How Leveraging Your Strengths Can Get You A Better Return ...



How Leveraging Your Strengths Can Get You A Better Return On Investment For Your BusinessCharlotte Blair0:00:04 - 0:00:30if you'd asked me a number of years ago. Hey, have you thought about the Pampa business on your own? The answer would have been. No, I'm a corporate beast. I have no intention or interest in setting up a business on my own. But now if I think back, it's probably the best thing that I ever did. I love the independence. I love what I do. I love being out to slot in and partner with organisations in a way that meets family.Trudy Rankin0:00:34 - 0:01:33Hello, everyone. Welcome to the online business Launchpad podcast. I'm your host Trudy Rankin and I'm delighted to have Charlotte Blair with me today. Now Charlotte is a gallop strengths certified coach, A bit of a mouthful, but it's actually a really important thing and co-founder of the Strengths partners. Now her focus in life is in helping other people reach their potential by focusing on strength. And I want 100% buy into the concept that we should be focusing on her strengths instead of our weaknesses. We in our obl programme we get people to do both of personality and a strengths-based assessment so that they can develop a business that not only suits and, that leverage is what they're naturally good at. So when Katrina ST Field, who's one of our regular contributors here on the podcast, said I needed to meet Charlotte and make sure that I said yes, and after speaking with her, I knew we all needed to hear what she has to say. So I asked her to be on the broadcast, and she said Yes. So welcome to the podcast, Charlotte and thanks for joining usCharlotte Blair0:01:34 - 0:01:35Thank you very much for having meTrudy Rankin0:01:36 - 0:01:43So I'm really keen to hear a little bit more about yourself and your background and how and why you started your own business.Charlotte Blair0:01:44 - 0:03:54Sure, no problem. I often find I have to be careful with the Story that it doesn't turn into a long, shaggy dog story. But there is an I have to go back a little bit in time, To, Make the Connection. So I've spent most of my career in IT sales, so I worked for Voratian or the global telco. For 12 years. I work from both in the UK and here in Australia. I took the Clifton Strengths assessment back in 2008 as part of a sales team development that I was working on. I remember taking the assessment and thinking, Yeah, that sounds like me.And thinking about the application of how it might help Me to do my job? Bond fell. Then it really went in the drawer and nothing more happened with it. I enjoyed the job that I did. I particularly enjoyed working with the clients that I did, and I very much enjoyed the money that helped me set up the lifestyle that I have today.and Working for rising Also help Main move Teo Australia, which was a big thing when I reached Australia, I had the fortune off attending the Steven Probie Seven Habits course, which was a bit of a pivotal shift in my career on my development journey. The guy that helped me discover my strength from Bailey. Back in 2008, was the facilitator and trainer extraordinaire at Verizon who run the course on. I remember going through that programme and thinking about but my mission and purpose in life. Was and last I enjoyed selling it. I knew that was not what I wanted To be known for, or do for the rest of my life and I distinctly remember saying to him, Brian, I think I might want to do what you do. I love having the opportunity to help other people. I really enjoyed it when I had graduates interns assigned to, me and really loved helping them develop and grow so well. Have you considered looking at coaching?Charlotte Blair0:03:56 - 0:05:57You do a lot of internal mentoring, but have you looked at doing coaching and training? If that's a route you want to go down, you need to go and get some coaching qualifications through the International Coaching Federation and perhaps some qualification and facilitation. So right and that the time had an amazing Programmes tuition assistance programme that gave every employee roughly at the time $7000 towards external training as long as it's going to help towards a career future development. So I took the opportunity to my Level ics one To. I took the opportunity to do the gallop accreditation on also be, you know, Bob's phone facilitation. The more I found out, the more I loved. So I looked pursuing a career in lonely in development coaching within the organisation. It was not going to happen in the time line that I wanted. I am high activator as a talent thing myself, which means like an often bear bit impatient. So I decided to leave. I leverage the network that I had, and I found a roll of part facilitator. Part fails at a small linear development company. I worked there for a year, and I didn't actually get the opportunity to do as much as the facilitation if I liked. So it was a benefit in conversation over a glass of wine one evening with two other coaches who were on the same accreditation programme with me back in 2013. I think it wass on. We said our way displaced this idea. Or what if we would just set up a business together, a partnership together on DH that