Strengths Paper and Changing Behavior Worksheet

MUST BE ORIGINAL WORK

Using your results, write a 350- to 700-word paper covering the following points:

What were your five highest strengths?

Describe how these strengths are expressed in your daily life. Are there any you do not exercise regularly?

If your highest strengths are not used regularly in your work or school life, discuss changes you could make to remedy this.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

HERE ARE MY RESULTS 1-24

YOUR TOP CHARACTER STRENGTH IS

FAIRNESS

1: Fairness

Treating all people the same according to notions of fairness and justice; not letting

feelings bias decisions about others; giving everyone a fair chance.

2: Gratitude

Being aware of and thankful for the good things that happen; taking time to express

thanks.

3: Humility

Letting one's accomplishments speak for themselves; not regarding oneself as more

special than one is.

4: Perseverance

Finishing what one starts; persevering in a course of action in spite of obstacles;

“getting it out the door”; taking pleasure in completing tasks.

5: Appreciation of Beauty & Excellence

Noticing and appreciating beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in various

domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.

6: Bravery

Not shrinking from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain; speaking up for what’s right

even if there’s opposition; acting on convictions even if unpopular; includes physical

bravery but is not limited to it.

7: Honesty

Speaking the truth but more broadly presenting oneself in a genuine way and acting in

a sincere way; being without pretense; taking responsibility for one's feelings and

actions.

8: Hope

Expecting the best in the future and working to achieve it; believing that a good future

is something that can be brought about.

9: Humor

Liking to laugh and tease; bringing smiles to other people; seeing the light side;

making (not necessarily telling) jokes.

10: Kindness

Doing favors and good deeds for others; helping them; taking care of them.

11: Spirituality

Having coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe;

knowing where one fits within the larger scheme; having beliefs about the meaning of

life that shape conduct and provide comfort.

12: Judgment

Thinking things through and examining them from all sides; not jumping to

conclusions; being able to change one's mind in light of evidence; weighing all

evidence fairly.

13: Forgiveness

Forgiving those who have done wrong; accepting others’ shortcomings; giving people

a second chance; not being vengeful.

14: Zest

Approaching life with excitement and energy; not doing things halfway or

halfheartedly; living life as an adventure; feeling alive and activated.

15: Love

Valuing close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing & caring are

reciprocated; being close to people.

16: Prudence

Being careful about one's choices; not taking undue risks; not saying or doing things

that might later be regretted.

17: Curiosity

Taking an interest in ongoing experience for its own sake; finding subjects and topics

fascinating; exploring and discovering.

18: Leadership

Encouraging a group of which one is a member to get things done and at the same

time maintain good relations within the group; organizing group activities and seeing

that they happen.

19: Love of learning

Mastering new skills, topics, and bodies of knowledge, whether on one's own or

formally; related to the strength of curiosity but goes beyond it to describe the

tendency to add systematically to what one knows.

20: Teamwork

Working well as a member of a group or team; being loyal to the group; doing one's

share.

21: Creativity

Thinking of novel and productive ways to conceptualize and do things; includes

artistic achievement but is not limited to it.

22: Perspective

Being able to provide wise counsel to others; having ways of looking at the world that

make sense to oneself/others.

23: Social intelligence

Being aware of the motives/feelings of others and oneself; knowing what to do to fit

into different social situations; knowing what makes other people tick.

24: Self-Regulation

Regulating what one feels and does; being disciplined; controlling one's appetites and

emotions.

PART 2      

Changing a Behavior Worksheet

Choose a goal you want to achieve or a behavior you want to change. For example, it could be a specific behavior, such as an eating habit, managing anger, minimizing procrastination, improving a skill, or how you discipline your children. Be specific in describing the behaviors you want to exhibit, both in the desired goal and in the steps toward that goal.

Based on the information in Ch. 7 of Positive Psychology on designing personal goals and in Ch. 8 on developing self-regulation and self-control, develop a plan to change the behavior and answer the following questions.

1.        What is the specific behavior you want to change? (50-100 words)

2.        Why would it be a value to stop this behavior or learn a new behavior or skill? (100-150 words)

3.        What is your action plan to change your behavior? (250-300 words)

4.        How would you know if you accomplished your objectives? (100-150 words)

This is the book we are using in class and where chapter 7 is located:

Baumgardner, S.R., Crothers, M.K. (2009). Positive Psychology. Upper Saddle River,NJ. Pearson Education