QUESTION: How Many Words Is This Picture Worth???
ANSWER: At least 1000!
This is the image that changed my life.
We were at our CliftonStrengths coaching accreditation workshop. After nearly two decades working as a health professional I knew that working with people from a positive angle is a sure path to creating a therapeutic relationship. It’s why I was drawn to the Gallup model for our coaching business. The Gallup CliftonStrengths catch-phrase says it all.
What If We Studied What Is Right With People Versus What Is Wrong With People?
The workshop was everything I’d hoped for and a little bit more. I had years of coaching study and experience under my belt by that stage, a lifetime of reading and writing and loving language as well. Words were ‘my thing’. I wasn’t looking for ‘how to’ coach. I was looking to understand this model and make it mine.
Strengths give attributes and behaviours a name. When you have named something, it’s yours to examine and observe and use. When you name your strengths, they’re tools for you to use for the rest of your life.
I’d pored over my Top 34 Report with glee. Every page outlined the things I naturally lean towards, words (obviously) and people. I was surprised to find ‘communication’ low on my list then nodded when I understood that how I come to expressing myself can be explained by learning, crafting messages and collating knowledge. Aha! Recognising that across the world it’s unlikely I’ll come across someone with exactly the same top 5 strengths in exactly the same order as me. Did you know there’s currently a 1 in 34 million chance of that happening???
Seeing Yourself Clearly
As we worked our way through our training I saw the myriad ways these different strengths profiles express themselves in the fellow coaches in the room. The listeners, the observers, the talkers, the questioners, we all nodded in recognistion as elements of our profiles fell into place and made sense.
At my table on this fateful day was a fellow coach whose skills stretched across a wide set of interests including technology. In the midst of a session delving into the collation of attributes that contribute to the expansive data base that underpins the CliftonStrengths report, he leaned over quietly and held out his phone.
“Here, this is how AI translates your talents into an image.”
How It Took My Breath Away
That picture can still make me catch my breath when I glance at it above my desk. That AI image that perfectly captures my inner world. This, right in front of me, is everything that matters to me – my endless love of knowledge, books depicting my drive to collate information, my insatiable need to learn more.
Before I named them, I knew these traits existed—but they felt blurry, like an out-of-focus photo. Once I had the names, they clicked into place. One I had the image I was seeing a high-resolution image of myself for the first time.
I wonder what that image tells you about me?
’Oh! That’s it! That’s me!’
He handed over an image generated using words that resonated with my talents. Uniquely, perfectly, me. I stared at it in wonder and, unexpectedly, with love. This is me, I thought, and I’m beautiful.Melinda Charlesworth (Lead With Love)
The Power Of An Image (and a name…)
There’s a reason the phrase “a picture is worth a thousand words” endures. Images engage our emotions instantly, making ideas tangible and memorable. The same is true for naming our strengths. When you identify and name what makes you uniquely powerful, you create a mental image of your potential—something vivid, actionable, and real.
Creating the image that is YOU is a key part of our What’s Right With You package. It’s certainly my favourite part. I’d love to be there with you when we generate the picture that captures at least 1000 words of you and see the recognition, and self-acceptance, on your face.
Book your free catch up with Melinda and see if you’re ready to see yourself and love what you see.
