Why Focus on Strengths?

Can you name five of your top strengths - those things you're good at and like doing?

A lot of people find it difficult to name even a couple of their strengths. Our brain tends to have a bias toward spotting our weaknesses and is not so efficient at identifying our strengths. And yet research shows that our strengths provide the greatest opportunity for personal or professional development.

​A strength is a strength because it has become hard-wired in our brain. Over time we've practiced a thought or behaviour so often that a neural pathway has been created, making it enjoyable, engaging, and energising to use. Our brain attaches positive emotion to our strengths so that we'll do it over and over, feel absorbed while doing it, and feel invigorated and fulfilled after we've used it.

​As a practical example, grab a pen and write your name on a piece of paper.  Then swap the pen into your other hand and write your name again. 

You probably noticed that without thinking you initially chose to write your name with your dominant hand! You didn't need to concentrate too much while you wrote, it didn't require much effort, and you were likely satisfied with the result. You may have also noticed that when you wrote with your other hand  it required greater concentration, took more effort, and you weren't as satisfied with the outcome.

This is because when we are learning a behaviour or pattern of thinking, neurones in our brain are beginning to connect to each other in a new way. This process takes energy and effort. Over time however, as we repeat the same thing over and over, the neurones involved join together to create a pathway which requires a lot less energy or effort to use, has pleasurable emotion attached to it, and is chosen by the brain without us even having to think about it. It  becomes a habit!

As we continue to use this new habit we develop greater proficiency and are rewarded with a more intense feeling of invigoration and accomplishment each time we use it. And because a lot of the hard work has been done we get a greater return on investment by developing our habits into strengths and leveraging the efficiency of those strengths to manage our weaknesses.

When we shift our focus away from fixing weakness and focus more on utilising the efficiency of our strengths to turn what's good into something great, we feel more engaged, more confident, less stressed and are able to find greater meaning and satisfaction in every area of our lives. This in turn means we are happier, healthier and more productive.
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Author

Max Jacobsen.
Founder of TWEAK Coaching.