Strengths

Futuristic - Strategic - Learner - Achiever - Ideation

After taking the Strengths Finder survey by Gallup Organization, it identified Futuristic, Strategic, Learner, Achiever, and Ideation as my Signature Themes. Futuristic represents that  I am a dreamer who sees visions of what could be and who cherishes those visions, and Gallup encourages me to make my visions as vivid as possible, so that people can latch on to the hope I bring. Strategic represents that I have a special perspective on the world at large which allows me to see patterns where others simply see complexity. Learner represents that I am energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence, and enables me to thrive in dynamic work environments in which I take on short projects and learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time. Achiever represents that I have an internal fire burning inside me which pushes me to achieve as much as possible. Finally, Ideation represents that I am always looking for connections between ideas, and revel in taking the world we all know and turning it around so we can view it from a strangely enlightening angle. 

This Strengths Finder test was also very reaffirming, because I could see how each of these strengths directly relates to the ability to successfully lead an innovative educational institution. Futuristic is what enables me to create an idealistic vision of a future state of education which would be more beneficial to students. Ideation is what makes thinking about concepts in education enjoyable for me. Strategic is what enables me to think about how to go about trying to make that vision a reality. Learner is part of what makes learning about educational and positive psychology enjoyable for me. And Achiever is what makes me not satisfied with the present state of education and constantly trying to improve upon it.

However, I have seen that these strengths have the capacity to be my greatest weaknesses when I’m faced with circumstances in which I am not able to exercise them. When I was forced to take time off from college, my outlet for achievement, learning, ideation, and futuristic and strategic thinking was taken away, which probably contributed greatly to my depression. I still naturally tried to do a lot of futuristic and strategic thinking in my own time, but that led to me becoming much more socially isolated, which also was probably detrimental to my mental health. Also, when I do not have the opportunity to make tangible progress toward the future that I envision, the futuristic thinking can lead to me becoming increasingly irritated with and depressed by the flaws of the present. Fortunately, though, I am now back in an academic environment where I can exercise and build upon my strengths, and my hardships have made me more motivated to achieve so that I do not need to face them again.