Well, Thanksgiving is past, so the title of this blog is a little misleading. I MEANT to write it Thanksgiving week, but somehow it's December and here I am :)
During this season of the year there are lots of reasons to think about life differently. At Thanksgiving we have a good reason to stop the rat race of our lives and be mindful of our blessings. Even those of us for whom "gratitude" is not a character strength can manage this one day a year :)
During Thanksgiving week I chose to be mindful of all the things I had to be grateful for, as I spent quality time with my parents who are retired in Florida. Being "mindful," according to Ellen Langer's research, involves noticing "novel distinctions" and being open to different ways of viewing the world. So on Thanksgiving Day I was grateful for good health, parents who loved me and each other, and the ability to travel and spend time with them.
On the day after Thanksgiving, I chose to spend the day noticing how people's strengths were being played out in their interactions with other people. Now remember--that was "Black Friday," the day that very few of us are on our "A-game" in interacting with others as we shove to get the "Doorbuster" at Best Buy. It helped me to reframe the way I saw people--focusing on how they were using their strengths meant that I focused on what they were doing that was productive. It also meant that I wasn't nearly as annoyed as I might've been another time--I was seeing them through those "strengths glasses" that Chip Anderson always referred to, which meant my own lens had changed.
I watched some amazing Positivity among the checkout cashiers, saw (and heard!) a lot of Woo and Communication among people as they stood in line, and was not nearly as frustrated with the Deliberative in front of me who was carefully checking her receipt to see that she got all the discounts to which she was entitled :)
You might try it sometime. Just spend a day noticing people's strengths--and taking a minute to be grateful for them. You might find that you'd like to have more than one "Thanksgiving Day" in your year!
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
I had the opportunity today to be part of a grant proposal planning session about how to utilize a strengths approach to help low-income middle-schoolers get ready for college. We talked about family expectations and how important those were to students' consideration of whether or not they were "college material." I think understanding students' strengths can help families be more supportive of the student's decisions about college and (later on) career.
When you start seeing the people you care about in light of their strengths, you see them through a different lens. You realize that they already have inside them the key ingredients that can be tapped for success. You see that they have at least 5 pathways (as Shane Lopez points out) to reach their goals, which gives them hope for the future. You recognize some new ways that you can come alongside in the process and be more supportive of them.
Parents may also realize that areas where they "bump up against" their son or daughter are the very themes of talent that their children can capitalize on for success. That "command" theme that drives parents nuts because it challenges them is the very talent that can be honed into a powerful voice for the marginalized--it's a voice that can potentially change the world. That "strategic" talent that negotiates every parent-child transaction, starting with "can't I take my bath tomorrow?" when they were 3 and by age 17 becomes "if you'll let me borrow the car tonight, I promise I'll do the dishes tomorrow!" is the same talent that can negotiate business mergers or new political agreements--when honed with skill and knowledge.
Particularly for parents who have never been to college themselves, seeing that their children have not only the opportunity but the means for success can provide parents with the confidence to let their kids try on this new role. It can make all the difference to both the student and the parents.
When you start seeing the people you care about in light of their strengths, you see them through a different lens. You realize that they already have inside them the key ingredients that can be tapped for success. You see that they have at least 5 pathways (as Shane Lopez points out) to reach their goals, which gives them hope for the future. You recognize some new ways that you can come alongside in the process and be more supportive of them.
Parents may also realize that areas where they "bump up against" their son or daughter are the very themes of talent that their children can capitalize on for success. That "command" theme that drives parents nuts because it challenges them is the very talent that can be honed into a powerful voice for the marginalized--it's a voice that can potentially change the world. That "strategic" talent that negotiates every parent-child transaction, starting with "can't I take my bath tomorrow?" when they were 3 and by age 17 becomes "if you'll let me borrow the car tonight, I promise I'll do the dishes tomorrow!" is the same talent that can negotiate business mergers or new political agreements--when honed with skill and knowledge.
Particularly for parents who have never been to college themselves, seeing that their children have not only the opportunity but the means for success can provide parents with the confidence to let their kids try on this new role. It can make all the difference to both the student and the parents.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Applying Strengths to Academic Success
I'm currently in the middle of a project analyzing the results of about 3,000 sophomores who completed a survey about their experiences in the second year of college. Because so many colleges are taking a strengths-based approach to at least some programming on campus, I added the question "I know how to apply my strengths to achieve academic success."
One of the things I've noticed informally over the years is that this element -- knowing how to apply one's strengths to academic tasks -- appears to be the "toughest" part of implementing a strengths program. Everyone loves to learn about their talent themes and there is a burst of positive emotions when that happens initially. And lots of people say that it has helped their relationships to understand how other people's talents make them good at what they do, but also can be annoying sometimes. But actually being able to develop those talents into strengths and APPLY those strengths to challenges -- well, that's the tough part.
So now I'm intrigued by this finding with 3,000 sophomores. Those who said they "definitely" knew how to apply their strengths to achieve academic success also were at the top of the scale on other important outcomes: they were more likely to say they would definitly graduate from their institution, they were more engaged in class, they sought out faculty more frequently, they were more involved in campus activities, they were more satisfied with their total college experience, and they were more likely to perceive their tuition dollars as a good life investment.
At first I thought this item was a proxy for academic self-efficacy. Surely this item just means they're confident and know their way around the system academically. But I statistically controlled for academic self-efficacy before running the analyses--and this item still contributes uniquely and significantly to our understanding of sophomore success.
So that's pretty cool. But what does it mean? Since not everyone who answered the survey had participated in a strengths-based program, we really don't know what they were thinking when they answered the question! So that's my next task--to figure out what students mean when they say they know how to apply their strengths academically--and then to ask them how they do that. We need specific examples. We need to understand this phenomenon better. I'm convinced it's at the heart of long-term results for strengths programs.
My colleagues at Azusa Pacific University are taking this next step with me. Dr. Sharyn Slavin-Miller will head up a qualitative study of the most and least engaged of our sophomores on campus. She'll follow up with those who returned as juniors, as well as with those who left the institution. She'll ask them lots of questions, but this one will be part of her study: "What do you do to apply your strengths to academic challenges? What does that look like for you?"
Dr. Karen Longman will also be working on a corollary study that will go more in depth with students who have participated in APU's strengths-based first-year seminar, building on the work that Dr. Eileen Hulme and Dr. Paul Kaak have begun. Dr. Anita Henck's focus is on strengths-based staff development programs and complements the work we're doing with student programs.
So stay tuned--I'm intrigued by our initial findings of the difference that it makes when students say they know how to apply their strengths to succeed academically. Now we need to know how they do that--and how we can teach other students to do that, as well!
One of the things I've noticed informally over the years is that this element -- knowing how to apply one's strengths to academic tasks -- appears to be the "toughest" part of implementing a strengths program. Everyone loves to learn about their talent themes and there is a burst of positive emotions when that happens initially. And lots of people say that it has helped their relationships to understand how other people's talents make them good at what they do, but also can be annoying sometimes. But actually being able to develop those talents into strengths and APPLY those strengths to challenges -- well, that's the tough part.
So now I'm intrigued by this finding with 3,000 sophomores. Those who said they "definitely" knew how to apply their strengths to achieve academic success also were at the top of the scale on other important outcomes: they were more likely to say they would definitly graduate from their institution, they were more engaged in class, they sought out faculty more frequently, they were more involved in campus activities, they were more satisfied with their total college experience, and they were more likely to perceive their tuition dollars as a good life investment.
