Strength Based Mentoring

People exceptionally talented in the Responsibility theme take psychological ownership over what they say they will do. They are committed to stable values such as honesty and loyalty.   CliftonStrengths This week, our guest blogger is Christy Scott. Christy Scott is a mentor and the Co-Coordinator of the TeamMates chapter of Waverly-District 145 in Nebraska. Her primary role in the district is as a High School Match teacher. Her top 5 strengths are Responsibility, Harmony, Communication, Relator, and Focus. Here’s what Responsibility looks like for Christy: When I wear my teacher, coach, or coordinator hat, my Responsibility drives me to create a plan, stay organized, and prioritize in order to get “it” done.     When I wear my mom, wife, or friend hat, being responsible makes me reliable and dependable to family and friends.   While I lead with Responsibility, it is usually never alone.   Communication and Focus help me to keep my Responsibil...

People exceptionally talented in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal.   CliftonStrengths This week, our guest blogger is Dawn Stock. Dawn has been the Program Coordinator of TeamMates of Doniphan-Trumbull for the last three years. In addition, she has been mentoring since 2013, seeing her initial mentee through graduation and beyond.     Her top 5 strengths are Relator, Harmony, Responsibility, Adaptability, and Arranger. Here’s what Relator looks like for Dawn: One of the biggest struggles for me is speaking in front of a large group of people. I KNOW I can do it, but the build up makes me want to bolt.  However, if you put me in front of two or three people that are engaged, I thrive.  That’s what a “Relator” means to me.  It’s someone that enjoys the close, personal conversations with people in a one-to-one or small group setting.  It’...

People exceptionally talented in the Maximizer theme focus on strengths as a way to stimulate personal and group excellence. They seek to transform something strong into something superb. CliftonStrengths This week, our guest blogger is Gigi Inness. As a teacher for Norfolk Public Schools, Gigi helped launch the local TeamMates program in 1998 and served as the local program coordinator. In June of 2000, she became the only regional coordinator for the program (the entire staff was 4 people) and continued in that role through 2016, adding the regional director responsibilities to her job in 2010. She started mentoring in 1998 and has had 4 long-term mentoring relationships. She currently mentors in the Millard chapter and with the TeamMates+ Post-Secondary program. Her top 5 strengths are Input, Maximizer, Relator, Intellection, and Developer. Here’s what Maximizer looks like for Gigi: Maximizer, for me, can be summed up with the phrase “If we are going to do it...

People exceptionally talented in the Harmony theme look for consensus. They don’t enjoy conflict; rather, they seek areas of agreement.  CliftonStrengths This week our guest blogger is Tony Jensen. As the FFA Advisor at Freeman Public Schools, Tony has been collaborating with TeamMates on strengths implementation for years. In fall of 2016, Tony became a TeamMates mentor himself. His top five strengths are Futuristic, Learner, Harmony, Relator, and Discipline. Here’s what Harmony looks like for Tony: My top 5 strengths are Futuristic, Learner, Harmony, Relator, and Discipline.  For me, Harmony was the one strength from the StrengthsFinder that I didn't realize was a strength until I got my results.  Once I read the description and dug deeper into the meaning of the strength, I learned that Harmony allows me to be a peacekeeper and a consensus builder.  I come into contact with a variety of people every day and seeing them happy and content is importan...

People exceptionally talented in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes. They have the ability to think about all the factors that might affect a situation. CliftonStrengths This week, our guest blogger is Brian Klintworth. Brian is a mentor in Lincoln Public Schools. He also gives his time and expertise as a trainer for financial literacy mentor academies. Brian’s top 5 Strengths are Achiever, Discipline, Learner, Analytical, and Relator. Here is what Analytical looks like for Brian: I want you to think back to when you were in middle or high school and you gave thought to what you wanted to be when you “grew up”.  And then, I want you to compare what you wanted to be back then to what you are now.  My guess is that the career path that you ended up choosing is somewhat different.  As you got older, you found a better way to hone your strengths and determine what you were best suited to.  When I got asked in middle school what I want...

People exceptionally talented in the Achiever theme work hard and possess a great deal of stamina. They take immense satisfaction in being busy and productive. CliftonStrengths This week, our guest blogger is Mallory Gregory. Mallory is the co-coordinator for the TeamMates program in Waverly, Nebraska. Her top 5 Strengths are Achiever, Relator, Learner, Responsibility, and Belief. Here is what Achiever looks like for Mallory:  "Mrs. Gregory, if you were an animal, what would you be?"  What a fun question to think about.  A senior student of mine asked me this exact question at the start of this school year.  I replied and said, "Well, I would love to be an eagle because it would be so cool to soar and see the beauty of our country from above."  My student immediately replied, "Well that's an interesting thought but I think you would be a golden retriever.  You talk a lot, your loud with a lot of excitement...a lot like a loud yi...

People exceptionally talented in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal. Clifton StrengthsFinder Those high in Relator value close relationships. They derive their greatest energy from being close with other people. For Relators, there is no end destination to relationships; there is always more ways to grow deeper in friendship. Gallup writes, “You know that this kind of closeness implies a certain amount of risk-that you might be taken advantage of-but you are willing to accept that risk.” Those high in Relator do not just enjoy deep relationships, but also enjoy when they are able to work with their friends towards a common goal.   At TeamMates’ 2016 Annual Partnership, our Keynote Speaker, Paul Thelen said, “Relationships move at the speed of trust.” For someone with Relator, this is innate to how they build relationships. Trust and loyalty are the bedrock of relationships; h...