was born? It wasn't that long after the Stretch Partners was born that one of the partners became ill. The other one got very tied up into a contract that she couldn't get out of it. It meant that I was operating on my own if you had asked me a number of years ago. Hey, have you thought about the Pampa business on your own.Charlotte Blair0:05:58 - 0:06:22The answer would have been no on the corporate beast. I have no intention or interest in setting up a business on my own. But now if I think back, it's probably the best thing that ever did. I love thee independent. I love what I do. I love being out to slot in and partner with organisations in a way that meets family. You see why a shaggy dog Storey?Trudy Rankin0:06:23 - 0:06:48I think it's I think it's fascinating I'm always interested in and the journey that people go through when they moved from corporate into becoming a business owner, setting up and starting a business. And you started out thinking you were going to do this with two other partners. Just out of curiosity. First of all, do you still have? Did any of them ever managed to stay as partners and eventually help? OrCharlotte Blair0:06:48 - 0:08:04absolutely one of them has remained a partner, and You know, there was a period of time, I think, her career in her life, where she could not participate to the level that she wanted to and. That was OK, that probably went on for four or five years. Fact Moore is a partner. Now it's that challenge where I brewed operating Mohr on my own now for the last four or five years, so it feels a little bit harder to sort of go back working together. I think the intention of the business, the inception is different to maybe what it is now. You know, I've developed and grown on even part of the business has morphed, and I'm sure we'll go on and talk about that in that I have sort of two sides to the business. So yes, still involved, they still leveraged each other. We're still friends, but friends, Ari, but I probably operate a little bit more independently. That said, I also partner with other coaches around the world, both in supporting them and them supporting me. So you know the business is probably grown, but without the definition of a partner, it's an elusive definition of a partner. I guessTrudy Rankin0:08:05 - 0:08:36that's really, really fascinating, that whole concept of partnering or collaboration in the looser sense I think this is really, really powerful, and if we have time, they might come back to that. Can you just maybe just share with our listeners who might be on the same who may be on the same path that you went through, which is moving from corporate into a business. What would be the biggest challenge that you faced moving from a new employee? Or, as you say, ah, corporate-based into somebody who's a small business owner, essentially having to do everything on your own?Charlotte Blair0:08:38 - 0:10:25Yeah, I think there's a couple of facets to that. I think the first challenge initially was ooh where is my next paycheck going to come from when you were used to receiving a monthly salary, and you know exactly what that looks like. Where is the next one coming from? I was incredibly fortunate that my husband was very supportive. We did have money in the bank as a backup if needed if my income was not as we expected. Luckily, it turned out that we didn't need that because pretty quickly, revenue was there leveraging my influencing skills, probably of my network. You know, I went out and found business very quickly and I'm not sure there's ever been a point in the journey where I've gone Oh my gosh, how am I going to feed the kids this week? I believe that it's certainly a sausage machine. You have to feed things into the funnel continuously. And I appear is the time when I'm doing a lot of delivery that I go, Gosh, I need to take a step back and think about business generation again. So initially it was that mindset of gosh where is the next paycheck going to come from the second element when I talk about these multiple facets, I think I might have shared with you before when we were chatting about one of the partners. When we first set up, the business was very financially handy and said I'II do all the tax returns in the bass statement and everything financial. And I was like Good because I definitely do not play to my strength, particularly low analytical. I'm not a great numbers person, but when she had to exit the business due to her health, I had to take that on. But I stuck my head in the sand for a period of time. But I learned a massive lesson through that.Charlotte Blair0:10:26 - 0:11:52When you get a nice thick tax bill and you gotta pay it quickly, I learned to go and find out about zero and I let go and find out about my tax implications, So that was probably the biggest learning. I think the other thing that I believe, I've always been pretty good up. But sometimes I need reminding about is where I am not strong to lean on other people. So if there is something that I'm not great at, my attention to detail is no amazing. My spelling is not fantastic. I'm dyslexic. So I have to remember to get some big peer review my work sometimes. Otherwise it could go out with.errors that impact your credibility? So