At first I thought this item was a proxy for academic self-efficacy. Surely this item just means they're confident and know their way around the system academically. But I statistically controlled for academic self-efficacy before running the analyses--and this item still contributes uniquely and significantly to our understanding of sophomore success.
So that's pretty cool. But what does it mean? Since not everyone who answered the survey had participated in a strengths-based program, we really don't know what they were thinking when they answered the question! So that's my next task--to figure out what students mean when they say they know how to apply their strengths academically--and then to ask them how they do that. We need specific examples. We need to understand this phenomenon better. I'm convinced it's at the heart of long-term results for strengths programs.
My colleagues at Azusa Pacific University are taking this next step with me. Dr. Sharyn Slavin-Miller will head up a qualitative study of the most and least engaged of our sophomores on campus. She'll follow up with those who returned as juniors, as well as with those who left the institution. She'll ask them lots of questions, but this one will be part of her study: "What do you do to apply your strengths to academic challenges? What does that look like for you?"
Dr. Karen Longman will also be working on a corollary study that will go more in depth with students who have participated in APU's strengths-based first-year seminar, building on the work that Dr. Eileen Hulme and Dr. Paul Kaak have begun. Dr. Anita Henck's focus is on strengths-based staff development programs and complements the work we're doing with student programs.
So stay tuned--I'm intrigued by our initial findings of the difference that it makes when students say they know how to apply their strengths to succeed academically. Now we need to know how they do that--and how we can teach other students to do that, as well!
Friday, September 21, 2007
Strengths as an Excuse?
Sometimes I hear people use their signature talent themes as an excuse for poor performance or as a reason not to engage in a task that's expected of them.
Examples?
Examples?
- Kate enters the department meeting 20 minutes late, after 8 people have waited impatiently on her. As she slides into her chair, she breezily says, "oh well, that's my Adaptability for you...what can I say?"
- After Jeff rudely interrupts a colleague's story and has obviously hurt that person's feelings in the process, he shrugs and says, "Hey--I have no Empathy, and Command is my #1. Get over it."
- When Jake is asked to organize his reports more effectively and turn them in by the deadline, he says, "Well, Discipline is not in my top five. I'm not sure this is something I can do."
- When colleagues are asked to take turns on a departmental task that simply has to get done and that no one enjoys doing, Tamara responds with, "hmmm...that's not my strength" as she slides out the door.
In each of these examples, the task or skill is one that is routinely expected in the job. It's not a choice, a preference, or a privilege. Some things we just gotta do--and saying, "that's not my strength" misses the point.
So what is the point?
Strengths are qualities that enable us to do something particularly well--thus, they cannot be a reason for poor performance. Strengths only lead to positive outcomes, or they wouldn't be strengths! Talents can have a "shadow side" when we haven't honed them or developed them fully into strengths, or when we misapply them or fail to apply them. So a talent theme of Command can have a bossy shadow side, whereas an appropriately leveraged Command talent theme can result in the strength of taking charge and leading people through an emergency evacuation of a building.
A weakness is anything that interferes with our own performance or the performance of others. When we don't meet the expectations of our work, that's an area of weakness. Or if what we do keeps others from doing their jobs well, that's an area of weakness as well. And the trick is to apply our talent themes to those areas, so that they no longer interfere with performance. So rather than saying it's okay to be late and make others wait on me since I have the "strength" of Adaptability, it would be better to deploy my Strategic talent theme and set my watch 10 minutes early--and ask a colleague to stop by my office on her way to the meeting to help me be on time.
Talent MULTIPLIED by knowledge and skill equals strength, not excuses.
Monday, September 3, 2007
Invest in Your Talents
Over the past several weeks I've done a number of faculty workshops that have been focused on taking a strengths-based approach to learning. As I've interacted with faculty on this topic, it has become clearer to me how important the issue of talent development is. By this I mean that any strengths-based approach within education cannot simply focus on identifying strengths (or, to be more precise, identifying areas of greatest talent!).
The areas of students' greatest talent are simply the beginning of the journey. They point to what energizes the student naturally, what will connect most easily with the curiosities and passions already within him or her. They are a huge clue to motivation, for they are a way of validating what the student brings to the table--a message that too often higher education has neglected completely. We tend to focus on what the student is lacking--all those areas where they are not well prepared or do not yet have the abilities they need. But what a difference it can make to identify what that student brings to us -- how we as fellow learners are all enriched by their contribution to the learning environment.
But it can't stop with that. The rest of the story is just as important, if not more so! I like the way Tom Rath has started to talk about strengths as "talent multipled by investment." If there's no investment, then all the talent in the world won't produce strength (that consistently near-perfect performance). Even the most talented chess players, musicians, and basketball players spend a LOT of their time practicing. They invest effort that multiplies their talent into an amazing strength.
The importance of investing effort is confirmed in some of the research that is coming out of ACT. One of the best predictors of student learning and success is the quality of effort that students invest in the learning process. Dr. Eileen Hulme, one of our faculty at Azusa Pacific, just completed a grounded theory study of high achieving students at multiple universities and found that the central phenomenon, the core that all the students had in common, was their belief that high levels of achievement were most of all about effort -- just plain hard work.
So that's the message we need to send to our students as we start this new year -- how are you going to invest your time and energy so that your talents are developed and honed? Your best opportunity for growth is in your areas of talent, but the growth will only happen when you invest your energy to acquire the knowledge and skills. Talent x Investment = Strength!
The areas of students' greatest talent are simply the beginning of the journey. They point to what energizes the student naturally, what will connect most easily with the curiosities and passions already within him or her. They are a huge clue to motivation, for they are a way of validating what the student brings to the table--a message that too often higher education has neglected completely. We tend to focus on what the student is lacking--all those areas where they are not well prepared or do not yet have the abilities they need. But what a difference it can make to identify what that student brings to us -- how we as fellow learners are all enriched by their contribution to the learning environment.
But it can't stop with that. The rest of the story is just as important, if not more so! I like the way Tom Rath has started to talk about strengths as "talent multipled by investment." If there's no investment, then all the talent in the world won't produce strength (that consistently near-perfect performance). Even the most talented chess players, musicians, and basketball players spend a LOT of their time practicing. They invest effort that multiplies their talent into an amazing strength.
The importance of investing effort is confirmed in some of the research that is coming out of ACT. One of the best predictors of student learning and success is the quality of effort that students invest in the learning process. Dr. Eileen Hulme, one of our faculty at Azusa Pacific, just completed a grounded theory study of high achieving students at multiple universities and found that the central phenomenon, the core that all the students had in common, was their belief that high levels of achievement were most of all about effort -- just plain hard work.
So that's the message we need to send to our students as we start this new year -- how are you going to invest your time and energy so that your talents are developed and honed? Your best opportunity for growth is in your areas of talent, but the growth will only happen when you invest your energy to acquire the knowledge and skills. Talent x Investment = Strength!
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Strengths Intervention Strategies
There are a number of strengths-based intervention strategies that are effective with college students. Before deciding on which one to use, however, it's important that you know what outcome you want your intervention to affect.
Some of the outcomes of strengths-based interventions that have been measured so far include: (1) academic self-efficacy; (2) academic performance--either GPA or exam grades in a course; (3) retention from one year to the next; (4) academic engagement; (5) meaning in life; (6) satisfaction with college; (7) satisfaction with the particular strengths-based experience, such as advising or a specific course; (8) hope; and (9) strengths awareness and ownership. Significant results have been found in each instance, although the research designs vary. Some are quasi-experimental studies and some are correlational studies utilizing multiple regression to predict the particular outcome.
