NURS 6053- Week 5 Discussion Your Leadership Profile
Advance-practice nursing is a pursuit of betterment built upon a foundation of humanism. Self-reflection is imperative to understand oneself if the goal is to help others build upon their strengths. The Clifton Strength Finder 2.0 is a valuable tool to hone in on strengths that give meaning to our lives and professional roles. Strengths can be leveraged when understood. This discussion will analyze the top 5 strengths to formulate actionable goals.
Top 5 Strengths
The Clifton assessment revealed my top 5 strengths as Learner, Achiever, Input, Self-Assurance, and Connectedness. Learner seemed self-evident in my current scholastic endeavors. The insight guide brought awareness to a deeper theme of the need to examine why things go wrong (Rath, 2021, p. 25). A strong internal locus of control always has been an inherent quality. This has served me well in becoming an achiever in my personal and professional life. A steadfast belief that I can identify modifiable variables in life to adapt more readily to change and entropy in the future is powerful. Just as we teach patients, they can change their health through lifestyle changes. A scholarly article by Dagasan et al. (2023) emphasizes the need for internal locus of control in healthcare’s total quality management leaders. The scholars find that an internal locus of control promotes autonomy and meaningfulness in their work, directly correlating with the strength of Learner. Self-Assurance is a product of Learner. The core of Self-Assurance is the ability to see the world’s objective reality and be decisive in how to respond. The validity of Self-Assurance is earned through Learner not to be conflated with overconfidence or arrogance (Rath, 2021, p. 147).
Input is congruent with Learner as desire to know more. The nuanced layer of Learner is the hunt to find fruitful discussions with other professionals and seek out mentors (Rath, 2021, p. 115). Achiever is the fuel that propels the Learner. Expecting the best of oneself is the mission of Achiever. Task completion is the reward, and awareness of the political, cultural, and societal landscape is always top of mind (Rath, 2021, p. 25). Intolerance for those not reaching their potential can sometimes be frustrating.
The levity of Connectedness can balance the pitfalls of Achiever and Self-Assurance. A genuine interest in understanding what unifies a community and what polarizes it is a visionary quality (Broome & Marshall, 2021, p. 207). Connectedness reminds us as individuals that we are here to make the world better than we found it. Connectedness inserts an interpersonal competency of mindfulness of how a kind word or deed can perpetuate positivity on a large scale (Rath, 2021, p.61).
Core Values, Strengths, & Characteristics
Self-Assurance is a strength I aim to reinforce in the realm of the collaborative care model. There are instances when my certainty inhibits my willingness to listen. An actionable idea of applying the core value of humility can assure others that their thoughts and opinions are valuable (Rath, 2021, p. 147). My character trait of willingness can be called upon to allow cohesiveness to prevail.
Achiever is where I need more balance. I often avoid celebrating successes, feeling they may seem prideful or lead to complacency. A core value of happiness must be remembered. My achievement can be observed in a manner of helping others. When I can draw upon my success with humility to inspire others, I will feel happiness in my own life. Creativity is my most underutilized character trait. Working in a world of evidence-based practice and organizational policies, I often stifle my creativity to stay within structural parameters. A transformational component of leadership is to influence positive social change (Broome & Marshall, 2021, p. 206). Change cannot occur without new ideas. Time to dust off my creativity and put it to work for my Achiever!
In conclusion, self-awareness is the key to unlocking the interconnectedness of our strengths and finding their utility in all aspects of life. Weaknesses will undoubtedly emerge, but synthesizing core values and personal attributes is the antidote to ameliorating their impact.
References
Broome, M., & Marshall, E. (2021). Transformational leadersh