Any idea what this photo is?
Looks a little strange, doesn’t it?
Like something’s not quite right…
Beautiful, in a way, but eerie at the same time…
One last guess?
It’s Niagara Falls—without the water…
No thundering rapids.
No hydroelectricity.
No bustling tourists angling for a better view.
This is how we feel (and perform) when we’re not using our natural strengths on a daily basis.
Now, consider the image below…
Soak in the majesty, beauty and power of a fully flowing
Niagara Falls.
Breathtaking, isn’t it?
Key Question: Which image best represents how you feel about your work, life and relationships at this very moment?
A near lifeless, rock-scape reminiscent of a dystopian movie set, or the roaring falls in all her glory?
The difference between the two images is stark. It’s how you feel when you’re using your natural talents and when you’re not.
Why is this so important?
One of the leading indicators of workplace engagement is whether a person gets to use his or her natural talents on a daily basis.
(For more insight into the powerful ripple effects of engagement and what it means to you click here, here or here.)
When we use our strengths we’re engaged, dialed-in, emotionally connected to the work at hand. Why? Because we’re doing what we’re made to do!
However, if our work doesn’t provide us the opportunity to do what we do best every day, disengagement is around the corner.
As you can imagine, the gap between engagement and disengagement is one of the best predictors of employee and workgroup performance.
Consider this: 70% of global workers are disengaged in their jobs.
What does this mean for me?
How we naturally think, feel and behave is integral to who we are as human beings.
Gallup research shows people who use their strengths daily are three times more likely to report an excellent quality of life, six times more likely to be engaged at work, 8% more productive and 15% less likely to quit their jobs.
Conversely, if we’re prevented from using our talents, we dry up–just like Niagara Falls without water. Our stress levels spike and our health suffers. Our creativity plummets and our most important relationships get short-changed.
Being denied the opportunity to give our talents to the world leads to an agonizing physical, emotional and spiritual death.
However…
Do you know what else is as magnificent and powerful as a 2.4 gigawatt-producing Niagara Falls?
You–in action–owning, living, and breathing your unique strengths in your work, life and relationships.
In the wild, eagles can fly between 75 and 125 miles in one day. A wild African elephant can migrate up to 50 miles a day.
Eagles aren’t meant to sit in a nest or suffer flightlessly in a metal cage. Elephants aren’t meant to live trapped in a concrete urban animal park.
Eagles are designed to fly. Elephants are created to roam. Niagara Falls is supposed to flow.
You’re designed to live life using your unique, natural talents.
Aha! I get it now. The light bulb just turned on. This makes so much sense. I’m ready to roll. Where do I start?
How do you uncover those talents you know are inside of you, but haven’t ever fully been given the space to breathe?
Easy. You simply begin.
Your strengths journey has been waiting on you for awhile now.
As James Allen shows us in his best-selling classic, “As A Man Thinketh”:
“Only by much searching and mining are gold and diamonds obtained, and man can find every truth connected with his being if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul; and that he is the maker of his character, the molder of his life, and the builder of his destiny.”
Enter StrengthsLauncher.
We live to help you discover, develop and focus your natural talents.
From Launch Pad to Lift Off:
The Action Plan
Discover: Name It!
In the discovery phase, we uncover your unique, innate talents. Your talents are simply naturally recurring patterns of thought, feeling or behavior that can be productively applied.
Truly understanding the depth and nuance of these gifts is the first step on your strengths journey.
As we peel back the layers of our personal talents, our self-awareness begins to increase and expand. Understanding how we use our talents as filters for our world is an important step in this phase. This knowledge gives us insight into how achieve at work, process life and maintain fulfilling relationships.
We learn why certain activities energize us and why certain activities deplete us.
We learn how our talents can help us better execute, influence, build relationships and think strategically.
As you can imagine, this improved self-awareness by itself is incredibly powerful. However, this discovery phase is just the first step.
Grow: Claim It!
Working hand-in-hand, we help you fully appreciate and “own” your unique talents. Truly honoring how you’re naturally wired to think, feel and behave has tremendous implications for achieving your goals.
Consider this: How crazy would it be if Superman chose not to fly? He knew he could fly, but…he has to find a phone booth and hassle with that cape and, you know, in the summer it gets kind of itchy and…
Yeah–we’re all thinking the same thing. What a waste!
Well, we can potentially fall into the same trap. It’s not good enough to simply acknowledge our glimpses of excellence as seen in our talents. If we want to fully leverage our unique gifts, we must invest, grow and develop them into actual strengths.
These true strengths become “the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance.”
The Claim It! phase is where we take your natural talents and mold them into mature, reliable strengths. As we illustrated in the opening essay, this is the difference between a barren, lifeless rock scape and a fully flowing, highly powered Niagra Falls.
Focus: Aim It!
Finally, StrengthsLauncher combines the discovery and growth stages to help you achieve results.
Together, in the Aim It! phase, we put this equation into action: (Talent X Investment = Strength). This proven method of exploring, developing and focusing your talents will move you from super stuck to super charged.
No more wishes, hopes and dreams that are never acted upon. No more “might haves.” No more “maybe next years…”
By learning how to Name, Claim and Aim your strengths, you take control of becoming the incredible, unstoppable person you were meant to be.
Helping people discover and focus their strengths to achieve their goals is our honor and privilege. With our experienced coaching and super individualized guidance, we can help you achieve more this year than you ever thought possible.
It begins with one of the most fun, fascinating journeys you’ll ever take–your personal strengths journey.
Let us help you make that journey. It’s what we do, and we love what we do. We think you will, too.