One of the best studies was conducted by Dr. Linda Cantwell in 2005 as part of her dissertation research at Azusa Pacific University. She utilized a strengths-based approach to her first-year Public Speaking class for an entire semester and compared students' academic engagement, exam scores, and public speaking performances (rated blindly by qualified observers) to those of students whose section of the course had been randomly selected as a control group. She found significant differences between the two groups on all her outcomes--and on academic engagement in particular. She also found significant differences in students' perception of the entire campus climate--and this was after controlling for their entering levels of academic engagement.
For more information on the impact of strengths-based interventions, plan to join me at 11 am Pacific time on Wednesday, September 5th, for a live webinar -- free! Contact Irene Burklund at the Gallup Organization (irene_burklund@gallup.com) for more information on how to sign up.
Some of the outcomes of strengths-based interventions that have been measured so far include: (1) academic self-efficacy; (2) academic performance--either GPA or exam grades in a course; (3) retention from one year to the next; (4) academic engagement; (5) meaning in life; (6) satisfaction with college; (7) satisfaction with the particular strengths-based experience, such as advising or a specific course; (8) hope; and (9) strengths awareness and ownership. Significant results have been found in each instance, although the research designs vary. Some are quasi-experimental studies and some are correlational studies utilizing multiple regression to predict the particular outcome.
One of the best studies was conducted by Dr. Linda Cantwell in 2005 as part of her dissertation research at Azusa Pacific University. She utilized a strengths-based approach to her first-year Public Speaking class for an entire semester and compared students' academic engagement, exam scores, and public speaking performances (rated blindly by qualified observers) to those of students whose section of the course had been randomly selected as a control group. She found significant differences between the two groups on all her outcomes--and on academic engagement in particular. She also found significant differences in students' perception of the entire campus climate--and this was after controlling for their entering levels of academic engagement.
For more information on the impact of strengths-based interventions, plan to join me at 11 am Pacific time on Wednesday, September 5th, for a live webinar -- free! Contact Irene Burklund at the Gallup Organization (irene_burklund@gallup.com) for more information on how to sign up.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Best Strategies for Strengths Interventions Part I
I've gotten a few e-mails lately that have asked me what I think is the best strategy for introducing first-year students to their talents and then helping them develop their strengths. We've been doing quite a bit of research over the years with first-year students, but there isn't a simple answer to this question! No particular study has been done yet that has compared different exposure times, although there are a few studies that have compared strategies. Today I'll focus just on the time element. Next posting I'll address the strategies!
When Chip Anderson was still alive, he always said that strengths development takes time -- the exposure of students to their talents and to strategies for developing strengths is a process that is best distributed over time. So he always suggested 90 minutes of class time each week for an entire semester. But some studies have been done that show successful results with four 90-minute class sessions or workshop sessions; others have found some success with even a 30-minute one-on-one counseling session around students' strengths.
We think the best strategy is one that gives students exposure over time with a continuing application and development. It doesn't end the first year but becomes a process over all four (or more!) years of a student's college education. Each year should build on the previous learning, so that it is not repetitive but keeps advancing students' skills and knowledge in developing their strengths.
Two questions to ask before starting: (1) what do you mean by a "strengths intervention"? and (2) what outcomes do you hope to see in your students?
I'll deal with the second question this time and save the first question for next time, when I will focus on strategies.
In deciding what to measure as an outcome, you need to think about what you are hoping to accomplish in your students. If your context is a first-year experience program, you might want to measure student adjustment to college, engaged learning, or academic self-efficacy (one of the best predictors of student success). If your context is a student leadership development program, you might want to measure emotional intelligence or leadership skills. Career centers might measure career decision-making self-efficacy; chaplain's programs might measure sense of meaning and purpose; advising programs might measure goal-orientation or hope. The point is that you need to think ahead of time what your program wants to see developed in your students--and why!
Once you've done that, you can select appropriate measures. The Strengths Impact Measure is available from The Gallup Organization by contacting Irene Burklund at Irene_Burklund@gallup.com; it is one measure that assesses strengths awareness and ownership, sense of meaning and purpose, hope, academic self-efficacy, and academic engagement. The Engaged Learning Index--a new validated measure containing 15 items that assess the extent to which students are engaged in deep learning in their classes (a key predictor of learning gains and graduation) -- is available from the Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education (www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy).
There are some great studies in process right now that are examining specific strategies for strengths interventions. There are also some very good studies that have already been done. Next time I'll focus on these!
When Chip Anderson was still alive, he always said that strengths development takes time -- the exposure of students to their talents and to strategies for developing strengths is a process that is best distributed over time. So he always suggested 90 minutes of class time each week for an entire semester. But some studies have been done that show successful results with four 90-minute class sessions or workshop sessions; others have found some success with even a 30-minute one-on-one counseling session around students' strengths.
We think the best strategy is one that gives students exposure over time with a continuing application and development. It doesn't end the first year but becomes a process over all four (or more!) years of a student's college education. Each year should build on the previous learning, so that it is not repetitive but keeps advancing students' skills and knowledge in developing their strengths.
Two questions to ask before starting: (1) what do you mean by a "strengths intervention"? and (2) what outcomes do you hope to see in your students?
I'll deal with the second question this time and save the first question for next time, when I will focus on strategies.
In deciding what to measure as an outcome, you need to think about what you are hoping to accomplish in your students. If your context is a first-year experience program, you might want to measure student adjustment to college, engaged learning, or academic self-efficacy (one of the best predictors of student success). If your context is a student leadership development program, you might want to measure emotional intelligence or leadership skills. Career centers might measure career decision-making self-efficacy; chaplain's programs might measure sense of meaning and purpose; advising programs might measure goal-orientation or hope. The point is that you need to think ahead of time what your program wants to see developed in your students--and why!
Once you've done that, you can select appropriate measures. The Strengths Impact Measure is available from The Gallup Organization by contacting Irene Burklund at Irene_Burklund@gallup.com; it is one measure that assesses strengths awareness and ownership, sense of meaning and purpose, hope, academic self-efficacy, and academic engagement. The Engaged Learning Index--a new validated measure containing 15 items that assess the extent to which students are engaged in deep learning in their classes (a key predictor of learning gains and graduation) -- is available from the Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education (www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy).
There are some great studies in process right now that are examining specific strategies for strengths interventions. There are also some very good studies that have already been done. Next time I'll focus on these!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Strengths Development
I've been at The Gallup Organization's conference on Becoming a Strengths-Based Campus this week. What a great time to meet up with old friends, but also an amazing time to meet the surprisingly large number of people who are "new" to the strengths movement! As we talked together over these past few days, it has caused me to think even more about what it takes to really develop one's talents into strengths. I'm more and more convinced that simply identifying talents isn't enough--it may give a temporary boost to one's self-confidence or may help increase self-awareness, but without an effort to multiply the talents with skills and knowledge--and without the accountable relationships in which to do so--we've done little more than given people a pat on the back. Not that we all couldn't use a pat on the back now and then!
Tom Rath talked about vital friends and the role that friendships play in engaging people at work. Work is a lot more fun when enjoy the people we work with. And the same can be said for developing one's talents -- I'm much more likely to do so when there are people who care about me and are committed to helping me grow.
