People should explore their strengths and you should help them. In MGMT 376: Employee Engagement, I learned about strengths-based coaching as a managerial technique. It builds on employees’ strengths rather than their weaknesses. You help employees identify their strengths and potential then coach them on how to leverage it in the workplace. One year prior, I sat in my UNIV 290: Resident Mentor course designed to support first-semester Resident Mentors on campus. We took an assessment known as the Clifton Strengths Assessment. The Clifton strengths assessment is a tool developed by The Gallup Organization and helps individuals identify their top five strengths out of a list of over thirty. We used this assessment in class to frame and reflect on our first semester in the role. My top five strengths were: responsibility, developer, discipline, achiever, and learner. Looking back, I can see my employers used the Clifton Strengths assessment as a strengths-based coaching tool because two short years later, I began using this method of coaching in my own mentor roles. 
       Two of the most impactful mentorship roles I have had during my time in undergrad has been my experience as a University 101 Peer Leader and Resident Mentor. U101 is the first-year experience course meant to foster student success and discovery. I was a Peer Leader for first-year students with an undeclared major for two semesters and cotaught with an exploratory advisor. I have been a Resident Mentor for first-year students in the Capstone Scholars community for three years. The Capstone Scholars program is a two-year program for high-achieving students. In each of my roles, I had to pull from my own strengths to mentor my first-year students. I was thankful to be aware of my potential after my mentors had invested in my growth with strengths-based coaching. Therefore, it only made sense to me that I would pour that same energy into my students. 
       It comes full circle when I tie my mentorship roles to my developer strength. As a developer, I go out of my way to support, motivate, or embolden individuals*. I was using my strength to strengthen others. Artifact one is the strengths reflection paper I wrote in my Resident Mentor class on how I saw my Clifton strengths influencing my Resident Mentor experience. I think to a resident I had who was deaf and shared with me the feelings of isolation he was having. He knew American Sign Language (ASL) and had an interest in teaching it. I helped him set up a weekly ASL lesson for the building and attended every week. I got to see him use his skill and strength, and I saw how proud he was to do it. 
      In the U101 classes I taught, my students had an undeclared major and as a result, many started the class in August feeling lost. Working with an exploratory advisor reminded me of the importance of exploration. My students needed to explore before picking a major. In coaching them through that journey, I turned to strengths. We had our students take the Clifton Strengths assessment as a method of self-reflection and awareness. It helped me as a mentor suggest and guide their exploration of majors and careers. I became the mentor that I had in the beginning of undergrad. I was able to use my developer strength to pour into my mentees. Artifact two is the reflection question I posed to my students and an excerpt from one of my student's journal entry with my response. 
      When I think back to the strengths-based coaching I learned about in MGMT 376, I see why it is so successful in motivating employees. People feel motivated when they feel seen and appreciated for what they bring to the table. Therefore, strengths-based coaching is not just valuable for the workplace. It can and should be applied in education. Coaching someone in their strengths means investing in their future. I am thankful for the mentors who invested in me, and I plan to continue paying it forward. 

 

*Definition is taken from my Gallup Report