Yes, I'm watching Oprah

So now that the title got your attention, I'll say it...I'm not watching Oprah but I am subscribing to her podcasts. Before you pass judgment on me and my masculinity, consider the following...

In the last two years, I've become obsessed with the Strengths Movement and Strengths based education. If you're not familiar, the basic premise is that each of us are made up of unique talents and traits. If we take time to affirm our talents and apply them to our academics, careers and personal lives, they will develop into strengths. The key is not to focus on your weaknesses but to rather build on your strengths and let the rest follow suit.

Doesn't that make perfect sense? Who wants to focus on what they're not good at? At what causes them not to succeed? IT'S DEPRESSING! Why not focus on what you are good at and let that build your confidence and define your abilities? All too often in education, kids are made aware of the areas to which they are failing to meet the standard. Think of the impact this really has on a student. Imagine being able to empower that student to use their strong points to their advantage. As the student realizes his or her own potential, he or she will embrace the idea of improving their areas of lesser-strength.

So what does this have to do with Oprah and why am I adding her to my iPod? I'm not. She is sponsoring an eight session web seminar delivered by Marcus Buckingham. Buckingham is the co-author of several books on the Strengths Movement (First Break All the Rules, Now Discover Your Strengths, and Go Put Your Strengths to Work). The seminar is completely free and is to be completed at your own pace. The sessions can be downloaded as podcasts to your iTunes for free and worksheets and a syllabus can be found online.

If you're interested in learning more about the Strengths Movement, I'd highly suggest any of Buckingham's books. Also pick up StrengthsFinder 2.0 and take the StrengthsFinder Assessment. The assessment (to be completed online using the provided access code) will recognize 34 different themes of talent and identify your top five. You will also receive access to a personalized report that will describe in detail why those five areas are your top themes of talent. You'll be surprised at how what this report will say about you. It's accuracy is almost frightening. SF 2.0 will also help you develop these five areas into strengths by applying them to academics, your career and even your personal life.

Think your strong? Prove it.