Whether it’s a job, team or club, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses. The important thing is both improving upon those weaknesses and utilizing talents and strengths. I often get updates from Ag Careers, offering advice on how to be most effective in your career. “Understanding and Utilizing your “Strengths,” by AgCareers.com with content from Marcus Buckingham’s book Go Put Your Strengths to Work has a great message for those wishing to make their strengths more relevant at work, school, clubs, etc.

Your strengths are those activities that make you feel strong. The person best qualified to identify them is you. You don’t need a manager or a performance appraisal, or even a psychologist to tell you what your strengths are. Think about which activities draw you back to them time and again. You know which activities you can’t help volunteering for. There are certain activities that keep your interest and your concentration with almost no effort. You know which activities leave you feeling strong, fulfilled, and powerful.

So, what are your greatest strengths? That’s one of the first questions a person is asked in an interview. What makes you feel strong? How can you put more of an emphasis on those strengths in your career? For me, it’s important to do the job that makes your heart sing. At graduation, I received a card that said, “If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life,” and I think that’s so true. Today, take a minute to think about your strengths and weaknesses. What are the areas you can improve upon, and what are the things that make you thrive?