In our ever-evolving world, even as we face innumerable challenges, a remarkable shift within individuals, teams, and organizations is happening. This is a shift in perspective from deficit-oriented and fixing what's wrong to a strengths-based one that focuses on what works. Each day, I contribute what I can to accelerating this shift with coaching and
“Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the reflection will come even more effective action.” This quote is attributed to Peter Drucker, esteemed management guru and champion for building personal and organizational strengths, even up to his passing in 2005. My interpretation of this quote is that sometimes we have to slow down to
“It’s all just too much.” This was the subject line of a digital news article I read recently, referring to the deadly pandemic, racial injustices, and a divided country. The author highlighted that African Americans, in particular, are paying a high price in terms of deaths, economic disparity, and declining mental health. We see
To say we are in a time of unprecedented upheaval would be a gross understatement, given the pandemic, economic downturn, and widespread looting and rioting in the United States. Still, as we face the difficult challenges of rebuilding and making systemic societal changes, there are many inspiring opportunities to also build up hope, courage,
“You can’t be anything you want to be —but you can be a whole lot more of who you already are.” – Tom Rath, bestselling author and expert on strengths in the workplace In a recent spring-cleaning project, I discovered a bin in the back corner of my basement. It held my high school yearbooks
In these extraordinary times, we’re encountering a dizzying array of unwanted challenges and disruptions in daily life. Many of us cannot connect in person with family, friends, and teammates. Others have lost work and opportunities. Sadly, there are even more tragic repercussions. It’s enough to create a sense of hopelessness in even the most
We don’t often appreciate what we have until it’s gone. This applies to people, like when a college student feels the absence of his parents after going off to school the first time. It applies to things, like when that old broken-down car finally gives out and you’re left without transportation. It applies to
G’day mates! How ya goin’? I recently returned from a once-in-a-lifetime, 3-week trip to Australia. I traveled across the world to 1) share the preliminary results of a study that Dr. Karen S. Whelan-Berry and I are co-leading and 2) enjoy the culture and hospitality of our Aussie friends Down Under. I’ll share more
When it comes to our awareness of character strengths, we all have blind spots. Strengths-related blind spots can obscure your vision and prevent you from seeing positive facets of yourself and others. In his book Mindfulness and Character Strengths, Ryan Niemiec talks about different kinds of blind spots. Three that seem to resonate most
(about a 5 minute read) There is a palpable shift in focus from what’s wrong to what’s strong in parenting, schools, teams, organizations, leadership approaches, learning processes, social work, coaching, therapy, and countless other arenas. Each time we engage our strengths, we boost our capacity for excellence and goodness. Each time we appreciate someone