Why it’s effective
Q: How does Take Charge of Your Talent help participants achieve significant improvements?
A: First, the Take Charge of Your Talent program focuses participants on each individual’s unique and natural talents. Many people are tired, discouraged, or simply don’t think about their talents and how they could be using them. Second, consciously or unconsciously people become captive to a particular story about what they are capable of accomplishing. Take Charge helps people step out of the stories in which they are stuck and create new ones that are filled with possibility. Third, the Talent Catalyst Conversation and other tools give participants new perspectives that they can’t discover on their own. It’s like looking at yourself in a mirror and gaining new insights that you wouldn’t otherwise see. Fourth, the proven practices to overcome obstacles, develop action plans, and boost productivity and fulfillment support participants in pursuing their intentions and making their hopes real. A key incentive that pulls them through is the transformation of what they learn into enduring career assets. This also motivates their organizations to support them because the organizations benefit from those knowledge assets as well.
Q: Who can benefit from Take Charge of Your Talent?
A: All people have talent that they aren’t fully using. We’ve used this approach successfully with entrepreneurs, sole practitioners, professionals, educators, students, and people seeking employment.
Q: Can I get the full value of what Take Charge of Your Talent has to offer by just reading the book?
A: We hope the book spurs your interest and serves as a resource for your ongoing growth and learning. We have found that engaging with another person in a Talent Catalyst Conversation adds another powerful dimension to the work as well as the tools and techniques to create assets together.
The chemistry of a great conversation
Q: What’s the best way for me to try a Talent Catalyst Conversation?
A: We encourage you to jump right in. Just ask a person who’s willing to encourage your success to follow the Talent Conversation Conversation Guide available in the book or through a workshop. If you can’t find the right person to be a Talent Catalyst for you, we can help you find a Certified Talent Catalyst who can support you through the process. [See Get Started.]
Q: How long does a Talent Catalyst Conversation take?
Typically a Talent Catalyst Conversation runs from 45 minutes to an hour. You don’t want to rush it, and you don’t want to try and use it to sort out every challenge you face. The purpose is to spark your natural passion and enthusiasm for the things that truly matter to you.
Q: What the best way for me to learn to be a Talent Catalyst for someone else?
A: Again, we encourage you to jump right in. Chapter 3 in the book describes the four important characteristics for a Talent Catalyst: is a willing partner, asks carefully structured questions, is a generous listener, and gives the participant freedom to be in charge.
Q: Is there a way for me to advance my skills as a Talent Catalyst?
A: Yes there is. You can find more information in Be a Take-Charge Leader.
Follow through for results
Q: I’m concerned that I’ll get excited about doing something, but that I won’t follow through. How does Take Charge of Your Talent help with that?
A: In the book, Key #2, Accelerate through Obstacles, addresses that directly through exercises that keep your hope humming, help you grab opportunities to grow, and challenge yourself to stretch. Overcoming obstacles is actually an excellent way to stimulate the expression of your talent.
Q: I like Key #3: Multiply the Payoffs for Yourself and Others, and want to make a difference for others as well as myself. However, I’m not in charge. What can I do to champion a Take-Charge Talent Culture?
A: You can make a difference in whatever role you play. When you ask people simple questions such as “What are your hopes about your work or career?” you help them think in new and more constructive ways. As you model taking charge of your talent, you provide a powerful example for others to appreciate. Each action creates a ripple that can build into a wave.
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