So at a time like this, I'm deeply grateful for the people with whom I work -- Eileen, Karen, Anita, Paul, Shawna, Susette -- they hone my strengths in a major way! But I also feel an even greater responsibility for the students whose lives intersect with mine. Hopefully by spotting some of their talents and helping them see how they can reach excellence by developing those talents, they will go on to do great things. I think that's why I've chosen to teach--to touch people's lives and make a difference in the world through my students.
Tom Rath talked about vital friends and the role that friendships play in engaging people at work. Work is a lot more fun when enjoy the people we work with. And the same can be said for developing one's talents -- I'm much more likely to do so when there are people who care about me and are committed to helping me grow.
So at a time like this, I'm deeply grateful for the people with whom I work -- Eileen, Karen, Anita, Paul, Shawna, Susette -- they hone my strengths in a major way! But I also feel an even greater responsibility for the students whose lives intersect with mine. Hopefully by spotting some of their talents and helping them see how they can reach excellence by developing those talents, they will go on to do great things. I think that's why I've chosen to teach--to touch people's lives and make a difference in the world through my students.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Putting Your Strengths to Work
At the end of May I had the opportunity to be at the University of Warwick in the United Kingdom with some of the doctoral students from Azusa Pacific University's Higher Education program. Alex Linley, Director of the Centre for Applied Positive Psychology, met with us and updated us on what was happening in his part of the world.
There are a number of threads that are beginning to weave together around issues of strengths-based teams. While Marcus Buckingham's new book Go Put Your Strengths to Work emphasizes how an individual can capitalize on his or her strengths so that more time at work is spent doing the things that are energizing, the work that Alex is doing seems congruent with not only what The Gallup Organization does with strengths-based teams, but also with my own experience in the Noel Academy as we have tried to practice what we preach and become a model of a strengths-based team ourselves.
Alex told the story of a large company whose executive team members were each delegated to specific tasks that would enable the company to meet its goals and fulfill its mission. After months of listing these tasks at each meeting, Alex came in and worked with them on how to become a strengths-based team. He pointed out that there were a number of items that remained on this "snag list" (as he called it) month after month and never got done. So he challenged the whole team to examine the list together and see whose strengths were better suited for managing some of those tasks.
Sounds simple and even rather obvious, right? If a job isn't getting done, find a person who can do it. But we tend to be confined to our job descriptions, afraid to step on others' toes by offering to do something that clearly isn't in their area of strength but happens to be something that energizes us. We may even believe that they should do that task because it's their job and they're getting paid for it -- no one else should do it for them. But if we really believe in strengths-based organizations, wouldn't we look at the task list as our list--something that collectively we hope to accomplish? When we do, amazing things happen. As Alex pointed out, the 12 or so tasks that had languished on the snag list for month after month were all completed within one month of the meeting in which people volunteered to take them on because they fit their strengths.
When we tried this in the Noel Academy, not everything on the snag list was grabbed by others eager to utilize their strengths to get them done, however! As I've thought about that, I think there were a couple of key differences in our situation--differences that might be useful for other teams to think about as they endeavor to become strengths-based.
First, the strengths constellations among the five faculty who are associated with the Noel Academy are remarkably similar! We ALL have Achiever (which can be dangerous at times!), we all have Learner, and many of us are Strategic as well. So there wasn't a lot of differentiation among our strengths--meaning we all enjoy doing many of the same things and are energized in somewhat similar ways. A good team probably has a little more variety in the strengths represented--and in searching for team members when an opening becomes available, this is something to remember.
Second, many of the things we put on our snag list were not necessarily important tasks that were crucial to accomplishing the mission of the Academy. The list tended to include items that simply had to be done by someone. But I think if we had started with mission (instead of starting with just what energized us and what "weakened" us, in Buckingham's terms), we would have had a different list--and a list of things that we all realized were vital to our success as a team. Then perhaps some of us would've realized ways our strengths could've been leveraged to accomplish those tasks.
In thinking about putting our collective strengths to work, then, there are a couple of lessons I think I've learned: (1) start with mission -- what is vital to our collective success as a team? (2) Create teams that have a variety of strengths represented. And if those don't exist on the team, then think creatively about who can be brought in for particular projects or who else within the organization might be a good partner on some tasks. (3) Emphasize collective success and goals, rather than getting hung up on job descriptions and titles. (4) Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do--and that no one else wants to do, either! Hopefully, that's not the majority of your job, but sometimes you just have to dig in and do it.
Because the strengths philosophy is such a paradigm shift for most of us, it will take time to reframe our work in this way. But I think in the long run it will pay off with higher morale, higher productivity as a team, and a better product at the end.
There are a number of threads that are beginning to weave together around issues of strengths-based teams. While Marcus Buckingham's new book Go Put Your Strengths to Work emphasizes how an individual can capitalize on his or her strengths so that more time at work is spent doing the things that are energizing, the work that Alex is doing seems congruent with not only what The Gallup Organization does with strengths-based teams, but also with my own experience in the Noel Academy as we have tried to practice what we preach and become a model of a strengths-based team ourselves.
Alex told the story of a large company whose executive team members were each delegated to specific tasks that would enable the company to meet its goals and fulfill its mission. After months of listing these tasks at each meeting, Alex came in and worked with them on how to become a strengths-based team. He pointed out that there were a number of items that remained on this "snag list" (as he called it) month after month and never got done. So he challenged the whole team to examine the list together and see whose strengths were better suited for managing some of those tasks.
Sounds simple and even rather obvious, right? If a job isn't getting done, find a person who can do it. But we tend to be confined to our job descriptions, afraid to step on others' toes by offering to do something that clearly isn't in their area of strength but happens to be something that energizes us. We may even believe that they should do that task because it's their job and they're getting paid for it -- no one else should do it for them. But if we really believe in strengths-based organizations, wouldn't we look at the task list as our list--something that collectively we hope to accomplish? When we do, amazing things happen. As Alex pointed out, the 12 or so tasks that had languished on the snag list for month after month were all completed within one month of the meeting in which people volunteered to take them on because they fit their strengths.
When we tried this in the Noel Academy, not everything on the snag list was grabbed by others eager to utilize their strengths to get them done, however! As I've thought about that, I think there were a couple of key differences in our situation--differences that might be useful for other teams to think about as they endeavor to become strengths-based.
First, the strengths constellations among the five faculty who are associated with the Noel Academy are remarkably similar! We ALL have Achiever (which can be dangerous at times!), we all have Learner, and many of us are Strategic as well. So there wasn't a lot of differentiation among our strengths--meaning we all enjoy doing many of the same things and are energized in somewhat similar ways. A good team probably has a little more variety in the strengths represented--and in searching for team members when an opening becomes available, this is something to remember.
Second, many of the things we put on our snag list were not necessarily important tasks that were crucial to accomplishing the mission of the Academy. The list tended to include items that simply had to be done by someone. But I think if we had started with mission (instead of starting with just what energized us and what "weakened" us, in Buckingham's terms), we would have had a different list--and a list of things that we all realized were vital to our success as a team. Then perhaps some of us would've realized ways our strengths could've been leveraged to accomplish those tasks.
In thinking about putting our collective strengths to work, then, there are a couple of lessons I think I've learned: (1) start with mission -- what is vital to our collective success as a team? (2) Create teams that have a variety of strengths represented. And if those don't exist on the team, then think creatively about who can be brought in for particular projects or who else within the organization might be a good partner on some tasks. (3) Emphasize collective success and goals, rather than getting hung up on job descriptions and titles. (4) Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do--and that no one else wants to do, either! Hopefully, that's not the majority of your job, but sometimes you just have to dig in and do it.
