By Linda Dubar and Kayla Harrity
Linda Dubar and Kayla Harrity are Career Coaches at Johnson County Community College. The Career Coaches work with students majoring in Computing Sciences/Information Technology, assisting them with navigating their academic program and their transition into the workplace.
Learner, Input, Empathy, Intellection, Futuristic.
Developer, Connectedness, Intellection, Restorative, Achiever.
What do these words mean? On the surface, it looks like nothing more than a list of adjectives. But if you’ve taken the StrengthsFinder assessment, you know that this list of adjectives actually tells you a great deal about the individual described with those words.
One of the best things a career coach can do is facilitate understanding of strengths in a student and help the student to increase and understand the many possibilities available in order to maximize their decision making that might ultimately impact their future.
As Career Coaches at JCCC, we highly value Strengths not for just personal growth but for the growth of the students. And it’s not just about knowing your strengths. It’s about the entire philosophy that supports Strengths – it’s the idea that we shouldn’t focus on our weaknesses.
So, how does Strengths come into play as it relates to Career Coaching?
The concept of Strengths is about taking our unique talents and improving on them. As mentioned above, the role of a Career Coach at JCCC is to assist students in navigating their academic program and transition to the workplace. In most cases, students have an interest and talent in a particular area and want to increase their knowledge and earn the credentials needed to turn that interest/talent into a career. Career Coaches can help students recognize the link between their interests and talents and the students’ possible future careers.
Strengths are thought to be those tasks and preferences that come easily and naturally to an individual and that are energizing. Everyone is familiar with the saying “play to your strengths” and in recent years research from the field of positive psychology has been providing the scientific underpinnings of the benefits that using strengths can bring. People who use their strengths are happier, more confident and have higher levels of energy and vitality (Govindiji and Linley, 2007), have higher levels of self-esteem (Minhas, 2007), experience less stress (Wood, Linley, Maltby and Hurling, 2010), are more likely to achieve their goals (Lindley, Nielson, Wood, Gillett and Biswas-Diener, 2010) and are more engaged at work (Harter, Schmidt and Hayes, 2002). Recent research has also shown that people using their strengths are more likely to perform better at work (Stefanyszyn, 2007) and are more effective at developing themselves and growing as individuals (Sheldon, Kasser, Smith and Share, 2002).
Students benefit!!
When students take the Strengths Assessment and learns that their strengths align with their educational and career goals, it can be a game changer for them! Understanding that the steps they are taking are helping them to grow their strengths gives them an increased sense of purpose. Students can begin to see themselves in a new way and begin to understand why some tasks or jobs aren’t enjoyable to them (because they don’t align with their Strengths!). Knowing your Strengths helps you set more fulfilling goals and sets you on a path toward a more enjoyable career.
References
Govindji, R. & Linley, P.A. (2007). Strengths use, self-confidence and well-being: Implications for strengths coaching and coaching psychologists. International Coaching Psychology Review, 2 (2), 143-153
Harter, J.K., Schmdt, F.L. & Hayes, T.L. (2002). Business-unit-level relationship between employee satisfaction, employee engagement, and business outcomes: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87, 268-279
Lindley, P.A., Nielson, K.M., Wood, A.M., Gillett, R., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2010). Using signature strengths in pursuit of goals: Effects on goal progress, need satisfaction, and well-being, and implications for coaching psychologists. International Coaching Psychology Review, 5 (1), 8-17
Minhas, G. (2010). Developing realized and unrealized strengths: Implications for engagement, self-esteem, life satisfaction and well- being. Assessment and Development Matters. In press.
Sheldon, K.M., Kasser, T., Smith, K. & Share, T. (2002). Personal goals and psychological growth: Testing an intervention to enhance goal-attainment and personality integration. Journal of Personality, 70, 5-31
Stefanyszyn, K. (2007). Norwich Union changes on focus from competencies to strengths, Strategic HR Review, 7, 10-11
Wood, A.M., Linley, P.A., Maltby, J., & Hurling, R. (2010). Use of positive psychological strengths leads to less stress and greater self-esteem, vitality and positive effect over time: A three-wave longitudinal study and validation of the Strengths Use Scale. Manuscript.