One of the hardest things about being in the workforce for decades is coping gracefully with change. For some people that seems particularly challenging, and I’ve always wondered why. A recent experience caused me to think: Do some personality strengths naturally orient to the past, while others naturally orient to the future? And how do your strengths at work relate to change?
I am a big believer in the CliftonStrengths framework, which isolates 34 strengths that have been determined through decades of research. The organization’s assessment will show how these strengths rank for you. The idea behind this is that it’s more efficient to tap into these strengths, rather than trying to “fix” what you perceive as your weaknesses. Also, at work, teams with a blend of strengths represented perform at the highest level. I’m such a believer in this that I’ve had my husband and sons take the assessment, too.
Which brings us to coping with change. Or not. Last week, I excitedly told my husband about a book I was reading on how language has changed, and why it made sense that younger people were discarding punctuation in many contexts. “I’ve finally let go of judgment about this and can embrace it,” I told him.
Joe was not buying any of it, which perplexed me. Why was he clinging to the old way, and with resentment?
The strengths of forward vs. backward
Then I remembered his CliftonStrengths assessment. One of his top five strengths is Context. The framework describes it like this: “People exceptionally talented in the Context theme enjoy thinking about the past. They understand the present by researching its history.” For me, though, Context is quite near the bottom of my strengths list. At the top is Learner: “People exceptionally talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. The process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.” I realized that I found learning about language changes stimulating, not threatening.
As an aside, another of the Clifton strengths is Futuristic, which could be very influential regarding change: “People exceptionally talented in the Futuristic theme are inspired by the future and what could be. They energize others with their visions of the future.”
Self-awareness is everything
Why do inherent personality characteristics matter? They’re our starting points. The more self-aware we are, the better we can respond to change in the workplace. For example, someone with Context as a strength can offer a gentle reminder about why certain things worked in the past. But that person can also be aware that they may need to push beyond their comfort zone to embrace new things.
Conversely, someone with Learner can easily adapt to new technologies and thoughts. However, they may need to be vigilant about not adopting new things just because they’re interesting. Do they really represent a step forward for the whole company?
We can’t slow the rate of change and we can’t alter our personalities, but by being aware of our innate strengths, we can use them to move us forward, not back–and at just the right pace.