Because the strengths philosophy is such a paradigm shift for most of us, it will take time to reframe our work in this way. But I think in the long run it will pay off with higher morale, higher productivity as a team, and a better product at the end.
Monday, May 28, 2007
My Strengths Journey
These last few weeks I have had a lot of opportunities to interact with people who are new to the strengths philosophy. Some are faculty, some are researchers, some are career counselors, some are administrators. It has reminded me of my own "strengths journey," as I have seen myself in some of the persons I've encountered.
When I was first introduced to the strengths philosophy by Chip Anderson almost ten years ago, I guess you could say I was a skeptic. It sounded too touchy-feely, Pollyannish, and seemed way too similar to some of the things that came out of the ill-fated self-esteem movement from the 80's. I remember asking Don Clifton what the coefficient alphas were for each of the scales--and in fact I really wanted to see all of the StrengthsFinder factor analysis results! Give me empirical evidence that it works--that was what would convince me (and I don't even have Analytical in my top five!).
At the time, StrengthsFinder had just been piloted (it even had 35 themes then) and the empirical evidence was sketchy. Promising, but sketchy. So I joined with some other universities in collecting some evidence over the next couple of years. One thing about higher education is that it is difficult to randomly assign students to conditions--or even to have a control group. So the evidence we collected was quasi-experimental at best. But it, too, was promising. First-year students appeared to be more confident, got better grades, enjoyed their classes more, and even were more likely to stick around for a second year when they had participated in a strengths-based first-year seminar.
But it was the student focus groups that changed my own view of the power of the strengths approach. Hearing students' voices articulating how they saw life differently--how they saw themselves and others differently--was what eventually "sold" me on the strengths philosophy. Even though Chip had distributed those wacky "strengths-colored glasses" to remind us that the strengths approach was a different lens through which to view the world, it was hearing students talk about how they saw their relationships, their majors, and their academic goals in a whole new light that was most convincing for me.
And I suppose that's connected to why I'm a faculty member. I live for those "aha" moments when students' eyes light up, when they really get it in a whole new way. That's what makes my job rewarding and meaningful--knowing I've opened a door for students. As Sonja Gravett from South Africa says, "informative learning changes WHAT students know; transformative learning changes HOW they know and WHO they are." That's what I've always wanted to happen in my classroom--I want to change students from the inside out in ways that are valuable and important to them. And the strengths approach does just that. Watching their eyes light up when they realize they have the seeds of success already inside them, that they have something to contribute to our mutual learning, that what college will add is the knowledge and skills to move them to levels of excellence--THAT is why I use a strengths approach to teaching. It energizes me; it makes my job much more fun and rewarding--and it changes my students in ways that matter for a lifetime.
It took me about three years to really get this idea (I'm a slow learner!). I still want the empirical evidence, I still love to read about coefficient alphas and principal components analysis, and I still push universities to randomly assign students to a control or experimental group when they are starting to using StrengthsQuest on their campus. But the bottom line is that I've seen lives changed--and in fact, my own approach to teaching has changed as a result. And that is what makes all the difference.
When I was first introduced to the strengths philosophy by Chip Anderson almost ten years ago, I guess you could say I was a skeptic. It sounded too touchy-feely, Pollyannish, and seemed way too similar to some of the things that came out of the ill-fated self-esteem movement from the 80's. I remember asking Don Clifton what the coefficient alphas were for each of the scales--and in fact I really wanted to see all of the StrengthsFinder factor analysis results! Give me empirical evidence that it works--that was what would convince me (and I don't even have Analytical in my top five!).
At the time, StrengthsFinder had just been piloted (it even had 35 themes then) and the empirical evidence was sketchy. Promising, but sketchy. So I joined with some other universities in collecting some evidence over the next couple of years. One thing about higher education is that it is difficult to randomly assign students to conditions--or even to have a control group. So the evidence we collected was quasi-experimental at best. But it, too, was promising. First-year students appeared to be more confident, got better grades, enjoyed their classes more, and even were more likely to stick around for a second year when they had participated in a strengths-based first-year seminar.
But it was the student focus groups that changed my own view of the power of the strengths approach. Hearing students' voices articulating how they saw life differently--how they saw themselves and others differently--was what eventually "sold" me on the strengths philosophy. Even though Chip had distributed those wacky "strengths-colored glasses" to remind us that the strengths approach was a different lens through which to view the world, it was hearing students talk about how they saw their relationships, their majors, and their academic goals in a whole new light that was most convincing for me.
And I suppose that's connected to why I'm a faculty member. I live for those "aha" moments when students' eyes light up, when they really get it in a whole new way. That's what makes my job rewarding and meaningful--knowing I've opened a door for students. As Sonja Gravett from South Africa says, "informative learning changes WHAT students know; transformative learning changes HOW they know and WHO they are." That's what I've always wanted to happen in my classroom--I want to change students from the inside out in ways that are valuable and important to them. And the strengths approach does just that. Watching their eyes light up when they realize they have the seeds of success already inside them, that they have something to contribute to our mutual learning, that what college will add is the knowledge and skills to move them to levels of excellence--THAT is why I use a strengths approach to teaching. It energizes me; it makes my job much more fun and rewarding--and it changes my students in ways that matter for a lifetime.
It took me about three years to really get this idea (I'm a slow learner!). I still want the empirical evidence, I still love to read about coefficient alphas and principal components analysis, and I still push universities to randomly assign students to a control or experimental group when they are starting to using StrengthsQuest on their campus. But the bottom line is that I've seen lives changed--and in fact, my own approach to teaching has changed as a result. And that is what makes all the difference.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Research Webinar this Tuesday
This Tuesday at 11 am Pacific time Gallup is hosting a webinar on research that has been done and is currently underway to test the impact of strengths-based interventions. Contact Irene Burklund at irene_burklund@gallup.com for information on how to join me for this. I'll be talking about the types of outcomes that a strengths-based intervention OUGHT to produce, will describe some of the research results we have found so far, then will focus on how you can design powerful research projects on your own campus to determine whether or not the strengths-based intervention you implement actually makes a difference!
So many campuses are adopting a strengths-based approach to various programs -- advising, first-year seminars, student leadership programs, residence life education programs -- yet few are determining in advance what outcomes they want to see. Even fewer design the most powerful interventions and test them with powerful research designs. So this is your chance to get in on the ground floor and collect the kind of evidence that your Provost and faculty will want to see before deciding to adopt a full-scale strengths program.
I look forward to hearing your voice on Tuesday!
So many campuses are adopting a strengths-based approach to various programs -- advising, first-year seminars, student leadership programs, residence life education programs -- yet few are determining in advance what outcomes they want to see. Even fewer design the most powerful interventions and test them with powerful research designs. So this is your chance to get in on the ground floor and collect the kind of evidence that your Provost and faculty will want to see before deciding to adopt a full-scale strengths program.
I look forward to hearing your voice on Tuesday!
Noel Academy Grand Opening
A few weeks ago the Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education celebrated its Grand Opening. What a great time that was! There were three separate symposia that were held during the three-day event: one on Positive Psychology on Campus, one on Strengths, Calling, and Vocation, and one on K-12 Education. Shane Lopez was the keynote speaker for the Grand Opening and did a terrific job of painting a picture of where the strengths movement is heading in the next few years.
