Believe it or not, sometimes we are so distracted by our chase for job and careers that others think are great that we fail to take into account our natural strengths and how they can help us have a great and satisfying career. Let me give you two examples. Jill was out of Holy Cross college for about 5 years and she was doing very well at one of the top Wall Street firms in bond trading. She came to my office and began to tell me that despite her success, she was very unhappy and hated her job. As we looked into her natural strengths and her motive profile it was clear that she was moving down a career path that was not a fit. Jill was successful because she was smart and very motivated. But this would not make her happy in her career. As we explored Jill’s natural strengths, it was clear that she had great people skills and she really enjoyed counseling others. I suggested that Jill drop some of her finance classes and take some independent study classes in psychology and HR. She did and this experience was enough for her to take the next step and use her stellar performance record at her firm to move into HR.
Joe was also a misfit in some ways but he had more insight and strategies. As a hobby, he loved to work on his house but in his day job he was a manager in the HR department. Joe realized that what he wanted to do was to do real estate development. He began doing small house flips on the side and keeping his HR job to cover costs. When he had gotten his real estate business up to a certain level, he quit pursuing a career that leveraged his natural strengths and motive profile.
Signature strengths are things we are good at with little effort. Sometimes we are so good at it that we leap to the erroneous conclusion that 1) everyone is good at that and 2) it is therefore not very valuable. Maybe you are great with numbers, can find errors in financial details easily, are great at reading people and connecting with them or you have a great design sense. These are all major strengths that it would be hard to teach. At DiscernU we use a few sources to uncover signature strengths. First, we ask you to recall what kinds of things you enjoyed doing when you were younger – building, drawing, acting, taking things apart, etc. These are clues to strengths that are baked into who you are. Second, we use the Values in Action survey. Third, we use the book Strengthsfinder 2.0 which has a survey as part of the book.
When you stop and think about it, isn’t it crazy to follow the herd into a profession like Jill did that make no use of what you are really good at? Finding out what you are naturally good at, and using that in your career search, can put you in a position where you have a major competitive advantage.
BrianNuB
24 Mar 2020Truly educational….look frontward to coming back again.
Anonymous
7 Jul 2020I imagine that Jill, like many other kids going into college, was counseled to pursue a business degree as it is traditionally not difficult to find jobs (and decent-paying ones at that) with something as broad and practical as a business education (instead of, say, a psychology degree, which to make a decent living out of you often need to supplement with additional degrees). I feel that I was talked into a business undergraduate degree by my parents for the same reason. One thing holding be back from trying to find a career more suited to the “real me” is the thought that what I am good at and what I value would translate into a job that doesn’t really pay well, and a big part of my long-term happiness will certainly depend on being financially well-off enough to live in a town with an excellent school system, being able to send my future kids to any college they can get into, and being able to take them on regular trips around the world so they grow up aware of life and opportunities beyond their home country
zijian
7 Jul 2020What if a person’s interest is different from his signature strength, what should he choose in his career path?
admin
9 Jul 2020Depends on whether you are likely to achieve a level of competence in your interest area. Short, slow people should not try to get into the NBA. They may love BBall but they are signing up for failure.
Margaret
8 Jul 2020The part that resonated most deeply with me was the idea that often times, when we are talented at something, we are led to think that others must also be talented in that area and it mustn’t be all that valuable to society… I feel this is definitely true and can see this applying in my own life to music. I graduated with an undergrad degree in Music – and have been working in tech sales since graduating! Part of this, I think, is due to my undervaluing my own talent and assuming that because it comes naturally to me, it must come naturally to others and isn’t something that could challenge people to grow.
Marissa
9 Jul 2020I liked that the blog posts opened with signature strengths. It’s mid-year review season at my company and I often see managers split reviews into strengths and weaknesses, wherein weaknesses are things to improve and strengths are things to ignore (the “check the box” mentality). This blog post seems to encourage the opposite. Strengths should be further explored and developed. In the example above, Jill is intelligent enough to be a trader, but if she explored her strengths she could pivot. Maybe HR isn’t a great fit for her, but as a buyside analyst she could combine her intelligence and her people reading skills to a greater degree, thereby taking advantage of a strength that others in her industry don’t always have.
admin
9 Jul 2020yes…if a manager can help their people leverage their strengths they have done something very important and empowering.
Cristian
9 Jul 2020This point is really interesting because it connects natural strengths with roles/careers that would again, highlight those strengths. I have definitely thought about this, but it has been challenging to define what that career looks like, I have an idea, but at the same time is hard to uncover the right one. I would be very curious to understand how to navigate the possibilities that are presented given the natural strengths we have.
admin
9 Jul 2020you have identified a key challenge, connecting our strengths and interests to careers requires some experimentation. It cannot be done with a simple algorithm
Paul
9 Jul 2020I can relate to Jill and Joe who are able to recognize that they’re working in fields that are not gratifying to them. I feel I can utilize my strengths better in a different position, where aptitude can provide better competitive advantage. When circumstances allow for change, I expect to experience similar relief.
Hayley
9 Jul 2020When I provide career advice to undergraduate students, I always tell them never to underestimate their knowledge in the industry they’re passionate about pursuing. I’m passionate about TV, media, and entertainment. In job interviews, I’ve been told after the fact that my knowledge has impressed the interviewer. For example, one time, I mentioned that I couldn’t wait to watch Celebrity Big Brother interviews on CBS All Access, and the interviewer was impressed that I was a subscriber of CBS All Access, and I knew about their upcoming content. Another example, an interviewer asked me what TV shows I watch. I proceeded to answer by saying on Monday I watch this, Tuesday I watch this, and so forth. The interviewer was impressed that I knew about linear TV schedules in a streaming world.
admin
9 Jul 2020this happens naturally when you are pursuing your sweet spot job
Nicholas
9 Jul 2020The idea of gratification coming through week is something that has been spoken to me but I haven’t been able to put into practice. Is there an exercise to find strengths and that ultimate happiness through work?
admin
9 Jul 2020yes there are a few…the VIA is good
https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/register
Petiri
9 Jul 2020I think it’s important to note that we need to leverage other’s opinions on what our strengths are and not just rely on a sometimes skewed version of what we are good at which sometimes is more aspirational than realistic.
admin
9 Jul 2020very true
Jay
9 Jul 2020I think this is great insight for people beginning their careers. It seems the best suited paths are the ones that leverage someone’s natural gifts and allow them both enjoy their work and feel proud of it.
Holly
9 Jul 2020How do you apply the thing that you are really good at into a career, especially if it is more of a passion than a skill set? Where do you start in that journey?
admin
10 Jul 2020this is a creative exercise and requires a good deal of openness and flexibility. Maybe you are great with people, OK so now which positions in the best companies demand geat people skils. Maybe sales, HR. Or maybe your super prudent, organized and detail-oriented – which positions in the best companies demand these qualities. Now start building the case that you are more valuable to those companies than most other people. Now network and start to try to develop inside relationships in those companies. Then be relentless because you know what you are selling will help you and them. Relentless, because you are on the right path not wandering around aimlessly.
Melina
10 Jul 2020I think a lot of people can relate to Jill and and sometimes it takes some trial and error in your career to really find out what truly makes you happy.
Alexandra
10 Jul 2020I think sometimes we don’t realize what our natural strengths are until we get out into the real world and experience working full-time. There is so much pressure in college to find the right fit for your career/job – and this blog provided a great perspective in that sometimes we realize after that fact that our career isn’t a perfect fit, but that we’re able to pivot like the individuals in your examples above.