StrengthsQuest #3 - Developer

i love that this is one of my strengths...

Developer

Theme Description

You see the potential in others. Very often, in fact, potential is all you see. In your view no individual is fully formed. On the contrary, each individual is a work in progress, alive with possibilities. And you are drawn toward people for this very reason. When you interact with others, your goal is to help them experience success. You look for ways to challenge them. You devise interesting experiences that can stretch them and help them grow. And all the while you are on the lookout for the signs of growth—a new behavior learned or modified, a slight improvement in a skill, a glimpse of excellence or of “flow” where previously there were only halting steps. For you these small increments—invisible to some—are clear signs of potential being realized. These signs of growth in others are your fuel. They bring you strength and satisfaction. Over time many will seek you out for help and encouragement because on some level they know that your helpfulness is both genuine and fulfilling to you.

Action Items

You naturally see others' potential to move, change, grow, and develop for the better.

You love to see others make progress, and you will notice even the slightest progress.

Being a part of another person's development is the one of best experiences in the world for you.

Other people may not be as interested in their development as you are. In fact, they might push you away because they feel you are pressuring them.

Your role in any setting usually involves facilitating growth. Roles in teaching, advising, coaching, or managing might prove especially satisfying for you, so seek out those opportunities.

Notice when your friends learn and grow, and enhance their growth by sharing your specific observations.

You are a natural encourager. Take the time to call or e-mail people who need your encouragement most.

You probably will flourish when you help less fortunate people or disadvantaged students see that their talents are opportunities for development.

Recognize that while you notice the "baby steps" of progress, others may expect bigger steps. Be able to articulate these intermediate steps to others.

Keep an ongoing list of your key learning experiences. Track your own progress and growth.

Pretend that you are going to explain to others what you are trying to learn. This will help you retain more information and improve your comprehension.

Always have one or more mentors, and let them know what they add to your life. Consult them regularly.

Help your friends choose developmental experiences.

Coach friends who have a specific goal or focus in mind (such as running a marathon or losing weight). Encourage them in their progress.

Use your ability and passion to help others by joining organizations that will allow you to exercise your talents in helping others succeed. This will allow you to feel good about what you do and learn from your experiences. For example, consider becoming a mentor or peer counselor, or join community service organizations.

You likely have a talent for noting people's progress and for helping them become even better at what they do. Seek an environment in which your work involves getting "people done through work" rather than "work done through people."

You will be most satisfied in a career that provides some type of service to people or in which organizational success is based on interpersonal relationships and your ability to help people be successful.

Environments that are collaborative and people-oriented, where you can be part of a team but also have time to work one-on-one with others, is likely to allow your Developer talents to flourish.

Talk to counselors, teachers, speech therapists, athletic coaches, acting coaches, life coaches, and those who work in your campus learning center to find out what they enjoy most about their work.

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StrengthsQuest #4 - Input

bring on strength #4...

Input

Theme Description

You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information—words, facts, books, and quotations—or you might collect tangible objects such as butterflies, baseball cards, porcelain dolls, or sepia photographs. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. The world is exciting precisely because of its infinite variety and complexity. If you read a great deal, it is not necessarily to refine your theories but, rather, to add more information to your archives. If you like to travel, it is because each new location offers novel artifacts and facts. These can be acquired and then stored away. Why are they worth storing? At the time of storing it is often hard to say exactly when or why you might need them, but who knows when they might become useful? With all those possible uses in mind, you really don’t feel comfortable throwing anything away. So you keep acquiring and compiling and filing stuff away. It’s interesting. It keeps your mind fresh. And perhaps one day some of it will prove valuable.

Action Items

You always want to know more. You crave information.

You like to collect certain things, such as ideas, books, memorabilia, quotations, and facts.

You have an active curiosity. You find many things very interesting. A few minutes of "surfing the Net" may turn into hours once your curiosity takes off, and you might have difficulties filing and housing all of the new information you acquire.

You are naturally curious but may need to intentionally schedule time to feed your mind. Take time to read books and articles that stimulate you, or to travel to new places. Your Input talents need regular "feeding."

Devise a system for storing and easily locating the information you gather. This system can be as simple as a file for all the articles you have clipped or as sophisticated as a computer database.

Identify situations in which you can share the information you have collected with other people. Being able to share your "stuff" with others will make for a better learning experience for everyone.

A sense of when to stop seeking information is just as valuable a talent as your thirst for information.

Save all notes, books, magazines, etc. to create a personal library.

To continue making progress and stay on track while doing required work, put sticky notes on areas you wish to go back and look at.

Prioritize the most critical information. Otherwise, you might become distracted by other information that fascinates you but is not as relevant.

Share your information with friends. Determine who would be interested in each bit of information, rather than giving all information to everyone.

Be aware that the more you know, the more likely it is that others will seek you out for information and see you as highly credible.

Study about fascinating places to travel. Gather information, and go!

