I've recently become very interested in finding out more about my strengths. Through my work I was able to attend Landmark Forum and begin to think more deeply about my life. As a dietitian I am always striving to eat healthy, as a former athlete and active individual I am always striving to improve my physical performance, as someone who practices yoga I am always working on inner peace. It seems that many of the choices I make are aimed at being the best me I can be! I am the person who applies sunscreen so I don't burn, who goes to bed when I'm tired - I make a lot of choices to try to be a healthy me. I feel that this also involves my mind. I read a lot of nutrition books, I read some books for fun, but I also read personal development books. I've been reading more about management lately too.
At the Landmark Forum we had to think about our strong suits - the person we are without even thinking about it. This was an interesting realization, because I knew right away that one of mine would be my competitive nature. I always hear stories about being competitive as a child, I know that I hate to lose, and I also know that it helped me through my great athletic career. When I came home from the Forum, I read First Break All the Rules by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. The theme of the book is more on management and learning the strengths of the people around you. The idea that I like is that the book focuses on developing an individual's strengths, rather than focusing on weaknesses the way we tend to.
I then went on to complete StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath to find out my own strengths. As mentioned earlier, one of my top five talents was competition! Then in order to better understand my strengths I started and am currently reading Now Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton. I enjoyed learning my strengths so much that I gave StrengthsFinder 2.0 as a Christmas gift this year. It seems to me that the more I know about myself, such as my strengths, the more I can continue to develop myself in a successful way.
This is the time of year when many people start setting resolutions. I've never been much for resolutions and as a dietitian I would rather see people set SMART goals as opposed to resolutions that often just set them up for failure. I think along with the theme of a new year and a better me/you, it would be a great idea to do some personal development. Maybe you aren't interested in your strengths, but what are you interested in? Take time to become a better you as you prepare for 2011!
Steph Wheler
www.nutrishus.com
