CPD: How to find and focus on your strengths

Whether it’s a knack for building rapport with students, a talent for organising comprehensive college fairs or an aptitude for demystifying the complexities of financial aid, recognising your own strengths allows counsellors to tailor CPD activities accordingly.

Self-assessment tools and feedback from colleagues and students can help counsellors identify their strengths and areas for development.

Focusing on strengths does not mean neglecting areas for improvement, but rather integrating personal growth into the CPD journey. For example, a counsellor with strong interpersonal skills could benefit from deepening their understanding of data analysis to better track student outcomes and refine advising strategies.

Self-assessment tools

StrengthsFinder

Now known as CliftonStrengths, this assessment helps individuals discover their top five strengths from a list of 34 themes. Counsellors can use this tool to understand their dominant talents and how these can be applied to improving their counselling practices, from student interactions to programme development.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

This personality assessment provides insights into how people perceive the world and make decisions. Counsellors can use MBTI to better understand their communication styles, how they typically interact with students and parents, and how they can best make use of their personality type in counselling sessions.

DiSC profile

The DiSC assessment helps people understand their behaviour in various contexts. For counsellors, understanding their DiSC profile enables them to enhance their interpersonal skills, adapt their counselling approach to match the needs of different students, and improve their teamwork with colleagues.

360-degree feedback

This method involves collecting feedback from a variety of sources, such as colleagues, supervisors and even students. For counsellors, 360-degree feedback can provide a comprehensive view of their performance, highlighting areas of strength and opportunities for growth.

Emotional intelligence (EQ) assessments

Tools such as the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) measure an individual’s emotional intelligence. High EQ is crucial for counsellors because it enhances their ability to connect with students, understand their emotional needs and provide effective guidance.

Personalising the role to suit your strengths

The unique environment of international schools offers counsellors the flexibility to customise their role to maximise their strengths.

A counsellor with a passion for technology might introduce innovative digital tools for college planning and communication. Similarly, those with a strong research background might spearhead initiatives to compile comprehensive guides on global university admissions requirements.

Collaborating with colleagues from different departments can also help you enhance or complement your own strengths, thus enriching the counselling programme. For example, working closely with the language arts department to develop workshops on writing college essays allows counsellors to draw on their colleagues’ expertise while focusing on their own strength in guiding the content strategy.