I try and make sure that I lean upon other people in the strength work that I've done. I know there are some people that love doing that. I remember working in a team one time. I really don't,like the peer review process and that colleagues know I love Give me all your peer review work. This's absolutely played to somebody else's strength. It's not what I do or enjoy doing. You know, here we are, and I think that's very much. That's strength philosophy. We are like stars. We want sharp points. We cannot be well rounded individual that there's something that you're not for that look outsourcing. So I think that they were my main challenges. But I don't think there's anything that's been a show stopper or such a challenge, but I could not navigate.Trudy Rankin0:11:54 - 0:12:14I just I like I said, I really enjoy just let hearing people's journeys because it can be different for everybody and depending on the situation and different people have different challenges, which sort of brings me back. I think back to your business. Do you want to just tell our listeners a little bit about exactly what you do and who you're focused on serving.Charlotte Blair0:12:15 - 0:14:16No problem. So originally, the business, the strength partners is about helping individuals. Teams organisations discover new strengths to meet business and personal challenges, managers within those organisations or a particular passion of mine because I know that managers have a massive impact on the success of a business but also the engagement of their employees. But even at an individual level, I might coach an executive or an individual contributor, as an example for various, but that's primarily with corporate. I might work with some of the big banks from the big retail distributors. It's some of the mining companies is a very broad range of organisations that I worked with, the fundamentally it's helping teams discover new. strength's There's another side of the business that came more to the four, probably in the last 18 months and I set up .au you last year as coaching and mentoring other coaches. So when covid first hit and face to face delivery of workshops, suddenly ground to a halt, there was a big position and learning curve of moving to the virtual environment I'd already been doing from virtual work. But I also enjoy learning with others for use strength language learner to number 34 which does not mean to say I can't learn, but I really enjoy learning with others through my activator, through my wound through my maximise, our social beast. From that point of view. So it was born that I've been helping mentor coach other coaches around the world because I feel like it can have a wider ripple effect. I feel like I've been influenced and have a wider ripple effective helping more people discover. their strengths and What makes them unique, and apply that.Trudy Rankin0:14:19 - 0:15:27I think it's really important. And, you know, I've talked about this a little bit before. It's just so important matching those strengths and your personality and all of those things, too. How you serve people in the way you know, the way you run your business and set up your business because, you know, I strongly believe it. I've seen it, and I've seen people talk about it. If you get that wrong, not you. You at the very worst. You burn out and almost is worse. Your business is likely to not succeed or at least not succeed to the extent that you wanted To. So I think that's pretty critical. I'm really interested?and There's a couple of things there you've touched already, and I think I think that it worth sort of delving into a little bit. And the first one is that you mentioned sort of, You know, the fact that you've done, Stephen Corry said, would have its course, and that's kind of how you got into it. And the person who facilitated it sounded like they came across as a bit of a mentor. Have you had a number of mentors in your business? journey or any mentors that you would recognise either formally or informalCharlotte Blair0:15:28 - 0:17:20for sure. So, yeah, Brian Bailey is probably one of the biggest mentors and helped me on this journey, not only through introducing me to strength, but I like that because it was a life-changer for me, some very extreme say life changer. But it was, But I have also had on still continue to have a number of different mentors again, whether they be formal or informal. If I think about formal at the moment, I'm going through my PCC. Safe was a professional coaching accreditation through the through. The ICS have a formal mentor off that do I pay. I'm also part of a mastermind. Group off other coaches and we mentor and support each other about ideas, share information, coach each other. There are no peer mentoring and coaching opportunities within the global community of coaches, as well, former former bosses, former colleagues. You know, I had the pleasure of working for an amazing manager when I worked Mercer for a period of time and Cathy Tomkins was a massive influence. I'm really sort of helped.me Now we have a great relationship. We'll have a great relationship, but we continue outside of work. to have a great relationship. and again coach, mentor and support each other. So I'm a