Tips on how to Determine Your Private Strengths

A lot has been written in regards to the significance of discovering and creating private strengths as a significant a part of the general technique of restoration when coping with psychological well being or substance use points. That is in distinction to an illness-based method which has sometimes targeted first on cataloging signs and issues related to an individual’s sickness.

By understanding and growing your private strengths, you possibly can construct a reservoir of constructive attitudes, behaviors, and actions which may enhance your self-confidence and vanity. This could additionally enable you reclaim a extra full and full life, moderately than being outlined solely by your sickness.

Typically, after I’ve talked with people who find themselves scuffling with bodily or psychological well being circumstances, they aren’t accustomed to the strengths-based method. Furthermore, when requested to determine their very own private strengths, a typical response is silence, puzzlement, or a lack of awareness of what their strengths might be.

When somebody isn’t sure about their strengths, there are numerous methods to assist them determine what they’re uniquely good at. One useful gizmo is the Grownup Wants and Strengths Evaluation (ANSA). It was developed particularly to be used in care plans of adults with psychological well being or substance use challenges.

One part of the ANSA covers 12 totally different areas of private strengths, rated as “vital energy,” “average energy,” “delicate energy,” or “energy is just not current.”

For every of the 12 private strengths assessed on the ANSA, detailed descriptions are supplied for every of the attainable rankings. Right here’s a fast overview of the 12 energy areas:

1) Household

This energy is outlined as all household with whom the person stays in touch. Scores mirror how a lot love, assist, and respect is supplied to the particular person by their household.

2) Social Connectedness

This energy refers back to the interpersonal expertise of the person as they relate to others. Scores point out what number of pals the particular person has, their school with social expertise, and their capability to take care of wholesome relationships.

3) Optimism

This energy is rated based mostly on the particular person’s sense of his/her personal future and whether or not they have a constructive orientation in regards to the future. Somebody with a powerful, secure constructive outlook on the longer term will obtain a better score.

4) Abilities and Pursuits

This energy is predicated broadly on any artistic or inventive expertise or expertise the particular person might have, equivalent to artwork, theater, music, and athletics.

5) Academic

This space refers back to the strengths of the particular person’s present faculty or vocational coaching atmosphere and will not essentially mirror any particular instructional or work expertise the particular person has. This space could also be rated as not relevant if the particular person is just not at the moment in an academic or work coaching atmosphere.

6) Volunteering

This energy describes the diploma to which somebody acknowledges the significance of, and is recurrently concerned in, volunteer actions that give again to the neighborhood.

7) Job Historical past

This energy describes the particular person’s previous expertise and stability with paid employment.

8) Religious/Spiritual

This energy assesses the particular person’s involvement in religious or non secular beliefs and actions.

9) Group Connection

This energy is predicated on the particular person’s degree of involvement in and assist from neighborhood teams, networks, or actions.

10) Pure Helps

This space refers to unpaid people aside from relations who present assist to the particular person towards bettering their well being and well-being.

11) Resiliency

This energy is predicated on the particular person’s capability to determine and use their strengths to higher themselves and to handle tough challenges of their lives.

12) Resourcefulness

This energy displays the diploma to which the particular person is expert at discovering the mandatory sources required to assist in reaching a wholesome life-style and in managing challenges.

Going by means of the 12 ANSA energy areas can yield a useful profile of the strengths an individual has, that are both already well-established or potential areas for future progress and growth.

For instance, one particular person I assisted was in a position to see that they already had vital strengths within the areas of household, skills/pursuits, and religious/non secular involvement. Nevertheless, they didn’t have well-developed strengths in job historical past, neighborhood connections or volunteering, and so they have been in a position to determine private objectives to additional develop their strengths in these three areas.

It’s additionally essential to notice that these 12 areas aren’t the one ones which may be strengths for somebody. Different strengths can embody many constructive character traits, equivalent to motivation, willpower, honesty, and integrity. Additionally, there are a bunch of different issues which are sometimes taken as a right which can be actually strengths when you’ve got them and an nearly particular downside when you don’t. These embody ample housing, cash, entry to well being care, fundamental literacy, and transportation, simply to call just a few.

Check out your strengths someday. That are stable and which want a bit extra targeted consideration? You might be shocked to seek out that you’ve a number of vital strengths already. It will also be thrilling to seek out new areas for private progress which you will not have thought of.

By constructing your private strengths, you will see you possibly can get pleasure from life extra and discover higher satisfaction and a way of goal. So get on the market and discover your strengths!

Copyright David Susman 2022