The Atlas

Holidays can be fraught for many people. For me, one of the most valuable approaches is actually something that I have learned also serves me a lot at work: finding the small difference in other people that I most appreciate. Instead of looking for what is wrong, look for what is RIGHT in how they differ. It won't solve everything, but it does certainly help.

One of the many areas of insight that has emerged from Gallup's work on culture and organizational dynamics is what they call the 12 Elements of Employee Engagement. In my recurring question, What do you need from work? I find this list of 12 questions extremely useful.

Managers are the lynchpin in organizations, and yet they are routinely under-invested in when it comes to cultivating talent. Even worse, because of natural tendencies of women in work environments to wait to apply for positions, they are also often excluded from a managerial career track very early on. Does this really have to be the case?

Every once in a while, in my discussions about a strengths-based focused on everything from organizational to personal development, I realize that I've lost my audience. Plenty of people can see where this information shows up in their lives naturally, but the idea of using it as a planning vehicle is sometimes a bigger stretch. So today I figured I'd back up a bit and try to frame this up a bit more clearly.

What do you need from work? It's a harder question to answer than it sounds at first. So what are some different ways to think about the question that could help?

Last week's class with Gallup around strengths was, as I noted in my late-posted video from last Friday, absolutely exceptional. And not just because of the fantastic tools or amazing assortment of people, but because I find tremendous value in the framework of using our personal strengths as a lense for how we approach the important aspects of our lives.

Instead of my regular weekly video, I spend a few minutes talking about some of the greatest aspects of my Gallup Strengths Training class this week.

After spending the weekend taste testing what my new life in Miami could potentially look like, I am starting my week with the lingering taste of my weekend buffet of new experiences. And while the novelty junkie in me definitely appreciates the sheer newness of all of it, the middle-aged part of me that recognizes a few familiar inclinations surfacing that I like to think of myself as aware enough to remind myself to question.