I'm writing a blog post every single day in the month of May! If you are interested, you can find more about it here. I'm a little behind, but in an attempt to get caught up, I thought I'd merge day #2 (something I am good at) and #3 (something that makes me uncomfortable) together since they oddly go together for me. I jumped to the fourth prompt before publishing this post but anyhoo, I should be caught up now! Thanks for bearing with me! :)
photo credit
I love personality tests. There are some things in life that get me SUPER excited, and oddly enough, getting surveyed about my passions and weakness only to discover more about myself is just incredibly fascinating to me! Back in our early dating days, Joshua and I went to an incredible church in San Diego called "Flood." It was a non-denominational church that had a strong emphasis on creativity-- developing our unique characteristics for God's glory and using them to our full potential to strengthen the church body and share the love of Christ. I loved Sunday night worship, where they would bring an artist on stage to paint while the music played. Or the nights where they would have several "stations" around the building where you could go to during worship to write out your thoughts on paper and just sit in a quiet room with candles or paint or sketch or just pray by yourself. There were so many creative people in our church and it never ceased to amaze me to see all of the talents God had given to each person in our church family.
During one special weekend, our church hosted a conference based on the book "Now Discover Your Strengths." Now if you've never heard of this book, you need to read it pronto. All of us were quizzed (also quizzed on the Myer-Briggs personality traits) and put into groups based on our unique personality traits. We spent the weekend diving into how we could eventually use our unique giftings-- for both work and serving in church-- for God's glory. I learned SO much about myself that weekend. I remember thinking, "Oh my gosh! This is what makes me tick! This is what makes me energized! This is what makes me happy!" There I was on paper. It was like I had finally figured out who I was-- all the pieces of me that make me unique and all my own.
And that weekend I learned that I love harmony. I love order, structure, peace and lack of conflict in my life. Out of all of the "themes," a theme of "harmony" was my most strong. Next in order were the following (I wrote about this in late 2011 here):
My strengths, in order:
Harmony: People strong in the Harmony theme look for consensus. They don't enjoy conflict; rather, they seek areas of agreement.
Consistency: People strong in the Consistency theme are keenly aware of the need to treat people the same. They try to treat everyone in the world fairly by setting up clear rules and adhering to them.
Achiever: People strong in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.
Focus: People strong in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through, and make the corrections necessary to stay on track. They prioritize, then act.
Futuristic: People strong in the Futuristic theme are inspired by the future and what could be. They inspire others with their visions of the future.
And my Myer Briggs personality traits:
ESFJ
photo credit
I love personality tests. There are some things in life that get me SUPER excited, and oddly enough, getting surveyed about my passions and weakness only to discover more about myself is just incredibly fascinating to me! Back in our early dating days, Joshua and I went to an incredible church in San Diego called "Flood." It was a non-denominational church that had a strong emphasis on creativity-- developing our unique characteristics for God's glory and using them to our full potential to strengthen the church body and share the love of Christ. I loved Sunday night worship, where they would bring an artist on stage to paint while the music played. Or the nights where they would have several "stations" around the building where you could go to during worship to write out your thoughts on paper and just sit in a quiet room with candles or paint or sketch or just pray by yourself. There were so many creative people in our church and it never ceased to amaze me to see all of the talents God had given to each person in our church family.
During one special weekend, our church hosted a conference based on the book "Now Discover Your Strengths." Now if you've never heard of this book, you need to read it pronto. All of us were quizzed (also quizzed on the Myer-Briggs personality traits) and put into groups based on our unique personality traits. We spent the weekend diving into how we could eventually use our unique giftings-- for both work and serving in church-- for God's glory. I learned SO much about myself that weekend. I remember thinking, "Oh my gosh! This is what makes me tick! This is what makes me energized! This is what makes me happy!" There I was on paper. It was like I had finally figured out who I was-- all the pieces of me that make me unique and all my own.
And that weekend I learned that I love harmony. I love order, structure, peace and lack of conflict in my life. Out of all of the "themes," a theme of "harmony" was my most strong. Next in order were the following (I wrote about this in late 2011 here):
My strengths, in order:
Harmony: People strong in the Harmony theme look for consensus. They don't enjoy conflict; rather, they seek areas of agreement.
Consistency: People strong in the Consistency theme are keenly aware of the need to treat people the same. They try to treat everyone in the world fairly by setting up clear rules and adhering to them.
Achiever: People strong in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.
Focus: People strong in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through, and make the corrections necessary to stay on track. They prioritize, then act.
Futuristic: People strong in the Futuristic theme are inspired by the future and what could be. They inspire others with their visions of the future.
And my Myer Briggs personality traits:
ESFJ
E= Extroverted
S= Sensing
F= Feeling
F= Feeling
J= Judgment
ESFJ Personality
Warmhearted, conscientious, and cooperative. Want harmony in their environment, work with determination to establish it. Like to work with others to complete tasks accurately and on time. Loyal, follow through even in small matters. Notice what others need in their day-by-day lives and try to provide it. Want to be appreciated for who they are and for what they contribute.
All of this, this is so "me." It was like opening a door into my heart when I discovered this all. That being said, something I am really good at and could identity within myself and yet didn't know just "what" it was, is keeping the peace. Sometimes I struggle with wondering if it comes across occasionally as "fake," as that is the very last thing I would ever want to be perceived as. In a room full of people, I have a way of knowing who is comfortable, and who is not, and can make that uncomfortable person feel welcomed. I've always heard it over the years, "You made me feel comfortable." I believe it is one of my spiritual gifts-- the gift of hospitality, of warmth, of the ability to see and read this in others. I can always tell when a conversation is steering down an uncomfortable road and have a knack of turning it around so we don't go into "that" territory. The other part of all this... is what is it that makes me uncomfortable? There is nothing more that makes me squirm than when people start debating with one another. Especially amongst people I love. I can not watch debates on the news and I can not sit in a book club and argue back and forth about various topics. I respect people that can. It is just not my gifting. I have, however, become more vocal over the last couple of years about standing up for what I believe in so I am not passive all together. I just have a hard time watching people start to get mean spirited about things that don't seem to build and encourage one another up. It makes me clam up. I love learning to focus on our strengths rather than our weaknesses! Not only is it so positive, but it helps us learn where to put our time and efforts (in my case, working with babies in nursery, being a greeter at church, organizing events, etc).
What is something you're good at?
What is something that makes you uncomfortable?
