My personal mission is to “teach, organize, and host people in transition, so that they grow in faith and hope, they control their own decisions and resources, and they use their gifts and talents.” In my work, I teach and organize, I explore and travel, and I write and inspire.
These are my five signature “Talent Themes” as identified by the official Gallup Clifton StrengthsFinder:
Learner: Great desire to learn and to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites me. Many experiences and activities described throughout my profile site illustrate the variety of my professional learning experiences.
Focus: Take a direction, follow through, and make the corrections necessary to stay on track. I prioritize (based on my mission statement) and then I take action. My teaching, writing, service, and other assignments illustrate that I focus on projects related to my mission statement.
Maximizer: Focuses on strengths as a way to stimulate personal and group excellence. Instead of fixing weak links, I seek to transform something strong into something superb. This is illustrated by work in which I lead team members in achieving team goals and mentor students, for example in undergraduate research.
Connectedness: Faith in the links between all things. I believe there are few coincidences and that almost every event has a reason. I am very interested in international connections, especially with teacher educators in Russia and Azerbaijan.
Input: Seeks to know more. I like to collect and archive all kinds of information. This very profile web site is just one example! One of my major hobbies involves family history and scrapbooking. Another is collecting antiques and memorabilia.
Rath, Tom. 2007. StrengthsFinder 2.0. New York: Gallup Press.