Strengths Journal 1_Strengths Based Questions_2023
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STRENGTHS JOURNAL 1
Understanding Key Concepts & Applying the Concepts
Important Note: Before completing Strengths Journal 1, make sure you have read and studied ALL of the content in Module 4 on Canvas. In the module for this week, we have focused on the character strength of curiosity and the transformational power of questions. The strengths journals provide an opportunity for you to reflect upon and write about what you are learning and experiencing in this class. This process deepens your learning and helps me assess, through what you have written, the level of your understanding of each concept.
You can type your responses directly into this document. Feel free to use a different type or color of font to distinguish your own answers from the prompts. Make sure the font type, size, and color you use are readable.
Application: The Strengths-Based Question Approach
Now you are going to be given an opportunity to apply strengths-based, solution-focused thinking to a chronically unresolved issue or problem in your life. You are going to a take a deep dive into your unresolved issue or problem, using the strengths-based questioning approach you’ve just learned about in this module. You will answer 18 questions below, framed within the strengths-based categories you’ve learned this week, about your dilemma.
Note:
I challenge you to be as open-minded and honest as possible as you look at your unresolved issue or problem in an entirely new way. It is likely that you will use several of these questions as you deal with new challenges in the future.
DIRECTIONS: To complete the questions below, you need to choose an issue or problem in your own life that has kept you stuck for some time, and for which you have yet to find a solution. Choose a situation/problem that is of serious significance to you,
about which you could benefit from a new way of thinking, and one that you are comfortable sharing. I am the only one who will read your journals.) Once you have decided which issue you will be focusing on, you can begin working through
the questions below. Read the description of each question category, then answer the numbered questions in order. Be specific, detailed, and reflective as you write.
Clarifying the Problem Questions:
Although these questions aren’t inherently strengths-based/solution-focused, they can precede solution-focused questions and form the basis of the strengths-based process. The key is to not stay in the problem for too long. Answer each question below to clarify the problem you are dealing with:
1.
Briefly describe the problem. How big is the problem?
I wouldn’t necessarily call this a “problem” but a situation that I am going to be in. I am having a baby in less than two weeks and I will be a first time mom while also trying to get my bachelor’s degree. I would say this situation is going to be the biggest change to my life I will ever experience.
2.
Main challenge(s) of the situation?
The main challenges will be navigating being a new first time mom and all of the hurdles that may come with that along with attending college full time again starting in the fall (I am part time for this spring semester).
Desired Future Questions: These questions begin to shift the focus from problem to solution. The focus of these questions is on where to go from here rather than why the problem developed in the first place. The answers to these questions are typically practical and realistic. Answer the questions below to help you start shifting from the problem-
mentality to a solution-mentality:
3.
How would you like things to be instead? I wouldn’t change the fact that I am having a baby because I’ve always wanted to be a mother. However, I wish the program that I’m in for school was online instead. The program requires me to be in person 5 days a week for 4ish hours per day. 4.
What do you hope to see in the future?
I hope to see myself actually returning back to school in the fall and I hope that I have a good plan in place for
myself and my baby. Miracle Questions: Miracle questions challenge you to take a radically different approach to future possibilities. These questions are different than “desired future” questions because they are not necessarily practical and realistic. Miracle questions CAN, however, turbo-charge the dialogue about a desired future.
Set-up for these questions:
Imagine a miracle has occurred overnight. This problem has vanished and everything you wanted has come true. As you envision that this miracle has occurred, answer the questions below: 5.
How do you feel? What is your mood like?
I feel ecstatic that I will be able to complete my entire program from home so I can care for my baby full time. 6.
What are some of the first things you do?
I would probably celebrate in some way like a family dinner or a nice outing. 7.
What is possible for you to achieve now?
I will be able to stay home and bond and care for my baby AND get my bachelor’s degree from home as well.
Scaling Questions:
Scaling questions can be used in any conversation. They are effective at identifying differences and variations in situations, perceptions, or problems. Though this set of questions is following the “miracle questions,” you are actually reverting back to thinking about your current problem/situation as it is now:
8.