big believer in mentors. I'm also a big believer. There are some mentors that are happy to give their time. But I'm a big believer that you also have to pay for mentoring like you are asking for some of this knowledge, experience and skill, which is slightly different to kind of coaching. So I think, you know, some of the best mentoring relationships have been the ones that I have. Been very comfortable, paying for. Been a critical part of my careerTrudy Rankin0:17:21 - 0:18:01Yeah, I just I'm smiling a little bit because it's been my experience that you could have informal mentors, which is people you listen to and pay attention to. And then you could have paid mentors. And it's the paid mentors where you tend to take action because you've paid good money. If you're not going to listen to them, were you paying them? So there is a zone incentive to take action, which I think is pretty strong. I'm curious, based on what you've said so far about the types of work that you do. And obviously, there's been a little bit of interesting time with covid shaping the landscape a little bit. And so how do you go about finding your clients?Charlotte Blair0:18:04 - 0:20:06Yeah Various. If I think back to when I first started, I would say for sure. Leveraging my network was one of the pivotal moment. I remember starting up a meet up group as an example meet up group fundamentally for people interested in Clifton. Strength on. At first I invited anybody. I knew friends come along to this first session. It was held within. I not sure if your familiar with nab the 700 building 100 bucks right now, where they have their small businesses called the Village. So they have their small business location. One of the meeting rooms there was great except cost me anything. So we told it that I remember ah, manager who I had met through a previous coaching and loom and I she said, I love strength. Come along to that. Meet up group that you have at that Meet up, she said. This is great. I would love to do something with my team. Would you come and do a session with my team? that then cascaded throughout the Department of Business that she was in. And even to this day, that business still uses Me. She then went on to set up a women's group. I guess they're pretty big now. Women's group, and she invited him to speak at that. That has got a lead on to other business. I was a fundamentally it's Been through Word of Mouth will repeat business and that repeat business might bay you start within organisation with the team I transfer Accident Commission. It started with a small team. It rolled down to their team. It moved over across to another team. It rolled down, it rolled up, and 900 people were probably worked with over 500 of those employees over the last few years. So that's been all referral of word and mouth repeat business. The Other element I find for me is if I'm working with other coaches, coaching other strength, coaches very much Facebook.Charlotte Blair0:20:06 - 0:21:58So people find me through Facebook and it's, you know, it's probably the activity, the things that they post or share or comment on builds that reputation and knowledge. So then people say, Oh you I've loved coaching, and I might post on that. Now here's my cannon Billy Link. This is when I'm free. If you want to coach, be coach very head over to my website. So that's where I find them socially. The business side of the strengths partners are working with the corporate teams, I would say LinkedIn probably a bigger driver. Then maybe you know the website. I have a website. Can I tell you how many leads I've had on that website? Yes, probably.2 But if I think about on good because I'm not leveraging search engine optimisation or the technology where? But if I am posting on Linkedin and people go, Oh, Charlotte Blair gift in strength. Yes. You know, I'm thinking about doing something with my team on. I've had a number of people reach out and say, Hey, Charlotte, I'm thinking of doing something with my team. Can we have a chat about what that looks like? So three things Facebook for Strength coaches LinkedIn corporate, and they're really that word of mouth and referrals. And I'm quite intentional as well about the referrals of If you found this useful, is there somebody else that you could recommend me to. Who else in the organisation do you think I should be speaking? To. So, in part intentional about asking for those referrals, Connections and people are more than happy to make those, especially if they feel that it helped their business. What I'm about, I want to do work that has an impact and helps them not just for fun. Discover your strength, shove it in the drawer, do nothing more with it.Trudy Rankin0:21:59 - 0:22:34I think that's a really powerful technique. And for people who are listening, if if they're not, if you're not already using that technique, actually, just having a P s on the end of ah communication, whether it's an email or social media posts or whatever saying, Hey, if this was useful, you know, who else should I be talking to? And it's just a really simple question. It's easy to do and if people don't know. They just want to anything. But if they do have somebody in mind and it resonates, you know, people are really