Success in any role relies on leveraging your strengths. Leaders who are aware of their strengths and weaknesses can make more informed decisions because they know where their contributions lie and when it’s necessary to seek input from others to compensate for their weaknesses. In a team context, understanding the strengths and weaknesses of team members is a crucial step to achieve results. It also helps in defining the type of new members that the team needs to hire to achieve its common goals.

To help you gain insight into your strengths, we've outlined a few useful exercises:

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1. Self-reflection

• Take a moment to reflect on your past achievements. Which activities have consistently resulted in good outcomes compared to your peers?
• Consider your weekly routines. What tasks do you genuinely enjoy? Those activities are often aligned with your strengths.
• Reflect on your learning experiences. What subjects or skills have you effortlessly absorbed? These areas can hint at your innate strengths.

The answers to these questions provide valuable insights into your strengths, giving you a clearer picture of what sets you apart.

The limit of self-reflection is the scope of your experience in life so far; one can’t do so much with limited time and energy. That’s why you might want to try the second method.

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2. Seek Feedback from Others: A Wider Perspective

• Don't rely solely on self-assessment. Ask for feedback from colleagues, mentors, and friends. Discover which activities people rely on you for or where they seek your assistance.
• Remember that one person's perspective is just that—only one viewpoint. 

To gain a more comprehensive understanding, seek feedback from multiple sources and look for patterns.

Although self-reflection and seeking feedback are valuable approaches, they might sometimes lack some objectivity. This is where the third method can be especially useful.

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3. Use High-Quality Psychology Tests and Assessments: More objective Insights

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• High-quality psychological tests and assessments offer a more objective way to uncover your strengths. They can provide a deeper understanding of your abilities and personality traits especially compared to other people.
• Taking such tests can boost your self-confidence and set you apart from your peers in the job market.
• These tests might reveal potential career paths or roles you or your network never considered, expanding your horizons.
• Different types of tests are available, including personality and motivation tests, which assess your fit for various roles and organizational contexts. Skill and work simulation tests gauge your abilities in specific tasks, such as numerical, verbal or logical reasoning. 

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The limitation of these assessments might be that they are good in big data analysis, but not yet so good in intuitive observation like humans; missing important aspects of complex decisions might happen.

Discovering your strengths is an ongoing journey. Every method above has its place in identifying and harnessing your talents. Whether you're a job seeker or a professional looking to grow, these exercises can guide you towards a more informed and rewarding journey.
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You can assess your strengths in Mazhr!

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Author:
Antero Ojanaho
Senior Consultant at Mazhr

antero.ojanaho@mazhr.com