Focus on wellbeing: Be a strength spotter

Written By: Sarah Weisbarth, Midland Area Wellbeing Coalition

Conducting an activity on strengths with a group of adolescents I mistakenly said, “creativity is not one of my strengths.”

Instantly they challenged me, telling me I had very creative ideas and ways of thinking about things. I had never considered creativity that way. I only ever saw it as being artistic. One moment of others seeing something in me I had not observed before changed my perspective.

This is the power of approaching life through the lens of strengths.

VIA Institute on Character explains character strengths as the positive parts of your personality that impact how you think, feel and behave. Imagine having a set of qualities helping you cope, grow, learn about yourself and appreciate others. Consider the impact of focusing on what is going well, instead of what is going wrong.

The 24 character strengths are a key component of all six PERMAH (Positive Emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Accomplishment, Health and Vitality) wellbeing pillars. We have the ability to connect with all 24 character strengths to help us through difficult moments, improve our relationships, achieve our goals and move from coping toward thriving.

One of my top strengths is gratitude. It comes naturally to me; I have deep appreciation for people, experiences, moments and things. Expressing gratitude to those around me just happens, I don’t have to think about it too much or work at it too hard. The positive emotions generated and relationships supported help me stay uplifted when things get tough.

Your top strengths will also be the things that come naturally. You might have honesty, or leadership, or humility helping you make decisions every day. Whatever your top strengths are, they are the ones you can count on and are easy for you to engage.

Strengths can be used at home, work, school. Research studies have found that people who regularly use their strengths experience greater confidence and energy, are less stressed and happier, and more creative (even me), engaged, and satisfied. Teams are more productive (Mcquaid and Lawn, 2014), school performance improves while bad behavior decreases (Grinhauz and Castro Solano, 2014) and overall people feel better about themselves when we focus on strengths. This means not just focusing on our own strengths but the strengths in others too.

When those young people spotted a strength in me that I had not considered, they gave me a boost. They showed me something positive about myself and genuinely contributed to my sense of confidence. It felt good. Creativity is not one of my top strengths but it doesn’t mean I don’t have it. We have all of the 24 character strengths available to us. And so does everyone else. Let’s start spotting strengths in others. Make it a game. Can you see the positive qualities in others? Kindness is an easy strength to spot in someone else. Opening a door, picking up dropped items in the hallway, helping finish a project, kindness is all around us.

I have only mentioned a few of the character strengths helping us thrive. If you are curious (another strength) about your own, you can take a free survey from VIA Institute on Character https://www.viacharacter.org/character-strengths-via and start engaging your strengths in the way you think, feel and behave. I hope (there is another one) you see your strengths, the strengths of those around you and focus on what is going well.

Sarah Weisbarth is one of over 182 local residents who earned a certificate in the science of wellbeing. Weisbarth is the Discover You director at the ROCK Center for Youth Development. This year, the Midland Area Wellbeing Coalition continues to provide a series of monthly articles with practical ways to increase wellbeing. Visit midlandareawellbeing.org for more information.