This thing doesn’t ask us to get specific about what we like and dislike when it comes to our current jobs, but “what do you like to do? What do you dislike? Do you remember the last time you felt that feeling of deep satisfaction after creating, building, completing something? What was it about? What skills do you need to do the things you like? These skills are your strengths; they stem from your interests.” Let me try each of these in turn.
What do I like to do? Read, obviously. Write, not as much but it is fun. And helping others learn. I suppose I can throw in things like bike riding and travel, but those aren’t necessarily central to my career. Ok, I guess the travel thing is.
What do I dislike? Frustration, which I suppose is an odd thing to dislike when you’re helping others learn. However, that dislike has forced me to become more able to deal with frustration in general.
The last time I felt deep satisfaction? That would be just a few days ago when I received an e-mail from a soon-to-be library student who attended one of my presentations at Internet Librarian and she took the time to track me down online, and send me an e-mail letting me know how much that presentation meant to her. (Thank you!) Sometimes it’s hard to judge your impact and it’s words like those that allow you to know you’re having an impact.
What skills do I need to pull all this off. First a willingness to speak in front of a group, no matter how small or large. Second, the ability to deal with frustration. Third, the ability to try, fail, and try again. (These don’t necessarily apply to the reading bit, but they most definitely apply to writing and helping others to learn.)
So, I guess those are my strengths and the next time I apply for a job (hopefully not any time soon) I’ll be sure to focus on those.
