Strength Based Mentoring

Thanks to Jessica Stutzman - OPS mentor for this great post featured on the Strengths Coaches Playbook. Tuesday, January 12, 2016 Strengths as Superpowers by Jessica Stutzman Rush, rush, rush. That’s my daily routine as a working adult with somewhat dubious time management skills living in a metro area. Whether I’m on my way to work, to the gym or to some social obligation, it feels like I just barely have enough time to get everything done. But an experience at a recent training event stopped me in my tracks. It gave me a new perspective on something I’ve been aware of, but taking for granted, for years – my strengths. On a Friday in early December, I was rushing from my job to a training event for a mentoring program I participate in called  TeamMates . Although this will be my fifth year as a mentor, I had surpassed the three-year mark and required a refresher before I could meet with my mentee again in January. I walked into a classroom filled with ...

As many of you know, an input mind can often operate like the social media website Pinterest .  I often describe the Input talent I lead with best by sharing:  I asked for a filing cabinet for Christmas at 8 years old.  Even then, I was collecting my favorite hairstyles, articles, dream home photos, clothing combinations and recipes, ripping them out of magazines and storing them in file folders.  I love to collect information! Pinterest has been a great way to honor that and I have put together a board dedicated to strengths.  Quotes and images I find, I pin and add a strength I think I see or hear in the image. Consider your own board on Pinterest, a bulletin board at work or home, or a crafting activity with your mentee finding images and the strengths they relate to. Take a look and please comment on strengths you see as well: Allyson's Pinterest Strengths Board

Asking a Simple Question Can Change Everything for a Student by Mark Reckmeyer Meet Morgan, the kid in class who is always asking off-topic questions. The kid who finds any way possible to distract himself and other students from the task at hand. The one who is typically "managed" instead of being considered one of the learners. Most adults can remember a Morgan in a class they took. In today's education system, Morgan would typically be a student who is categorized as disengaged. Morgan is not alone. In 2014, the  Gallup Student Poll  found that among the 825,000+ public school students surveyed across the country, 47% were disengaged in school. Though the Gallup Student Poll is not a nationally representative sample due to schools opting in to have students take the free assessment on their own, the results anecdotally make it very clear why students' test scores in the U.S. are  falling behind those of other nations  in math (27 th ), reading (17 th )...

Check out another great bulletin board display, from Teresa in Sutherland.  The intention is to get everyone (not just mentees and mentors) thinking about their strengths.  Teresa is planning to change out the theme cards at the bottom every few weeks or so.  We love this idea!

Partnerships form around us every day. They are formed for a variety of reasons. Some of these reasons include: To “make up” for a lesser talent. For instance, if a person has a lesser pattern in the Strategic theme, he or she may want to partner with someone with intense talent in this area when it comes time to create strategy for achieving a specific objective on a short timeline. In this way, one person leverages the talents of another to accomplish the objective. To “take over” where one person leaves off. For instance, in a car dealership, one person might help you decide which car to buy, and another person will write up the purchase agreement. Both people contribute something unique and important to the purchase of your car. To “enhance” what one person already possesses. For example, a person high in Focus might partner with someone high in Achiever when it is crunch time on a specific project. In doing so, both people bring the best of who they are and the results can...

How you view and use each of your strengths is unique to you.  Each of your strengths will evoke different ideas, images, and sounds. Think about one of your strengths.  If you had to describe it, what words come to mind?  Using these prompts, identify some metaphors for each of your top five strengths. Looks like: Color: Smells like: Sounds like: How does it feel? We asked ourselves these questions at a recent staff development day and actually utilized a few markers and cardstock to highlight our learning: Consider this fun activity with a group of mentors or with your mentee.  These metaphors are cues to think about when you want to call on a particular strength.

Thanks to Ashley Denton in Missouri Valley for this awesome Halloween activity! "We're better when we share our real selves. We're better when we're really authentic. We're better when we all work together."  There was so much individuality going on in the decorating as you can see from the pics. Also, the matches fed off of their unique talents, gifts, and strengths to create their designs.  We had 5 categories:  1. Scariest 2. Most Embellished 3. Most Colorful 4. Best Design 5. Most Creative Our categories also fed into their strengths as individuals and as matches. They each seemed to pick a category that they were working towards.  How can you incorporate strengths into a fun activity like this with your mentee?