Most often, discovering and embracing your strengths is the best beginning for a fulfilling life. This notion of strengths-based living born of positive psychology is a discovery of one’s core strengths and an effort toward developing and applying those daily. It can open pathways to improved well-being, resilience, and enhanced purpose and success in all dimensions of life.
When we do what comes easily to us, it feels good. We tend to be motivated, productive, and happier. Instead of building our strengths, people often spend more time developing their weaknesses. Evidence reveals that using our strengths more leads to a satisfying life by enhancing self-confidence and a feeling of achievement.
How to Find Your Inner Strengths
The VIA Character Strengths test is probably one of the most popular tools that help discover personal strengths. Developed by psychologists, it is a free, science-backed assessment that helps identify your top character strengths, such as curiosity, creativity, kindness, or perseverance. Such strengths are the essence of who you are and can be harnessed to bring more satisfaction and joy into your daily life.
Steps to Find and Build Your Strengths
VIA Character Strengths Test
Go to the VIA Institute on Character website and take the VIA Character Strengths test. It will give you a list of your top strengths, telling you about the qualities that make you unique.
Reflect on Your Results
Now is the time to reflect on the strengths you’ve identified. How do they manifest themselves in various parts of your work, relationships, and personal growth?
Ask Others to Provide Feedback
Sometimes a good friend or family member can see your strengths in ways that no one else can. Ask them how they see you at your best, so you can reinforce qualities you already know about or discover new strengths you haven’t thought of yet.
Applying Strengths in the Real World
Once you have identified some of your strengths, now you should find ways by which you can use such strengths in your daily operations. Here are some ways one can leverage his or her strength:
Work and Career: Being a strong individual helps you make career choices correctly and work and tackle tasks at a much more effective rate. For example, if the strength is “creativity,” seek opportunities to present innovative solutions or novel answers to old problems. Strength in “leadership”? Volunteer for team projects and be a mentor to those around you.
Relationships: You can help improve your relationships by using your strengths. When one of your key strengths happens to be “kindness” or “empathy,” then you focus on listening attentively or being there when others may need you.
Personal Growth: Strengths-based living is also an excellent way to grow as a person. For example, when one’s key strength happens to be “curiosity,” seek out activities that help fulfill it, such as reading books, traveling, or having in-depth conversations with people.
Health and Well-being: Leverage strengths such as “gratitude” and “self-regulation” that contribute to physical and mental health. Practice gratitude journaling or set personal goals that will help you to live a balanced, healthy lifestyle.
Benefits of Strengths-Based Living
Living a strengths-based life has many benefits:
You feel more confident. Identifying your strengths and then using them helps to give you confidence once you start seeing things take place as a result of what you do.
Higher degrees of engagement and flow: the more you use your strengths, the greater the likelihood you are going to experience something called “flow,” sometimes known as being “in the zone,” where you are absorbed in what you’re doing and even having a good time about it.
Better Stress Management: Strengths help you enhance your attitude toward challenges that make it easier to climb over the obstacles.
Core Takeaways for Living through Strengths
- Identify your core strengths using tools which include the VIA Character Strengths test.
- Reflect on how these strengths appear or manifest in various areas.
- Apply your strengths in simple, meaningful ways every day.
- Grow by reflecting continually and through using feedback about you from other people.
Resource Recommendations
VIA Character Strengths: You can take this free test to discover what strengths you have.
Books for Living Strengths-Based Lives: Books such as Tom Rath’s “StrengthsFinder 2.0” can help you discover and maximize your strengths.
Strengths-Based Apps: Apps like the “Strengths Profile” app can help you better understand and apply your strengths to different areas of life.
Being honest, and living by strengths might empower somebody to live in purpose with more resilience and fulfillment. Finding the strengths to utilize and practicing them purposefully takes ownership o