generous. They will actually reach out and pass on names or just forward your post.Charlotte Blair0:22:36 - 0:23:33Yes, I think I talk a lot to other coaches about this. I think there is a mindset shift that sometimes needs to happen of people who I feel uncomfortable asking for a fairer. Or I feel uncomfortable reaching out to this. This person, well, what's the worst that can happen, that the worse that can happen is that they say no or they do nothing with it, but fundamentally, as humans, we like to help other people. So if they think that they can help you by offering a referral if they've done a good job and why would you not ask? I sometimes wonder whether I'm high. Self-assurance is one of the 15 talent things and significant, so I sometimes wonder whether it's driven by that. Or it could just be my sales background of people saying no and quite comfortable with people. You don't know My my mother always said as well, you don't ask. You don't get soTrudy Rankin0:23:33 - 0:24:25that that is such a and it is interesting. I talked to a lot of entrepreneurs and I talked a lot of on the business owners and it just seems to me that that skill that's been developed usually the hard way around selling and selling in a way that's not sleazy or slimy as probably one of the most important skills you can possibly have when it comes to being successful in finding clients. It sze interesting to me that it's more about a conversation. It's more about relationships and conversations. It's not about buy my thing, but would you? You worked. You did. As you said. You do work in a selling job. That was a mix, you know, supposedly facilitation and sales. Would you trade that time for anything? Would you do it again if you knew you had to do it again?Charlotte Blair0:24:26 - 0:26:23I think if I knew I had to do it again, possibly I don't believe I would have to end it again. I certainly learned a lot from going through that process. So I recognise the learnings and the benefits of it gave. I do wonder, you know, they're possibly was a different path that I could have taken would have you know, not me. Here. Maybe, Maybe faster, mate. Maybe not, but I'm probably less of a look back. I'm more of a forward. You know that Was what it was What did I learn from it? Let's take it forward. But I think you raised such a good point on other days where we have to pick up the phone and cold call. My first sales job was selling paper for Cameron Prince of Cartridges and then, in the end, photocopiers. And we did have a list that they would have to pick up the phone and cold call. I don't know that we have to do that anymore. I often sharing workshops that I love networking. If I could go to a networking event every day, I would be in my element the most. People rather put needles in their eyes and go to a networking event. But I say to people, when you're thinking about selling, leverage your strength on High Woo. So I love meeting strangers. I love conversations with strangers meeting new people if that something somebody hates and go with a roof to a networking event. If you're more of a realtor, have them connect you and introduce you, but otherwise reach up to your network. Hey, can we? Can we have a cup of coffee or drop an email I think it's a shame, really. Linkedin has become more of that. I get inboxed all the time, trying to sell me something, and it's it turns me off a little bit weird. Well, I still have a fan of LinkedIn, but I'm probably a little bit more direct. Now. Do you want to connect with me? Are you immediately going to try and sell something to me in a sleazy way?Charlotte Blair0:26:25 - 0:27:10I would much rather post things that I think might be of relevance and used To the audience, those that are following me or connecting with me and they pick and choose, and then they will reach out when they want. I think that you need to actually build that credibility and reliability to have that trusted relationship first. But relationships, I think, is that the key to selling a new tap into what are your relationship-building skills, which is why strength is useful because it helps you identify well, what are my relationship-building skills? What are my executing? How do I go about influencing people on how do I go about thinking discover they discover your strengths? It will help you work out the way that you naturally build relationships.Trudy Rankin0:27:11 - 0:28:03Absolutely. And I noticed in the footer or the signature part of your emails that you list out your strength and you use different colours, and they make it, makes them pop out and stand out. And So obviously there's obviously because it's the focus of your business. And also there's something that you really are intentional about. Having those strengths there is interesting, and I'm sure it makes people ask questions. But can you just share with our listeners a little bit about how they might be able to use tools like cliffs and strength finder or ones like that to grow themselves in their business? You've already touched on a couple of things where you use your natural strengths to help you not manage, but to start and grow and build relationships. What other things could you tell us about using your strengths to help build