The Power Point slides from the various sessions are available on the Academy's website at www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
If any of you are interested in being put on the mailing list for either the Positive Psychology on Campus group or the Strengths and Calling group, let Shawna Lafreniere know by e-mailing her at slafreniere@apu.edu. I will be sending out a survey to all on the Positive Psychology mailing list to determine the level of interest in continuing to communicate with one another and work together on a possible research project--and to see who can connect with us again at the Summit in DC this fall. If you are planning to attend the Positive Psychology Summit (now called the Global Well-Being and Engagement Summit) at The Gallup Organization's headquarters in Washington, DC this October, Shane Lopez will be organizing a Positive Psychology on Campus track during that conference. Knowing who you are and that you are interested in connecting with like-minded others will help us get the word to you about conference plans.
The Power Point slides from the various sessions are available on the Academy's website at www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
If any of you are interested in being put on the mailing list for either the Positive Psychology on Campus group or the Strengths and Calling group, let Shawna Lafreniere know by e-mailing her at slafreniere@apu.edu. I will be sending out a survey to all on the Positive Psychology mailing list to determine the level of interest in continuing to communicate with one another and work together on a possible research project--and to see who can connect with us again at the Summit in DC this fall. If you are planning to attend the Positive Psychology Summit (now called the Global Well-Being and Engagement Summit) at The Gallup Organization's headquarters in Washington, DC this October, Shane Lopez will be organizing a Positive Psychology on Campus track during that conference. Knowing who you are and that you are interested in connecting with like-minded others will help us get the word to you about conference plans.
Saturday, May 5, 2007
Your Own Sphere of Influence
In thinking some more about faculty ownership issues, I want to encourage you to think about your own sphere of influence. As with any change process, there are usually about 10% of the faculty who are right with you from the beginning. These are usually the folks who are strongly committed to students and are already thinking about ways of helping them learn most effectively. There may be some "Maximizers" in this bunch who just naturally see the world through a strengths lens, as well! Then there will probably be about 10% of the faculty who will never be with you on this issue, for a variety of reasons. Maybe they're too near retirement, maybe they're too tired or too busy, maybe what they're already doing is working great for them, maybe the way they see the world is through a lens of improving weakness--and they're highly committed to that lens. Forget about them! No need to waste your time and energy trying to win over these 10% -- unless you have Woo and just can't resist the challenge :)
But that leaves almost 80% of your faculty who will give you a chance to win them over. Some of that 80% are very close to the "early adopters" group and it won't take much to persuade them to try a strengths-based approach to teaching or advising. And let's be honest--some are nearer to the "no way" 10% that will never try this approach. They will need lots of evidence and probably will need to have a positive experience of it themselves and plenty of time to think about it before they'll give it a try with their students. The rest are somewhere in the middle--and will need to be cultivated in different ways.
The point here is that change takes time and a variety of strategies. It takes good communication with the right people at the right time. It takes a winsome appeal and persuasive evidence. You might think about those faculty with whom you already have good relationships and ask them to "pilot" this approach and give you feedback.
But the most important thing is to work within your own sphere of influence--model a strengths-based approach in your own classes or student programs, in your own personal interactions with students and other faculty and staff, in your own way of building a team in your department. As people begin to experience YOU engaging your own strengths as you relate to them and as you accomplish your goals, they may be intrigued and want to find out more. And then you can say, "I'm glad you asked!"
But that leaves almost 80% of your faculty who will give you a chance to win them over. Some of that 80% are very close to the "early adopters" group and it won't take much to persuade them to try a strengths-based approach to teaching or advising. And let's be honest--some are nearer to the "no way" 10% that will never try this approach. They will need lots of evidence and probably will need to have a positive experience of it themselves and plenty of time to think about it before they'll give it a try with their students. The rest are somewhere in the middle--and will need to be cultivated in different ways.
The point here is that change takes time and a variety of strategies. It takes good communication with the right people at the right time. It takes a winsome appeal and persuasive evidence. You might think about those faculty with whom you already have good relationships and ask them to "pilot" this approach and give you feedback.
But the most important thing is to work within your own sphere of influence--model a strengths-based approach in your own classes or student programs, in your own personal interactions with students and other faculty and staff, in your own way of building a team in your department. As people begin to experience YOU engaging your own strengths as you relate to them and as you accomplish your goals, they may be intrigued and want to find out more. And then you can say, "I'm glad you asked!"
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Getting Faculty Ownership
Today I'm responding to one of the comments that was posted. The question asked how to get faculty buy-in to strengths-based interventions or programs. There is no easy answer to this question--Provosts across the country would love to know how to get faculty buy-in on anything :)
Since I have been a faculty member for the past 25 years, let me simply share what gets my attention and leads to ownership for me. I think there are three basic principles at work here: (1) I pay attention to things that interest me or that solve a problem I have; (2) anything that saves me time and especially that results in me spending less time on tasks I don't enjoy and more time doing the things I love will get my attention; and (3) I want to see compelling evidence that what you are suggesting will actually work!
Faculty's first and foremost allegiance is to their discipline, usually. I wish it were otherwise--I wish our primary allegiance was to our students and their learning! And for some, that is the case. But for many of us all our training and educational preparation was focused squarely on our disicplinary expertise. Few of us were trained to teach--and even fewer were trained to advise students. We've had no courses in teaching/learning theory, no background in higher education. We know what we were taught--and we tend to teach the way we were taught. We typically were the brightest and best--abstract thinkers and researchers for whom critical thinking is an art form. So our tendency is to critique everything--that's what we do best. That can be a little intimidating to others! But once you know that it is what makes us excellent--that critical thinking is faculty operating out of their own collective strength--then you also know the way to our hearts :) In a word--"prove it!" If you can show me that what you are suggesting is solidly grounded in theory, has empirical evidence to support its effectiveness, and will help me accomplish goals that matter to me, you will have my buy-in. Now that's a social scientist speaking--Humanities profs may frame it a little differently in terms of the "evidence" they'd like to see. But all of us hunger for evidence that something will actually impact student learning. Anything that can help me reach my students and will result in higher levels of learning and academic performance has got my vote.
Many of us faculty are finding it harder each year to reach this generation of students. We've noticed a sea change just in the last four or five years, with students spending the majority of class time texting or IMing one another or checking e-mail and surfing the net. [Not in my classes, of course--but I hear that other faculty have trouble with this :) ] So anything that helps me engage my students will get my attention. And that's where the strengths approach holds enormous potential--but more about that next time!
Since I have been a faculty member for the past 25 years, let me simply share what gets my attention and leads to ownership for me. I think there are three basic principles at work here: (1) I pay attention to things that interest me or that solve a problem I have; (2) anything that saves me time and especially that results in me spending less time on tasks I don't enjoy and more time doing the things I love will get my attention; and (3) I want to see compelling evidence that what you are suggesting will actually work!
Faculty's first and foremost allegiance is to their discipline, usually. I wish it were otherwise--I wish our primary allegiance was to our students and their learning! And for some, that is the case. But for many of us all our training and educational preparation was focused squarely on our disicplinary expertise. Few of us were trained to teach--and even fewer were trained to advise students. We've had no courses in teaching/learning theory, no background in higher education. We know what we were taught--and we tend to teach the way we were taught. We typically were the brightest and best--abstract thinkers and researchers for whom critical thinking is an art form. So our tendency is to critique everything--that's what we do best. That can be a little intimidating to others! But once you know that it is what makes us excellent--that critical thinking is faculty operating out of their own collective strength--then you also know the way to our hearts :) In a word--"prove it!" If you can show me that what you are suggesting is solidly grounded in theory, has empirical evidence to support its effectiveness, and will help me accomplish goals that matter to me, you will have my buy-in. Now that's a social scientist speaking--Humanities profs may frame it a little differently in terms of the "evidence" they'd like to see. But all of us hunger for evidence that something will actually impact student learning. Anything that can help me reach my students and will result in higher levels of learning and academic performance has got my vote.
