiliency, perseverance, and grit.
We teamed with Fatima Doman, author of Authentic Strengths, a book about a positive psychology research method, and we provided related training to all our counselors, health teachers, and nurses who have the most access to students in the life skills curriculum and with students showing signs of extreme stress. This training uses the motto, “Moving from what’s wrong, to what’s strong.”