Know Thy Self and Thy Colleagues

As a company, we are always reading a book together that focuses on either leadership principals or honing managment skills. This month it has been Strengths Finder 2.0 (Gallup Press, 2007) which reminds us to focus on our areas of strength and not on all the inevitable weaknesses we possess. Even if you know yourself pretty well you might not always take the time to contemplate why you feel the way you do about another person or what causes you to react to things the way you do. Knowing what makes you (and your colleagues) tick is valuable information. You see your strengths play out everyday and not only can you better anticipate what others around you will say/do, but you can also work together to outsource - thereby overcoming - weaker traits. If you and those close to you professionally have not been through this exercise together, I highly recommend it. After all, most of us spend more time with our co-workers than we do with our families...shouldn't it be as pleasant and productive as possible?