Being able to use your strengths is one of the Five Ways to Happiness at Work. When people are trusted to use their judgement, contribute their ideas, and work in ways that suit them, they're more likely to do their best work.

Take some time to reflect on how often you're able to use your strengths at work. What tasks do you find draining, and which energize you and lift your mood or give you the greatest sense of achievement? Are there opportunities to make better use of them?

Be yourself

Work doesn't require us to leave our personalities at the door.

We all have different “selves” – the person we are with friends, family, colleagues, in groups and even when we’re on our own. Bringing your authentic work self to work helps build stronger relationships with colleagues, encourages trust, and allows others to understand how you work best. Likewise, taking the time to get to know your colleagues beyond their job titles helps create a more supportive and collaborative team.

Ask for support

Even when we're working in areas of strength, we all need support from time to time.

Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it and look for opportunities to support your colleagues in return. Teams perform best when people feel comfortable sharing challenges as well as successes.

Find your flow

We all work best under different conditions.

Think about when you feel most focused, energized, and productive. It might be at a particular time of day, in a quiet environment, or when working on certain types of tasks. Understanding what helps you do your best work allows you to create more opportunities to work in ways that suit your strengths.

It's equally valuable to understand how your colleagues work best so you can support each other more effectively.

Play to your strengths

Whenever possible, look for opportunities to spend more time using the skills and activities that energize you.

Likewise, encourage your team to make the most of each person's strengths. Not everyone has to contribute in exactly the same way. Recognizing who enjoys different types of work and where people naturally excel can help create a stronger, more balanced team.

Keep building on your strengths

Using your strengths doesn't mean avoiding challenges or only doing tasks that come easily to you.

Instead, it means recognizing what you do well, building on those strengths over time, and finding opportunities to apply them in new ways.

Take time to reflect on your Strengths score each quarter. Consider where you're already making good use of your strengths, and where small changes could help you, and your team work more confidently and effectively.