87% of people have it wrong – make sure your mentors are NOT amongst them!
It’s an easy trap to fall into and one that is popular and reinforced frequently, but according to Gallup’s decades of world-wide research, only 13% of people know the truth – the best way to achieve outstanding performance is to develop and use your natural strengths NOT identify and fix weaknesses!
This focus on what people do well is not new or unique. It is the foundation of appreciative inquiry and Ken Blanchard championed “catch people doing things right” years ago in his management books.
Marcus Buckingham states that organisations that discover the natural talents of employees and ensure they develop them into strengths, will out perform those that don’t in terms of employee turnover, productivity and customer satisfaction. For individuals the pay-offs are greater satisfaction, engagement and better quality of life, generally.
People do cling to the notion that working on weaknesses is the way to go. So you need to equip them with strategies to do something constructive about them. However, struggling to improve performance in an area of weakness is at the bottom of the list. People are more productive, motivated and fulfilled by using strengths. Learning is quicker, easier and more enjoyable when people are building on natural talents.
The desire to fix weaknesses is so pervasive that, as well as addressing what to do instead in workshops, I’ve designed a weekly strengths e-course to follow-up, and a series of videos. One details 5 practical approaches to dealing with weaknesses.
For mentors to be able to assist mentorees to improve performance, they need to discover their own talents and start developing their own strengths. In programs where I’ve used Strengths Finder 2.0 both mentors and mentorees do the online questionnaire, obtain their reports and bring them to the workshop to begin their personal, professional development process.
People also need their managers on the same page if they are to put their strengths to use at work. Without a leader’s understanding of the contribution that a strengths focus can bring to team performance, individual efforts could be futile.
Helping people develop their strengths makes them more resilient and it is extremely rewarding for mentors to take such a positive role. It’s a brilliant way that mentoring works.
View the video: Why Develop Your Strengths above
Receive our complimentary ebook when you subscribe to our newsletter. (We do not spam or share your details)
