Play to Your Strengths: Part 2

Yesterday I wrote briefly about the importance of playing to your strengths and how that brings the greatest impact in the Kingdom. Reggie McNeal's quote bears repeating: "My best chance at making my biggest contribution is to get better at what I'm already good at." So how do I go about doing that?

First of all, you need to recognize what your specific strengths are. Perhaps you already know. If not, here are a few quick indicators: What do you love doing? What energizes you? What gives you a feeling of accomplishment? Where do you get positive feedback from others? In what areas do you learn quickly?

In this realm I find that if you don't know what you're gifted at, just get out there and start serving! And when you find out something you don't do well (maybe working with three-year-olds!) then you can cheer that at least you've scratched another possibility off the list.

Another great way to find out your strengths is to simply ask those who know you best. "What do you think I'm good at?" "What do you see me doing well?" Get past the fear of getting no positive feedback or looking like an egomaniac. We recognize strengths in others much more quickly than we do in ourselves.

Finally, there are some tools out there that can help you figure out giftedness. Spiritual gift inventories* are good for this. I can't vouch for their accuracy, but it looks like you can even try some free ones online. A completely unique assessment (not free) is through Clifton StrengthsFinder 2.0. With strengths like "Ideation" and "Relator" you may find some very new ways of recognizing how God has uniquely wired you.

* I used to have a bit of a problem with spiritual gift inventories because they have no way of differentiating between spiritual gifts and natural talents. While I still find that to be true, I don't think it's that big of a problem. After all, we're rolling with the idea that whatever gift you have, you should develop and use to the glory of God! Colossians 3:17 and 3:23-24 tell me that anything we do should be done for the Lord - and He is worthy of our very best!

Once you know your strengths, you can begin to play to them and then surround yourself with people that compliment (rather than mimic) you. In the context of campus ministry, that opens up a wide range of possibilities. Certainly you have student leaders that you want to include here. Are you helping them learn and develop their strengths? Outside of them, are there peers you can team with? Older mentors? Strategic planning is definitely not one of my strengths (and I've often coveted it in others) but I have an older friend that talks to me on a mostly weekly basis who is very strong in this area.

It's easy to "fly by the seat of your pants" in your strengths, leaning on the level of development you already have rather than seeking to grow in them further. I'll talk about that next.