Many of us faculty are finding it harder each year to reach this generation of students. We've noticed a sea change just in the last four or five years, with students spending the majority of class time texting or IMing one another or checking e-mail and surfing the net. [Not in my classes, of course--but I hear that other faculty have trouble with this :) ] So anything that helps me engage my students will get my attention. And that's where the strengths approach holds enormous potential--but more about that next time!
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Strengths-Based Advising
Academic advising holds enormous promise as a vehicle for permeating the campus with a strengths-based approach to student success. Where else does every single student have the opportunity for an ongoing one-on-one relationship with a faculty or staff member?
At its heart, academic advising is a relationship--and we know that taking a "strengths approach" to learning and student success works best in the context of healthy relationships. Good advising helps students get the most out of their college experience by connecting who they are and who they want to become to the pathways that will enable them to reach their goals.
But after 25 years in higher education, I have to confess that I'm pretty frustrated with the academic advising systems on most campuses. My fellow faculty seem to think advising is nothing more than course registration--and that it can be done in about 15 minutes. Too often they see it as an interruption of their work, a hassle that comes once a semester complete with long lines of students outside their doors or urgent last-minute e-mails from students who need to register. What would happen if we realized the transformative power that advising has to impact student learning and engagement?
In his book Making the Most of College (2001), Richard Light points out that "good academic advising may be the single most underestimated characteristic of a successful college experience." A powerful statement! And a challenge for us as educators working within a system that rarely provides the time for or the recognition of the importance of advising. In research I've done with the Student Satisfaction Inventory, we see the same pattern year after year: students rate advising effectiveness as second only to teaching effectiveness in importance to them, yet faculty rate advising effectiveness near the bottom of institutional priorities.
Taking a strengths-based approach to advising means we do some things differently! It means we start with a different foundation for the advising relationship: we start with the assumption that our purpose as advisors is to help students identify and develop their strengths so that they get the most out of their college experiences. Sure, course registration is an activity that happens as part of this, but it's a very small part. The much bigger part of our role is to help students become the persons they were created to be. Good advising spotlights the seeds of talent already in students and then helps them identify paths they need to take to develop those talents into strengths so that they reach their goals. It's not about identifying talents just so they feel good about themselves; it's about identifying talents as the foundation for excellence, as the best way of becoming a college graduate.
Chip Anderson and I wrote an article on strengths-based advising for the 2005 special issue of the National Academic Advising Association Journal that highlighted advising theories and models. From this article, I've expanded on some of the practical ways of taking a strengths-based approach to advising. On May 16th, The Gallup Organization and The Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education are co-sponsoring a webinar on strengths-based advising, so you're welcome to check out some of these strategies there. For more info, see www.strengthsquest.com.
I'd also love to hear your thoughts on the challenges you face in advising, as well as strategies you use in advising that seem to work!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Momentum for the Movement
I just returned from three different opportunities to speak to people about strengths-based approaches in higher education. The first was the "Dialogue on Learning" that took place at Tompkins-Cortland Community College (TC3) in central New York. Khaki and Chris are doing a great job there introducing other educators in the region to the positive learning outcomes that can occur when a strengths-based approach is used in the classroom. I spoke on Engaged Learning and talked about the research evidence that connects strengths-based approaches to greater levels of motivation and student engagement in the learning process.
From there I moved on to Washington, DC, where Karen Longman and I had the opportunity to present a plenary session to the joint conference of the chief academic officers and chief student development officers of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, a group of 105 faith-based liberal arts colleges. We presented a strengths-based approach to engaged learning and to team building across student life and academic affairs. Once again, the potential impact of a strengths-based approach on student engagement seemed to grab people's attention, as did the possibility of working better as a team by capitalizing on the strengths that each person brings to the table.
And lastly, Orlando, Florida--site of the joint conference between NASPA and ACPA that happens once in a decade! Almost 10,000 people were there. The strengths perspective was well-represented in four different presentations: Dr. Kim Greenway from the University of North Alabama presented "Building on Students' Strengths: A Strategic Partnership Between Academic and Student Affairs" with me, Dr. Eileen Hulme from Azusa Pacific University presented with some of her students on best practices in strengths-based interventions and programs, as well as with her colleagues Sharra Durham (Texas A & M) and Dub Oliver (Baylor) on strengths-based approaches to staff development, and I presented on strengths-based first-year programs and their impact on student engagement. If you're interested in any of the Power Point slides from those presentations, you can find them at the Noel Strengths Academy website: www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
If the size and energy of the audiences at these presentations were any indication, the strengths movement is rapidly gaining momentum! Another reason why it's so important that we as practitioners and researchers continue to answer the "so what?" and "now what?" questions that naturally arise once students learn about their strengths.
I expect that we will take a large step toward furthering the movement when people gather at the Noel Strengths Academy April 26-28 to think together about the next steps to be taken. There are three symposia occurring during that timeframe as part of the Grand Opening of the Academy -- Positive Psychology on Campus, Calling and Vocation, and P-12 Education. In each of these critical areas, conversations will center around what we are learning about the contribution that a strengths approach makes to the outcomes that really matter: the growth and development of students from preschool through college graduation. More info about these symposia can be found on the Academy's website listed above.
Even more conversations will occur at The Gallup Organization in Omaha June 27-29, as educators gather there to focus on "Becoming a Strengths-Based Campus." This conference is a great way to learn what others are doing and to bring a team from your campus so that you get the "big picture" about the impact a strengths approach can have not only on students, but on faculty, staff, and administrators as well.
Maybe we'll run into each other at one of these events!
From there I moved on to Washington, DC, where Karen Longman and I had the opportunity to present a plenary session to the joint conference of the chief academic officers and chief student development officers of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities, a group of 105 faith-based liberal arts colleges. We presented a strengths-based approach to engaged learning and to team building across student life and academic affairs. Once again, the potential impact of a strengths-based approach on student engagement seemed to grab people's attention, as did the possibility of working better as a team by capitalizing on the strengths that each person brings to the table.
And lastly, Orlando, Florida--site of the joint conference between NASPA and ACPA that happens once in a decade! Almost 10,000 people were there. The strengths perspective was well-represented in four different presentations: Dr. Kim Greenway from the University of North Alabama presented "Building on Students' Strengths: A Strategic Partnership Between Academic and Student Affairs" with me, Dr. Eileen Hulme from Azusa Pacific University presented with some of her students on best practices in strengths-based interventions and programs, as well as with her colleagues Sharra Durham (Texas A & M) and Dub Oliver (Baylor) on strengths-based approaches to staff development, and I presented on strengths-based first-year programs and their impact on student engagement. If you're interested in any of the Power Point slides from those presentations, you can find them at the Noel Strengths Academy website: www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
If the size and energy of the audiences at these presentations were any indication, the strengths movement is rapidly gaining momentum! Another reason why it's so important that we as practitioners and researchers continue to answer the "so what?" and "now what?" questions that naturally arise once students learn about their strengths.
