Ep 12 Leverage Your Strengths

In this episode, I explore how identifying and leveraging your natural talents can transform your energy, impact, and results, both for you and your team. Have you ever felt like the daily grind is draining the life out of you? Many leaders I talk with feel this way - not because they don't like their jobs, but because they're spending too much time on tasks that exhaust them and not enough on work that brings them energy and fulfillment.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

What Strengths Really Are

 I explain the difference between learned skills and innate strengths - those natural talents that when paired with skills truly energize you. Using the metaphor of driving a car with bald tires on ice versus driving with perfect tires on an open road, I illustrate how working from your strengths creates traction and flow in your work life.

 My Personal Strengths Journey

I share how I operated for years as a "workhorse" focused only on production, eventually discovering that this approach left me exhausted and unhappy. There was even a job I got fired from that, in hindsight, was a complete misfit for my natural talents. My breakthrough came when I realized I was reserving my most energizing work (strategic thinking and program design) for weekends, not recognizing its true value.

Three Ways to Discover Your Strengths

•  Formal assessments - Tools like the Working Genius model by Patrick Lencioni can identify your natural talents.
• Self-reflection - Ask yourself when you lose track of time, what problems people come to you for help with, and what activities energize you.
• Feedback from others - Sometimes our strengths are so natural we don't recognize them as special.

 The Real Cost of Ignoring Strengths

Research from Gallup shows powerful benefits to strengths-based approaches:

• People who use their strengths daily are 6x more likely to be engaged at work.
• Teams that focus on strengths are 12-15% more productive.
• Organizations see 15% lower turnover rates when employees work from their strengths.

But beyond statistics, there's a personal cost. When we operate outside our strength zones for too long, we experience depletion, work harder but accomplish less, and are more likely to burn out or disengage.

 Bringing Strengths to Your Team

 I share a personal example of how reorganizing work with my business manager Marissa based on our natural strengths dramatically increased our productivity and reduced stress. Even in organizations with rigid job descriptions, you can implement three practical strategies:

1. Task trading - Look for opportunities for people to trade responsibilities within a job class.
2.  Process adaptation - Adjust how tasks are done, using technology, checklists, or collaboration to compensate for natural tendencies.
3.  Role sculpting- Shift emphasis within existing roles to leverage individual strengths.

The key is starting the conversation with your team: "What parts of your job give you the most energy? Where do you feel you make your best contributions? What tasks consistently drain you?"

 Resources Mentioned:

•  "Reclaim Your Work Joy": A free guide to sculpt your role for maximum fulfillment.
• Working Genius Assessment: Available at workinggenius.com for $25.

Understanding your strengths isn't just for the workplace - it can transform your personal relationships, too. Remember, leading from strengths doesn't require grand gestures or complete overhauls. It's about consistent, intentional actions that align your work with your natural talents.

To learn more about my services, including team workshops on strengths-based leadership, visit clairelaughlin.com and connect with me on social channels @ClaireLaughlinConsulting.

Thanks for listening!

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