Imagine if you will…you are driving down the highway, traveling exactly one mile below the speed limit, carefully checking your mirrors, and only passing when absolutely necessary. All of a sudden, you spot a State Trooper in your rear view mirror; the lights and sirens are screaming for your attention. The shocking, squeezing, burning pain of adrenaline shoots from somewhere above your kidneys as you begin to rifle through the past few miles logged on your trip; every attempt to find even the slightest offense comes up fruitless. Now along side of the highway, you anticipate the words of the officer approaching your car, your heart quickens as you begin to think “Where did I put that registration card?”
After what seems like an eternity, the office comes back to the driver’s side window, all the while writing on his little black clipboard. “Do you know why I pulled you over?” Your mind begins to race, but before you can reply he says “I pulled you over just now because you are doing an excellent job of obeying the rules of the road.” He continues, “You are really being a model example of how people should drive. Instead of tickets, we are handing out commendations today. Keep up the good work.” With that, he hands you the little slip of paper, turns, and walks back to his cruiser.
This might be an exaggerated “for instance,” but this is the general idea behind a movement that has begun to gain popularity in recent years.
Strength Based Programming, revolves around the idea that we should focus on building upon the areas in which we already excel, rather than attempting to eliminate our areas of weakness. Marcus Buckingham, one of the forefront promoters of Strength Based thinking, the target of our efforts, whether as individuals, parents, or corporations, should be to “manage” weaknesses and “build” strengths. Citing a number of polling questions, Buckingham noted a common tendency for parents to place the majority of their energies on the areas their children needed to improve the most in education, rather than pouring additional interest and energy into the subjects the children naturally excel. A Strength Based approach would find the subjects that the student easily succeeds in and finds additional opportunities for the student to succeed in those subjects. As the student begins to soar, the “weak” areas will rise as well, although most likely not to the degree of the “strong” areas. As an articulate communicator, Buckingham makes an interesting argument for Strength Based Programs.
Is Strength Based the new thing in helping people succeed? There does seem to be some helpful elements within the philosophy (and it is a philosophy), but I hesitate to give it a shining recommendation. The “tongue in cheek” narrative about the citation for good driving would seem to depict the Utopian world Strength Based Programming claims to accomplish. The reason society does not stop handing out punishments for shortcomings and start handing out citations for good behavior is because it does not work, and discipline does. This is one program that needs a little more research, and at the very least balance.
To be continued…?
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