I expect that we will take a large step toward furthering the movement when people gather at the Noel Strengths Academy April 26-28 to think together about the next steps to be taken. There are three symposia occurring during that timeframe as part of the Grand Opening of the Academy -- Positive Psychology on Campus, Calling and Vocation, and P-12 Education. In each of these critical areas, conversations will center around what we are learning about the contribution that a strengths approach makes to the outcomes that really matter: the growth and development of students from preschool through college graduation. More info about these symposia can be found on the Academy's website listed above.
Even more conversations will occur at The Gallup Organization in Omaha June 27-29, as educators gather there to focus on "Becoming a Strengths-Based Campus." This conference is a great way to learn what others are doing and to bring a team from your campus so that you get the "big picture" about the impact a strengths approach can have not only on students, but on faculty, staff, and administrators as well.
Maybe we'll run into each other at one of these events!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Why "engaging strengths"?
I've been thinking a little about what it means to fully engage your strengths. I deliberately chose this title for my blog--"engaging strengths" -- because I see so many colleges and universities who are intrigued by a strengths-based approach to their first-year seminar, their career services, their student leadership programs, or other campus efforts, yet they rarely develop the kind of strengths-based interventions that will really make a difference in their students’ lives. Too often, they simply administer the Clifton StrengthsFinder and hold a discussion group about what the results mean—and then they’re done! Somehow they think this will have a miraculous effect on students’ lives. Wrong! This “once-and-done” approach is NOT what we mean by a strengths-based approach to education—and if it’s all you plan to do, don’t waste your time and money.
A strengths-based approach to any educational endeavor is just that—an approach. It’s a way of doing something else important. It’s a vehicle for engaging students in the learning process, or a tool for helping students become more self-aware. But the point is that any vehicle or tool must be used effectively for a purpose—used appropriately to accomplish something else. So that’s why I called this blogspot “Engaging Strengths” – the whole point is that we must engage our own strengths and those of our students in the service of learning and development. Know your strengths? Sure—that’s a first step. Affirm them? Okay, fine—still a first step. Learn how they can be applied so that you are better at what is important for you to do in life—now we’re getting there! And it is indeed a journey, not something that can be accomplished in one class session or a 30-minute conversation with an advisor.
So think of engaging your strengths as a life journey. My goal on these pages is to function as a navigator for the journey. Ask any question you like, but also feel free to post some of your good ideas and things that have worked on your campus. We’re all learning about this together!
A strengths-based approach to any educational endeavor is just that—an approach. It’s a way of doing something else important. It’s a vehicle for engaging students in the learning process, or a tool for helping students become more self-aware. But the point is that any vehicle or tool must be used effectively for a purpose—used appropriately to accomplish something else. So that’s why I called this blogspot “Engaging Strengths” – the whole point is that we must engage our own strengths and those of our students in the service of learning and development. Know your strengths? Sure—that’s a first step. Affirm them? Okay, fine—still a first step. Learn how they can be applied so that you are better at what is important for you to do in life—now we’re getting there! And it is indeed a journey, not something that can be accomplished in one class session or a 30-minute conversation with an advisor.
So think of engaging your strengths as a life journey. My goal on these pages is to function as a navigator for the journey. Ask any question you like, but also feel free to post some of your good ideas and things that have worked on your campus. We’re all learning about this together!
Friday, March 23, 2007
The Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education
I have the good fortune to work with some amazing colleagues in the doctoral program in Higher Education at Azusa Pacific University who also do research together with the Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education. A little over a year ago the Noel Academy began as a way to honor the work that Don Clifton and Chip Anderson had been doing for several decades. Don, chairman of the board of The Gallup Organization, always asked "What would happen if we studied what was right with people?" Chip, one of our colleagues on the doctoral faculty at Azusa Pacific was fond of asking, "What would we do if we really loved our students?" Before he passed away in July of 2005, Chip had clearly left his mark on the university and our students. Our president, Jon Wallace, committed with our Board of Trustees for the university to become a strengths-based campus. Lee Noel, co-founder of Noel-Levitz, Inc., was a good friend of Don and Chip's. By funding the Noel Academy for Strengths-Based Leadership and Education, he not only honored the work of his colleagues and friends, but also ensured that APU would maintain its commitment to becoming a strengths-based campus. Bringing in Dr. Eileen Hulme as the first executive director of the Academy was a huge coup for us, as she has done some amazing work at Baylor University as the Vice President for Student Life.
The Academy will launch officially this April 27th with a dedication of the new building that houses the Academy offices. The grand opening event provides us with a great opportunity to gather people from around the country to discuss how a strengths-based approach can be utilized in three key areas: (a) in helping students discover their calling and vocation, (b) in helping K-12 schools recognize and capitalize on the strengths of their teachers and students, and (c) in impacting college campuses by building on the research coming out of the field of positive psychology. For more information, check out the Academy's website at www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
The mission of the Academy is to transform educational practices by equipping college and university faculty and staff to identify and nurture students' strengths as the foundation for engaging students in the learning process and helping them to achieve excellence. It does so by focusing on a TRIAD of activities outlined below. What can the Academy do for you?
The Academy will launch officially this April 27th with a dedication of the new building that houses the Academy offices. The grand opening event provides us with a great opportunity to gather people from around the country to discuss how a strengths-based approach can be utilized in three key areas: (a) in helping students discover their calling and vocation, (b) in helping K-12 schools recognize and capitalize on the strengths of their teachers and students, and (c) in impacting college campuses by building on the research coming out of the field of positive psychology. For more information, check out the Academy's website at www.apu.edu/strengthsacademy.
The mission of the Academy is to transform educational practices by equipping college and university faculty and staff to identify and nurture students' strengths as the foundation for engaging students in the learning process and helping them to achieve excellence. It does so by focusing on a TRIAD of activities outlined below. What can the Academy do for you?
- Training and development of leaders, educators, coaches, and others who wish to apply a strengths-based approach to the work they do. The Academy can provide executive coaching or appropriate training for your leadership team members, academic advisors, faculty, student development staff, and student leaders.
- Research on the impact of strengths-based interventions in higher education and K-12 settings. The Academy partners with researchers around the country to determine the outcomes of strengths-based interventions.
- Interventions designed to produce engaged learning, student success, and a sense of meaning and purpose. The Academy can help you design the interventions that are most likely to produce the impact you desire, based on its experience in program design.
- Assessment of the effects of strengths-based programming. The Academy can help you design assessment programs and evaluation measures before begin a strengths-based program, so that you can document to your campus leadership the effects of the program on outcomes that matter most to your institution.
- Dissemination of best practices. The Academy intends to function as a clearinghouse for best practices in strengths-based leadership and education.
In future posts, I'll talk more about what it means to become a strengths-based campus and will share with you some of the best practices we've discovered along the way.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Welcome to Engaging Strengths!
Welcome to Engaging Strengths -- a blog created especially for educators who are using a strengths-based approach to their classes, advising, or other programming within their college or university!
As your host for this blog, my goal is to provide a space for us to discuss what's working and what's not as we design and implement strengths-based programs in higher education. Ask any question you like and I'll give it my best shot--or I'll connect you to someone who might be helpful.
As your host for this blog, my goal is to provide a space for us to discuss what's working and what's not as we design and implement strengths-based programs in higher education. Ask any question you like and I'll give it my best shot--or I'll connect you to someone who might be helpful.
I'll also update you periodically on the latest research, best practices, new ideas, and specific ways of applying a strengths-based approach to the work we do as educators. I'll post once a week and would love to hear from you!
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