Environments that give you the freedom to pursue threads of information and that focus on informed decision-making are likely to bring out your best.

You probably will enjoy a career in which you are always on the cutting edge of knowledge and you can gather and share valuable pieces of relevant information.

Choose jobs that require you to be an expert collector and consumer of research. This type of environment will energize you.

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StrengthsQuest #5 - Adaptability

so we had to take this test for work that defines our top 5 strengths. i was skeptical at first. i've done so many personality tests, leadership tests, etc. then i took StrengthsQuest.

it completely defines me.

eerily so.

here is my #5. (the rest will follow...)

Adaptability

Theme Description

You live in the moment. You don’t see the future as a fixed destination. Instead, you see it as a place that you create out of the choices that you make right now. And so you discover your future one choice at a time. This doesn’t mean that you don’t have plans. You probably do. But this theme of Adaptability does enable you to respond willingly to the demands of the moment even if they pull you away from your plans. Unlike some, you don’t resent sudden requests or unforeseen detours. You expect them. They are inevitable. Indeed, on some level you actually look forward to them. You are, at heart, a very flexible person who can stay productive when the demands of work are pulling you in many different directions at once.

Action Items

In many ways, you modify yourself to meet the demands of your environment.

You easily adjust to many things all day long because you naturally live in the moment.

You create the future out of the choices you make right now, one choice at a time.

Your "go with the flow" attitude may seem like irresponsibility to those who prefer structure and predictability. They may get irritated with what they perceive to be sloppiness or carelessness.

Adaptability talents are valuable because they allow you to keep moving forward when the unexpected happens. You can press ahead in a world of unknowns and seemingly unfair treatment when others would give up. You can deal with everything from injustices to crises and still find a way to make progress.

Your ability to take things in stride means that you can be a calm and reassuring influence to people who don't handle change well. Use your exceptional ability to deal with stress by making yourself available to those who need your perspective.

You enjoy the journey as much as you enjoy the destination. Help others find enjoyment along the way by encouraging them to see what's happening in the moment. You will enjoy the journey even more when there are others to share it with you.

Your spontaneity can help others realize how many valuable experiences might be missed if they don't seize the moment.

Because you live in the moment, you might find yourself easily distracted by new things that come along. You might be particularly likely to drop everything when your friends want you to go out with them. Connect your Adaptability talents with some of the talents in your other Signature Themes to help you remember the importance of what you're doing, so you'll be more likely to stay on task when necessary.

Your natural ability to "go with the flow" enables you to make adjustments easily, but added perspective on how to organize your schedule or be more efficient when the pressure hits is important.

To others, things seem to just "fall into place" for you. Help them recognize that it isn't luck. You have a talent for adjusting to changing circumstances and that it takes a lot of hard work.

Live in the moment.

Leverage your ability not to feel overwhelmed by multifaceted assignments. Document three to five instances during the day when you successfully juggled competing tasks.

Surround yourself with individuals who, like you, pause to take in the world's loveliness as it appears. Identify people who automatically put aside what they are doing to watch a sunset, listen to rustling leaves, or enjoy the arts.

Convince those around you of the importance of not fighting change. Outline the benefits of letting go of the original plan in order to try a new process.

Your Adaptability talents will flourish in environments that reward responsiveness and your ability to "turn on a dime."

You may thrive in chaos. Avoid environments that are highly structured or routine, with lots of rules and regulations.

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possibly...

"sometimes it seems like we're all living in some kind of prison.
and the crime is how much we hate ourselves.

it's good to get really dressed up once in a while. and admit the truth:
that when you really look closely, people are so strange and so complicated that they're actually...

beautiful.

possibly even me."

~ angela chase

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tangled web of thought...

confusion.

misleading information regarded as a curse branded with confusion.

i may have mentioned how many paths and lives i lead, or follow. do i lead or follow? well, i am confused. which path is my life heading now? it could be luxurious cohabitation, ungratefully absorbed and now suddenly dismissed. dismissed because of an apparition?

what is it.

longing.

there is a certain mischievious dance in the sable eyes animated in a torrent of feeling, undefinable to even the owner of those eyes.

ignore. no, please.

try with all your might to untangle the web of thoughts, feelings, dreams, inhibitions. pour them through your speech, mouth, eyes, touch, hands. i will soak them up and comprehend them in the simple manor my mind is capable of. i will comfort your soul.

confusion. yes, i suppose. but everyone is confused. spurred by feelings rather than thought. reasonable and probable. a change in the position of life. an understanding of happiness, but yet, usually only at first sight. ordinary and realistic. start to think. a curtain has fallen over my eyes. they are closing slowly…. tragedy.

no, no, no! tragedy.