your business?Charlotte Blair0:28:04 - 0:30:14Sure, so probably depends on the gold somebody is trying to achieve another outcome they're looking for. If it's how do I broaden my network, then how might you use your strength to say to network or reach out if I'm more of a, realtor I might prefer to have a one on one coffee with somebody. If I am higher individualisation, I probably would rather be tailoring my proposal or my submission or my conversation based on that particular person. If I am a high included, or I will probably want to make sure that I have a number of people included in the conversation and not have anybody left out. How might we do that? Leverage on Network If I am trying to tailor a proposal if I mentioned to somebody and I might use my individualisation, how might I also use some of my strategic thinking? Seems so. I find it really useful if when I am putting in a proposal together for somebody. If I know what the strengths are already, so if I know that they are more of a futuristic person or more somebody, behind the empathy of the harmony I container the language of my proposal. To, perhaps meet with how they think more inclined to be a thinker within your business, how being mindful and understanding, well, how does that help me? But also how might that hinder Me? I've worked with quite a few coaches that I get stuck in my own head. I'm so busy strategising or being analytical or thinking about the future. I'm maybe not so good at getting out there and doing the doing. So it's okay. Well, what of your talent things do you have? You can tap into what can help you do. Or who might you partner with? The same with no influence. I need to influence others. Which ones might I tap into it so I can't have this conversation with a couple of other coaches? I feel like strength is the answer to everything.Charlotte Blair0:30:17 - 0:31:37George is marvellous medicine. It'll fix anything on my big fat Greek Wedding. In the Windex scenario that fixes everything, I sometimes feel like that The key is knowing a friend how we think, feel and behave cares, knowing those How did they? How could they help us if we are intentionally investing in them and applying them? But also big mindful about when my when might they get in the way? So as I mentioned, I'm not great at attention to detail my activator of rushing into things. Can sometimes trip me up and get in my way. So knowing that helps me sometimes pause and okay, I maybe need to get somebody else involved in missile. Maybe I don't hit Send on this quite yet because it might not be received in the in the way that it wants. I feel like there's kind of, you know, lots of lots of examples, but I think the key is if you have already discovered your strength dig out your report again and really think about it. My list of things to do today, How might they help me with that? So how might my Ranger help? me how my futuristic help Me, but then also get into the end of the day and going, What did I achieve today? Which of my talent teams did I tap into? Because then that's how we look. at. Repeating success.Trudy Rankin0:31:39 - 0:31:55And not only that, but by writing those things down. It means that three months from now, when we're feeling a bit down about things, we can go back and look at that and see what actual progress you made progress and success is that we've had and we've made. I think that's really powerful.Charlotte Blair0:31:56 - 0:32:42It is because that's where it first came from, You know, it's an assessment that's been around for 20 odd years, but based on decades worth of research of Gallup studying success, studying managers, studying barristers, barristers, accountants, a wide range of roles of what? The success that, like the strength, is born from that. So if we're going to get a better return on investment by leveraging our strengths number one, you need to discover what they are in number two. You need to think about when have these helped you be successful in the past on? and How might you replicate that, but not ignoring when they might go rogue on new on, get in your way sometimes or be perceived by others.Trudy Rankin0:32:44 - 0:33:35I think that's just a really, really, really so true one of the things I'm just thinking out loud here is often do. When we talked what I talked to people and just sort of thoughts spring here and there and just thinking about strength. And first of all, in order for us to know what our strengths are, how important do you think it is for people to do an assessment like the gallop strength finder assessment or to rely on what other people say our strengths, or to just believe that we have strength without anybody telling us. So without having an assessment done, is there? Is it a mix? It isn't one thing over the other. How would you recommend that somebody go about discovering their strengths?Charlotte Blair0:33:37 - 0:35:25I think all three are useful. The last one that you mentioned of believing that we have strength. Yes, that might be a mindset shift for some people because again, we are throughout our lives. We're told to fix our weaknesses, our shortcomings rather than focus on them. strengths So you know, for some of us a mindset shift. Even when we think about