397: Our Talents Are For Us Too

When you first take the Strengths Finder quiz, we often feel like those skills and talents are what you can use to guide and influence others, however if we forget to take time for ourselves, to turn our talents inward and focus on ourselves, we are failing ourselves by not acknowledging what we bring to the table.  

In today's episode Sarah Elkins and Lindsey Van Gorp discuss the importance of introspection, fostering and growing our strengths, as well as how we need to wield our talents and skills in order to be the best version of ourselves, not just for others but for ourselves so that we may feel fulfilled in our lives. 

 

Highlights

• Have you ever done anything out of character for the sake of someone else?

• Are you direct in your communication or do you soften the edges of your words?

• Recognizing the innate strengths in everyone and how that builds community when you’re aware of it.

• Do you use your talents solely for those around you or are you using them more introspectively to best show up for yourself?

Quotes

“Clear is kind, I think that’s a thing I’m trying to learn and use more effectively. Because you’re right, I have these strengths that make me a happy, sometimes soft person when it comes to my communication, and I’m learning to remind myself that it’s actually far more kind to the person I’m communicating with if I am direct and clear in my communication instead of softening the edges of what I’m trying to get at.”

“Once you’re aware of it, you see it everywhere.”

“I think mine is a combination of all of mine, I looked at the strengths as how they impact others; Like how does this show up for everyone around me? And I had spent less time thinking about how do they show up for myself? And even just that mindset shift of it’s not always about how you can influence or impact those around you through them, but how am I using them towards myself?”

 

Dear Listeners it is now your turn,

Even without using a tool or assessment like Strengths Finder, what questions can you ask people around you, the ones you clearly think differently from, what questions can you ask to get to the heart of why they do what they do and how they do it. Because when you can understand the language, you don’t need to change who you are but you do need to learn a little bit of how to speak it. 

And, as always, thank you for listening. 

 

About Lindsey

Lindsey Van Gorp is the Brand Experience Manager at Vermeer Heartland, focusing her time and attention on enhancing the employee and customer experience. She has a passion for people and seeing them reach their full potential by recognizing their natural gifts and abilities.

Be sure to check out Lindsey’s LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram! As well as Vermeer Heartland!

 

About Sarah

"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."

In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.

My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.

The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!

Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.

Be sure to check out the Storytelling For Professionals Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!