That raps up our session tonight on recognizing strengths! Thank you all for your amazing input and also thanks to both Rosie and Gail for their help this evening. Have a great week and hopefully we’ll see you next Monday night :)   1. To start us off, tell us three awesome strengths that you have! Intelligence Creativity Socially adept 2. Do you find it easier to recognise other people's strengths than your own? Why do you think this might be? Afraid we will be told these are not strengths we possess More difficult to read ourselves Due to being taught not to boast or brag about ourselves 3. What benefits do you think there might be to recognising your strengths? This might be to your self esteem, to your friendships, to your academic life, at work, etc… Self-confidence Greater insight into where we can best apply ourselves in life We will be happier as we can focus on the positives in our strengths 4. Do you think being aware of your strengths is the same as being stuck up? Why/why not? No, only if we try and compare with others and bring them down Bragging about your strengths is, being aware is not 5. What kinds of things do you think get in the way of being able to recognise your own strengths? Self-esteem Not knowing what to look for Lacking confidence and conviction 6. Have you ever been in a situation where you've used your strengths to your advantage? Was it helpful? Giving advice to others Organising ourselves before a stressful situation, very helpful! Often use my studious skills to stay motivated with university 7. Have a think about those three strengths that you listed in the first question - how could you utilise them in your everyday life to help you be more successful? Stay positive and try and help others too Actively focus on our strengths, remind ourselves of the things we’re totally awesome at! Be attentive, organised and aware of our lives 8. Check out this list of 24 different personality strengths… Which ones do you think apply to you? What are 3 more that you think apply a little, or not at all, and that you'd like to work on developing?
http://au.reachout.com/~/media/PDF/The%20Happiness%20Institutes%20Signature%20Strengths%20List3.ashx Many different strengths mentioned: Critical thinking, persistence, patience, kindness etc. Also areas we could improve: Leadership skills, bravery, ingenuity, fairness etc. 9. What is one step you could take this week to work on developing each of the strengths you identified in the last question? Focus on the positives not on the negatives Replacing negative unhelpful thoughts with more accurate truths Remind ourselves of our strengths often   ... View more

Nice and simple N1ghtW1ng, but very effective! I think if we catch ourselves thinking something negative about something we know we're good at - just replace that thought with something positive that is closer to the truth.  ... View more

To answer my own question I think the three strengths that apply to me the most would be: - Curiosity, Interest in the world - Judgement, Critical Thinking, Open Mindedness - Perseverance, Diligence, Industry   I would like to work more at my leadership skills. ... View more

Nice ideas on how we can get those strengths to be a part of our everyday lives! Next question! 8. Check out this list of 24 different personality strengths… Which ones do you think apply to you? What are 3 more that you think apply a little, or not at all, and that you'd like to work on developing? ... View more

I think spending a little bit of time every so often to remind ourselves of our strengths could be a great way of incorporating them into our lives more often. ... View more

@N1ghtW1ng, nice way of adapting your skills to your everyday life. ... View more

@sagira - I suppose it's easy to just accept our abilities and not make a big deal of them, but it can be really worthwhile to sit back, reflect, and say "you know, I totally kicked ass at that!" ... View more

@N1ghtW1ng, that's great that you had an opportunity to use your strength to help someone else - double win! ... View more

@sagira that's a massive achievement - you should be totally proud! :) ... View more

Alright guys and girls, some great responses on what kinds of things get in the way of identifying our strengths.Next question:   6. Have you ever been in a situation where you've used your strengths to your advantage? Was it helpful? ... View more

On this point, I think that we're also much more critical of ourselves, where as we find it easier to say how great someone else is at something. As soon as we make one mistake, we maybe think "well I can't be that good if I made that mistake", but even professionals make amateur mistakes - we all have off-days. ... View more

Apart from others judging you, what kinds of things do you think get in the way of being able to recognise your own strengths?   Lacking the confidence and conviction to say "I am good at ABC". Regardless of others explicitly judging us, I'm sure some social psychologists could explain how we take the "don't boast" mentality even within ourselves. ... View more

@Sagira I think that's an important distinction you've made there - it's the comparisons like "i am better" that come with the 'stuck-up' stamp. There's nothing wrong with identifying with the things you excel at. ... View more

You guys have some really great ideas tonight. Next question:   4. Do you think being aware of your strengths is the same as being stuck up? Why/why not? ... View more

@delicatedreamer that's a solid response, totally agree. ... View more

What benefits do you think there might be to recognising your strengths? I think that recognizing your own strengths gives you the ability to harness them and know where best you can apply them to your everyday life and future. ... View more

@ N1ghtW1ng Maybe they disagree with you because they are being modest? Or maybe not.. ... View more

@Birdeye, I would tend to agree, I think if I focus on my own strengths I feel a bit self-absorbed - and it's just easier to give friends complements on all the amazing things they do. ... View more

Welcome N1ghtw1ng (great to have you back this week) and others! Great to hear that you all have some amazing strengths! Next question:   2. Do you find it easier to recognise other people's strengths than your own? Why do you think this might be? ... View more

Hi dtperry and welcome!   I like your strength of eating a lot if the situation calls for it :P ... View more

1. To start us off, tell us three awesome strengths that you have! - Excellent at critical analysis and written argument - Great in new social settings - Good at adapting to new situations, not resistant to change   ... View more

Thank you to everyone for all of your wisdom, I found this a very inciteful evening.   Also, thank you both LeaLea07 and Sophie for all of your input tonight. ... View more

@N1ightW1ng, thanks for all your input tonight - I'm glad you can take something from it :) ... View more

Does any one have any highlights from our topic tonight? A favourite discussion point that was helpful?   I'd like to highlight that break-ups, although they feel so personal (and they are), they are something so many of us experience and that talking to others about how we're feeling is super important. And keep on keeping on! Life goes on, and it always gets better :) ... View more

Considering many of you have mentioned turning to a friend or family member, how have you helped someone else through a break up?   I would be an open ear and let them vent - but I'd also try and keep an eye on them to make sure they were trying to help themself. I'd also link them to some of these amazing factsheets! http://au.reachout.com/Coping-with-a-break-up#tips http://au.reachout.com/Factsheets/W/What-is-coping http://au.reachout.com/Factsheets/B/Building-better-coping-skills How have you personally grown from your break-up experiences? I would genuinely go as far as to say that my break-ups (one in-particular) sculpted me into the strong young adult I am today. It seems ironic that something that makes us feel so horrible can actually be rewarding for us also. I have definitely grown from this experience as it taught me to  persevere with the other things that were going on in my life ie. work and uni. while simultaneously feeling strong emotions. ... View more

@N1ghtW1ng, so true - sometimes all we need is an open ear to vent and a little empathy. Talking to friends helped me a lot too. ... View more

@LeaLea07 I think you're right, I know I felt a strong sense of pride that I could get myself out of this - especially when I did not have much experience with break-ups. Councellors and psychologists can offer that objective outside perspective that can sometimes be so difficult to see when you're bogged down with emotions. ... View more

@N1ghtW1ng did you find that talking to a friend was helpful? ... View more

Okay guys and girls, some great input everyone! Next question:   6. Which people were the most helpful to turn to after a break-up? Did you see close friends or professionals like a psychologist or counsellor? ... View more