when we were kids and you brought your report card home, what typically get focused on that still couldn't happen in our household today. I think the second one is hearing what other people believe. Your strengths are. Yes, that is also useful. I work in a live shift programme. At the moment we're talking about asking for feedback on one other thing that I really love. Asking for feedback is what I call the 3 to 1. So what are three words that you might use to describe what a two strengths that you think I bring to the team of the business. And what's one thing that I could do differently that would have an impact and when you start to see common patterns? If I was to send that out to 10 different people, I would probably start to see common patterns in terms of the words that people might use to describe it. By being a passionate, energetic, yes, awful kind,and I could probably know what I know about. My sensei could probably link those back and going, Oh yeah, that's my positivity. Or that's my whoo or what? Or whatever I do believe,and the Same Story with the strength, you know, if you hear a number of people say, Well, I think your determination is strength That's useful to hear for Me during the Clifton Strength assessment is probably the game-changer because it puts a language behind that it. I have never had somebody take the assessment, read their report there. Well, that's rubbish.Charlotte Blair0:35:26 - 0:37:00I don't agree with any of that because it's 177 pairing questions that you are asking from your own point of reference, it typically comes up pretty accurate. What I love is that it's very personalised to you. It's not a generic or you and I could be any NFP. It is very personalised to you. In fact, the chances of you having the same top five talent names from the ballot. 15 cents assessment. As somebody else. Just the top five is one and 33 million. So it really goes to show how unique we are. Everybody's report is very personalised. There are no two people home. Lerner has exactly the same, You know, a paragraph written out there. So the fact that it is so personalised I always recommend people to discover their strengths to me is the most cost-effective assessment tool out there on the market on. and Don't get kicked back on if somebody else takes it. I'm just such a firm believer in it. But when they read their report and they go through the reporting, they highlight the words and phrases that resonate with them. So how do we then tap into that knowledge of how we think, feel and behave to use it and replicate the success. I think all three are important to answer your question, but I would strongly recommend that they take the distance. Strengths, assessment, Discovery. There are lots of other strength assessments out there that are great as well. Naturally, I am biased towards the Clifton strength because I'm a gala for a good stick coach.Trudy Rankin0:37:01 - 0:37:54Yeah, and it is. It is a good assessment. I've done it myself way. Do when we're running our online business lift off programme, we do get our participants to do that. We do the top five of the top five strength, so it is really, really, really useful. Look, I do have one more quick question to ask you, and I'll just preface it by saying it's of personal interest to me. If you don't want to answer it, it's fine. We can get it out of the segment. But you mentioned at the beginning that you have dyslexia and I have family members who have dyslexia. And of course, it's like saying I'm left handed right. Having it was like, you know, what does that mean? It means a whole bunch of different things to a whole bunch of different people. My question to you is, Is that well, is there anything about your way of experiencing dyslexia? That is a strength,Charlotte Blair0:37:56 - 0:39:57very happy to answer that. So I am dyslexic, as are my two teenage boys, both of them in very different ways. My dyslexia is probably Maura around spelling. Is that a strength? I think I I think what I just learned Teo navigate round it and have to be a little bit more creative with the worst. You Sometimes even when you're typing something out and Spellcheck doesn't even understand what you're trying to say, you've just got to come up with another word for it to go. No, clearly not right. It doesn't understand what I'm trying. Teo. You've got to be creative. I don't believe that. I've let it get in my way. I've been pretty explicit about it. Even when I'm facilitating workshops and I'm writing up flip chart, I will normally start off by saying sorry, but left seven up on this chart because I might spell something, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I'm very comfortable and people say that in fact, sometimes when I'm sending out a male chimp or communication or even something face because sometimes say, I love partnering with others. Please point out if I've made an error because I appreciate the people that point to matter. I don't feel about it. My Children, I'd try and help them set from a strength lends as. Well, you know, the eldest one is a little bit like me. It's more spelling the other one's great at spelling. His is more to do with the cut of your memory recall. He has autism as well and attention