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break myself...

i'm on fire.
and the day is feeling hopeless.
you'd see me burning but the burning's turning smokeless.
soon i won't feel at all.
no.

it's electric, the neon hurt inside your phone call.
the layered sadness and the madness it revolves,
bringing down the walls where you found me.
no.

well, i'm willing to break myself
to shake this hell from everything i touch.
i'm willing to bleed for days my reds and grays
so you don't hurt... so much.

and now i'm static,
as your sky is turning purple and gray.
i'm learning that the further that i crawl
the farther that i fall, is that ok?
no.

and you're in pieces,
as your world becomes a rainstorm.
you've got no shelter, i'm a thousand miles away
if you survive the day...

you say your leaving,
...say your leaving.

well, i'm willing to break myself
to shake this hell from everything i touch.
i'm willing to bleed for days my reds and grays
so you don't hurt so much.

so you don't hurt... so much.

never again will we fire this gun,
no. never again your the only one.
never again but you're already gone.

i'm willing to break myself
i'm not afraid
i'm willing to break myself
i'm not afraid
i'm willing to break myself
i'm not afraid

well, i'm willing to break myself
to shake this hell from everything i touch.
i'm willing to bleed for days my reds and grays
so you don't hurt so much...

so much.
so much.
so much.
so much.

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flaws...

"she's not just a fantasy. she's got, like, ... flaws. she's real."
~brian krakow

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completely unexpected...

he said exactly the right things. not because he had to. not because he wanted to. he said them because that is all that he knew to say. he said them because it that was what he was thinking and feeling.

and they were exactly what i needed to hear.

he let me mumble incoherently. he let me sob. he let me be irrational and self-destructive.

and when i managed to gather some semblance of control... he told me how amazing i am. he told me that he knew i was doing everything that i could. he told me how selfless i am. he talked through everything that i said. not looking for answers... but to try and make some sense of everything.

and to help me realize that i tried.

and to help me understand that i need to think about myself once and awhile... because he can see that i don't. ever. he said he wants to put me first. he said that way he knows that if i can't put myself first, someone will.

in a situation that is extremely complicated and confusing. in a situation he really knows very little about. in a situation that makes him uneasy, for many reasons... rightfully so. he was patient. and understanding. and honest.

and the entire time he kept his arms wrapped around me... so i felt safe.

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never where i thought i'd end up...

scratch that.... never where i want to end up. so i won't let myself.

not anymore.


all i can ever be to you,
is a darkness that we knew,
and this regret i've got accustomed to,
once it was so right,
when we were at our high,
waiting for you in the hotel at night.
i knew i hadn't met my match,
but every moment we could snatch,
i don't know why i got so attached.
it's my responsibility,
and you don't owe nothing to me,
but to walk away i have no capacity.

he walks away,
the sun goes down,
he takes the day but i'm grown,
and in your way, in this blue shade
my tears dry on their own.

i don't understand,
why do i stress a man,
when there's so many bigger things at hand.
we could a never had it all,
we had to hit a wall,
so this is inevitable withdrawal.
even if i stop wanting you,
a perspective pushes true,
i'll be some next man's other woman soon.

i shouldn't play myself again,
i should just be my own best friend,
not fuck myself in the head with stupid men.

he walks away,
the sun goes down,
he takes the day but i'm grown,
and in your way, in this blue shade
my tears dry on their own.

so we are history,
your shadow covers me
the sky above,
a blaze only that lovers see

he walks away,
the sun goes down,
he takes the day but i'm grown,
and in your way, in this blue shade
my tears dry on their own.

i wish i could say no regrets,
and no emotional debts,
cause that kiss goodbye the sun sets.
so we are history,
your shadow covers me,
the sky above a blaze that only lovers see,

he walks away,
the sun goes down,
he takes the day but i'm grown,
and in your way,
my deep shade,
my tears dry…

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wisdom...

"all i can do is be me. whoever that is."
~ bob dylan

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peanuts...

"i think i'm afraid to be happy because whenever i get too happy, something bad always happens."
~ charlie brown

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reaching...

girl, you are like summer rain
soft and warm and delicate.
and i am a foolish boy
tryin' to catch every drop of you on my tongue...
but there's just too many
and i can't get enough...

you're inches from my fingertips,
i've come as close as i can get.
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you.
cause i don't ever wanna miss
being here with you like this
i'm trying but it's all that i can do.
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you...

girl you are the morning sky,
glowing calm with burning light.
and as i am waking up
you paint your reflection in my eye...
wonder if you've noticed
i can't look away...

you're inches from my fingertips
i've come as close as i can get
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you.
cause i don't ever wanna miss
being here with you like this
i'm trying but it's all that i can do.
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you...

and you say, so you say
it's a brilliance meant to fade.
love is wild like a fire
burning underneath the rain.
but this is not the same...

you're inches from my fingertips
i've come as close as i can get
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you.
cause i don't ever wanna miss
being here with you like this
i'm trying but it's all that i can do.
i'm reaching but the rest is up to you...

up to you...

girl you are like summer rain, soft and warm and delicate.
and i am a foolish boy, trying to catch every drop that i can of you...

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