30 Blogs

Just in case anyone wasn't paying attention, myself included, yesterday I accomplished the goal I had set for myslef in September: 30 blogs in thirty days. I am a bit shocked...I guess I have more gumption than I thought, for not a single day is missing an entry. Technically, the post I am writing in this instant need not exist.

About a year and half ago, I had to read a book called, Now Discover Your Strengths as per partial fulfillment of a training course I was in. What a waste of time. I have since kept the book hidden in an armoire, lost the list of my top five strengths that hung around my neck like an albators for a week, and completely forgotten what the online test included in the $40 cover price had determined my "strengths" to be.

Any test having to do with personality can be manipulated. Myers Briggs, Now Discover Your Strengths, or any number of predictive indexes, are putty in the hands of anyone who knows what the moderator's desired outcome may be. You want introverted, I'll give you introverted. Extroverted is just as easy, maybe easier. Leader?...follow me. Follower?...show me the way.

But, we do all have our own unique strengths, myself included. The older I get, the more I know what mine are, and the more I know how crucial it is that I excersise them. My boat floats each time opportunity allows me to "be myself," for necessity, the majority of the time, requires someone else...I would be willing to bet that this is the case for most of us.

What are my strengths, you may ask?

When I was about six years old I sat at the dinner table with my older sister and my parents, dominating the conversation. Tomatos were on the menu; my sister hated tomatos. "What would Jessica (refusing to eat the acidic fruit) do if she were stuck on a deserted island with nothing to eat but tomatos?", said I, followed by, "chuckle chuckle." My witty sibling retorted, "What would Nathan do if he were stuck on a deserted island with no one to talk to." ARGHHH. I had been had, but she was right... I spent the next several days convincing her she was wrong.