On a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being “not serious” and 10 being “very serious”), how serious is the problem?
I think I would put this at a 6. 9.
Based on the number you just gave about the seriousness of the problem, what would need to happen for that number to be lower?
I think a lot of it is anxiety about my baby getting sick or neglected in the care of someone else such as a daycare center. Once I get over that anxiety, I’m sure that number will go lower. I feel like it will also be really hard to leave my baby to go back to school but this will be something that I have to do sooner or later. Good Experiences Questions: Questions about good experiences are an essential part of the strengths-based, solution-
focused process. As you recognize past successes you have had, you are able to envision ways to recreate success in the future.
10.
Think of a situation (that is similar in some way, if possible) where you experienced success. Briefly describe it.
There is nothing that I can compare this to as this is a relatively specific scenario and not everyone can relate
to. In terms of anxiety, I can think of a situation where I thought something would be a lot worse than it actually was. Im in the elementary education program and I had to do field work. I was incredibly nervous about being in a classroom with 5
th
graders and I thought all bad things. However, nothing that I thought would happen did happen. The experience was actually really nice, and I enjoyed my time there. 11.
When thinking about the past success that you just described, what did you do that worked well? What strengths were you using?
Once I was actually in the classroom, I tried to be a lot more optimistic and not allow myself to feel the anxiety. I gave myself little mental talks and told myself that everything was going to be okay. 12.
What factors/behaviors/strengths can you use from that experience in your current problem/situation?
I can tell myself that just like most things this situation I am going to encounter will not be as bad as I think it will be. By giving myself those pep talks I was able to make myself feel better about the situation. Proflection Questions: Proflection questions are the opposite of reflection
questions—instead of looking back, you are looking forward to the emerging future. These questions require a reliance on intuition and your inner wisdom as you try to determine what the future wants you to do.
13.
What does the future call you to do?
I know that the future will want me to put my baby first and to listen to my intuition. 14.
What needs to change for a “future perfect” to emerge? I think to get a better grip on my anxiety could help a lot. However, I think its normal for a lot of first time moms to be anxious about these things. 15.
What do you need to stop doing? Start doing?
I need to find a good reputable day care to take my baby to when the time comes. I can ask family to watch her on the days that they can as well. Decisions/Actions Questions: This is the last set of questions! Now that you’ve looked at your problem/situation through a strengths-based, solution-focused lens, it’s time to consider what actions you can take.
16.
What is the next step?
The next step is going to be to just being bonding with the baby. Luckily I still get the entire summer to spend
with her so until the fall I will enjoy my time with her and slowly begin looking into highly rated daycare options. 17.
What decisions need to be made?
The first decision will be if I even want to return back to school or if I should stay home for a longer period of
time (luckily this is an option for me). If I do decide to go back to school in the fall I will need to get a list of daycares and see which option is best for us. 18.
What is the smallest step you can that would make a big difference?
I could first see who in my family will be able to watch her. Luckily I already know my boyfriend (baby’s father) is off of work Tuesdays and Wednesdays so he will have her those two days however the remaining three days I will need to find childcare. Reflection: The Strengths-Based Question Approach
Congratulations, you’ve completed the strengths-based approach to resolving your issue/problem! Now that you’ve completed the process, it’s time to reflect on what you’ve learned.
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1.
Reflect on the strengths-based questions you just completed. What are your thoughts about the approach? Did
you like the process? Did you gain any new insights? Share your overall impressions of the process thoughtfully and in detail. I actually really enjoyed this approach and I think it would be beneficial to use in the future. It really helps me
to focus on one thing at a time and come up with a new way of looking at a situation/problem. It causes the anxiety of the situation to lessen. 2.
This class is focused on using positive practices to improve leadership of the self and of others. How could the implementation of a strengths-based approach in your life improve your leadership of yourself? How could this approach improve your ability to work well within a team and/or lead others?
I think this could help improve the leadership of myself by creating a better plan/ course of action for any task
or situation at hand. It can also improve my ability to work well within a team because I would be a lot more clear minded and have specific steps in my head to then communicate to my team.