Centre of Applied Positive Psychology

Learned behaviours are not strengths

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I once coached a woman who was exceptionally creative. She had a head for sales and was a whiz at putting together trainings to teach young sales associates how to perform better. She was so good, in fact, that she was quickly promoted to a management position. The problem was, she did not shine at management the way she had excelled at training. As a result she had to learn all sorts of new behaviours—confrontation, assertiveness, administration, detail orientation—that would help her succeed in the new job. My client was bright and she quickly learned these new behaviours and even did them well. There was only one problem: at the end of the day she felt deflated instead of energized.

The Realise2 strengths assessment distinguishes between realised strengths—those strengths you find energizing and use frequently—and “learned behaviours.” Learned behaviours are acquired skills that a person can learn to perform well, but they do not come naturally and the extra energy and effort required to use them leave a person feeling flat. People often acquire these new behaviours because their roles or circumstances have changed. Learned behaviours are frequently necessary for good performance. Using them too much, however, can lead to dissatisfaction and burnout.

This is one of my favorite aspects of the Realise2. And, if our client response is any indicator, one of everyone’s favorite aspects of the assessment. We used the Realise2 with a large organization recently, to help them with recruitment. They loved the fact that the assessment was able to distinguish between people who would be good at their job while loving their job and those who would be good at their job but hate it.

So what should you do about your own learned behaviours? At CAPP we recommend “moderating” them. You will probably need to use your learned behaviours sometime, but see if you can limit the amount of time you use these draining behaviours. Consider the outcomes that are attached to these behaviours—how are they paying off for you at work or in relationships-- and see if you can achieve these same valued outcomes by using your realized or unrealized strengths instead.

Click here to take the Realise2.

If you would like to find out more about how I use this assessment with my coaching clients just drop me a line at Robert@cappeu.com

This blogpost is originally from Happier.com