deficit. So every label that we would like to through it. People are given that it's hereditary. It wouldn't surprise May came from me. But again, that's why this focus on strength is pretty important of Let's celebrate what you do, do well and navigate the challenges that you have again. We want to be stars. We want sharp, pointy bits to us.Charlotte Blair0:39:58 - 0:40:03We cannot be a well rounded individual or he can, but it's going to be pretty exhausting trying to achieve.Trudy Rankin0:40:04 - 0:41:10I just think that I just I just find that are you really, really informative and useful answer, Because just because we do put labels on people because it's a convenient way of trying to understand people without having to put out too much effort. And they're so wrong. If that's one thing I've learned from working with all of our obl community and all participants and things like that is that everybody just so different. Everybody has got so many different strengths. And why would we focus on things that aren't our strength? It doesn't make sense. We should be focusing on your strengths. Look, that's been really, really, really lovely speaking with you and just listening to the wisdom that you have to share. Could you maybe just close off with my last question? And that is there something is the one thing that we haven't talked about yet that you think people who are on an online business jury would benefit from when it comes to strength? It's not strengths. Maybe something else.Charlotte Blair0:41:11 - 0:42:48Yeah, well, there's probably more than one thing, but they are. They are linked. First one, I would say yes. Say, find yourself a coach. There is a coaching directory out there. There are Gallup had their own coaching directory. There are some coaches that I love this. I do it for free. And those other coaches that you pay thie other one is you have to invest in these things. Like I could say, I want to lose weight on, get fit. It's not gonna happen just thinking about going to the gym or going for a walk. You actually have to get out and do it. So even if you've discovered your strength, you have to invest in them. You know the equation is you take that talent of how we naturally think, feel and behave on only by investing it as in adding knowledge, skill and experience to it. Does it become a strength when we can achieve that Near perfect? Before there are so many people that just discovered that strength, but they don't invest in them, so, therefore, they don't get the return on investment. So when I say invested them, maybe learn about them and Gallup has endless resources out there in terms of podcasts articles. They have six seasons worth of what we call seem Thursday that you can listen to and dive into each of you. I've just discovered I'm high Lerner. How might I learn about how to use it. So there is how much data and resource out there so that they're kind of linked together. But it's just discovering what your sense is truly invested in them and reflect back on them. If you want it to make a difference. So many people just do the Oh, yes, I took the assessment. Yes, that sounds like me and it gets put in a drawer and never looked at again.Trudy Rankin0:42:49 - 0:43:17I have to say, I have to say that I've been guilty of that in the past. And but, you know, over time you start to realise, Well, what was the point of doing that sort of the label Don't need labels. You need actual skills that you can use. So I love what you said about investing in yourself and investing in your ability to maximise the benefits you get from a strength in and of themselves, the strength or just strength. They don't give you outcomes unless you use them and you build them up.Charlotte Blair0:43:17 - 0:43:32Roger Federer. He don't you know hey has continually work and invest in his in his skill. If you just give up on top of my game now, I could just sit back and don't do anything about it. You know what's going to happen. He's going to fall, fall down the tableCharlotte Blair0:43:33 - 0:43:36way.Charlotte Blair0:43:36 - 0:43:40Have to continually invested them, To. Keep stronger. Make them stronger.Trudy Rankin0:43:41 - 0:43:49Absolutely, for sure. So if people were interested in so working with you or just getting in touch with you, where would they find you?Speaker 10:43:50 - 0:44:35I would say the best place to find me would be on Linkedin if they are another coach than on Facebook under just. Charlotte Blair Thereon, I have the same profile picture for both. It's a now, probably with a very kind of the corporate-looking face of this string of pearls on. Then there are two websites that they could visit. For coaches. It's .au for Corporates in teams and managers and individuals, and it's . So. But people could always find me on Linkedin, and I am an open connector. I love connecting with people and being high woo strangers are just friends. I haven't met yet.Trudy Rankin0:44:36 - 0:44:41Oh, that's so fantastic. Charlotte, thank you so much for being on the podcast. It was really, really, really interesting.Charlotte Blair0:44:42 - 0:44:46Welcome to pleasure. Joining and sharing. So thank you for asking me ................
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