Cultivating Positive Strengths

There has been much interest recently in the fields of mental healthcare and allopathic medicine, as well as in the area of research psychology, on how to find ways to help individuals become more strengths-oriented. This means living more from one’s strengths, virtues, skills, talents, gifts, rather than from deficits. This may be new in terms of modern healthcare, but the fact is this is really nothing new, in instinctive or intuitive ways people have relied upon the use of personal strengths as long as humans have desired to improve their lives. Nonetheless, as the modern research is showing, a well-thought, evidence-based use of tools such as research, assessments, guidance and coaching can be an extremely helpful aid in realizing and living one’s strengths.

In my experience and study, I have learned that the use of strengths is truly more art than science, and is really ancient. For example, we can glean tremendous lessons from the historic Chinese masters who understood many truths about strengths. They recognized thousands of years ago that strength was individualized and not “cookie-cutter.” They recognized that strengths emanated internally from self-awareness, and were never about force or power, but instead about skill, subtlety, and mastery. Many of the rules of strengths were outlined years ago in the historic treatise of Lao Tzu, the Tao Te Ching. Many see Taoism not as religion but a study and observation of life and human nature, of how the natural world works, and of how humans inter-relate with nature.

Exciting research on strengths and practical application has come from the emerging field of positive psychology, which often parallels the ancient insights. Positive psychology is spurring a paradigm shift toward wellness and wholeness, and is permeating psychology and mental health. Instead of the traditional focus on “disease” or “illness” e.g., fixing what is wrong with people most of the time through the use of pills or surgery, positive psychology is more holistic and focuses intensively on what is right and well with people, and on how individuals can draw upon their inner resources to improve their lives in terms of enhanced well-being, improved interpersonal relationships, work, creativity, and spiritual pursuits.

Two of the premier tools used in positive psychology to identify and engage human strengths are the VIA developed in the United States by the father of positive psychology, Martin Seligman, and the Realise2 created in the UK by Alex Linley. Linley developed the fascinating strengths theory that forms the basis of the Realise2 assessment, which explains how strengths work. Linley’s strengths theory, the Realise2 4M model, is fairly simple and straightforward, and is divided into four primary categories, which include: strengths, unrealized strengths, weaknesses, and learned behaviors.

The 4M strengths theory puts forth that a strength is any activity which energizes, is performed well, and is used frequently. 4M theory says strengths use should be marshaled, in other words a person’s strengths should be utilized frequently but still kept in balance. We can relate this notion of marshaling strengths to wisdom from the ancient Taoists about balance. The whole of the Taoist philosophical system was built upon the concept of balance, represented by the yin and yang symbol; the concept of balance is referred to over and over in the Tao Te Ching. A primary lesson we gain from the yin and yang archetype, and from the wisdom of the Tao is that just about everything in life functions more harmoniously when people and culture aspire toward balance. Authentic strength is rooted in balance, self-awareness, and yielding, not force. The Tao Te Ching says, “You must never think of conquering others by force. Whatever strains with force, will soon decay. It is not attuned to the Way…Yielding is the way of the Tao.” In American culture, we tend to live under the perspective that more is better; and, that more action is better. However, the Tao says that balancing action with “yielding” and “being,” is optimal, what is real strength. 4M theory also tells us about the essential importance of “being,” putting forth that with strengths use, more is not necessarily better; and that balance is optimal.

4M theory also gives us “unrealized strengths.” These are energizing activities which are performed well, but tend to have not been used much. It is important to identify unrealized strengths and maximize their use, at least until they become strengths and then marshal or moderate their use. Weaknesses are activities that are de-energizing, not performed well, and their use should be limited. Learned behaviors are ones that are de-energizing, but performed well, and their use should be moderated.

What’s cool about integrating strengths more fully is that not only are the use of strengths empowering and can help maximize performance, but also improve quality of life by reducing stress and enhancing health. Renowned stress researcher Hans Selye was one of the first researchers to recognize that stress isn’t always destructive; he called beneficial stress, “eustress.” Most of us know in an intuitive way, that when we overextend ourselves by taking on too many responsibilities, or simply not take sufficient self-care though proper sleep or diet, this can be detrimental to both our physical or psychological well-being. Such aspects of stress are fairly well known, but according to Selye certain types of stress can also have a specific positive effect upon our well-being. Eustress can be experienced when we acknowledge and consciously implement our strengths, and balance their usage. 4M says that strengths energize people, which is interestingly very similar to health researcher Richard Lazarus’s definition (Lazarus followed up Selye’s research) of eustress which is, “the positive cognitive response to stress that is healthy, or gives one a feeling of fulfillment or other positive feelings.”

Just about anything in life could be either stressful or life-enhancing depending upon its use. For example, people who are high performers thrive or flourish in the same activities and tasks in which others are stressed out, or suffer from burnout. Why? There are a myriad of possible reasons, but a primary one is because the individual who thrives finds that particular task or activity as a strength, whereas the other finds it as a weakness. When we begin to be introspective, reflective, contemplative, and use self-analysis and intuition, we learn what our strengths are and therefore improve well-being by reducing distress and maximizing eustress.

Putting one’s strengths to use begins with understanding the nature of strengths and how they emanate from a person’s internal core; again, this is not new, in fact quite ancient. Exciting new research and many people in helping fields are learning to put internal strengths to use in very practical and tangible ways to help bring out their best in all areas of life. Not only that, but when people learn to rely upon strengths more often, they energize themselves and become less stressed by generating more positive physiology and biochemistry e.g., more positive hormones and less destructive ones. We are only beginning to see the virtually unlimited potential of realizing and living out one’s personal and individualized strengths.