One cannot escape from pain, fear, and suffering. No cure can enable individuals to avoid such conditions entirely. However, the virtue of resilience allows you to get through from pain to wisdom, suffering to strength, and fear to courage (Greitens, 2015). I have been working since I was fourteen years old, and at the age of seventeen, I joined the military. I am married to a lovely wife, and God has blessed us with two beautiful daughters. Without the virtue of resilience, I would not be the person I am today. Working in the military has put me in life-threatening situations that could affect one’s state of mind, but I have overcome every situation with courage, strength, and resilience. Most of my past and current jobs are field technician positions, which improve my skills to plan and work outdoor. I am currently in the Hawaii Army National Guard, and I am on my third tour overseas. A self-assessment exercise on communication style will help me to recognize my strengths and weaknesses, which will assist me to improve my communication skills overall.
Exploring strengths is central to every aspect of life. Studies have shown that only one-third of people have any meaningful understanding of their powers (Linley, 2008). The law of the Niche states, “All players have a place where they add the most value” (Maxwell, 2013, p. 26). That place is our strength zone. Once we pay attention to our strengths and acknowledge that they exist, we can take giant strides forward and be aware of the inherent negativity bias that can get in the way of us recognizing them (Linley, 2008). Out of the four communication styles (which were action, process, idea, and people), the assessment showed that my strongest was the ‘process’ style in which I scored 18 points. My second best was the ‘people’ style, which entails communication, relationships, and teamwork. Through the assessment, I was able to learn my weakest areas were ‘action’ and ‘idea’ styles in which I scored only 11 points.
The results of this assessment were relevant and appropriate. Training in the military gave me a sense of discipline to keep my work organized at all times, hence explaining to score the highest on the process style of communication. My belief in teamwork has led me to have a great relationship with my coworkers; that is why I scored second-highest on the people style. However, I plan to improve my action and idea styles of communication by taking more initiatives to achieve my goals. I will also pay more attention to my coworkers and leaders who have problem-solving strengths to ensure I gain more knowledge from them. I will also be more open to new ideas and approaches to improve my idea style of communication. Overall, I plan to be more aware of my weaknesses.
The assessment has given me more insights into myself. I will use this information to improve my human relations by listening to ideas from my workmates and be more open-minded to implement them when completing a task. In line with the law of the Niche, everyone benefits when the right person works in the right place. When put in a leadership position, I will be more aware of people as well as my strengths and weaknesses. I will learn to be patient and attentive. I will use my strong points to keep the team members engaged, motivated, and satisfied.
References
- Greitens, E. (2015). Resilience: hard-won wisdom for living a better life. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
- Linley, P.A. (2008). Average to A+: Realising strengths in yourself and others. United Kingdom, UK: CAPP Press.
- John C Maxwell (2013). The 17 indisputable laws of teamwork: Embrace them and empower your team. Dallas: HarperCollins Leadership.
