Sinking Your Teeth Into Your Talents With CliftonStrengths

On a recent Called to Coach we spoke with Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach Vicki Newell.

Before her career in strengths, Vicki spent many years with 3M, a Fortune 500 company. Following her tenure at 3M, Vicki was a manager at a start-up company called Opal Orthodontics. It was there that she first encountered the CliftonStrengths assessment. Now Vicki owns and operates Systemized Orthodontics Consulting Group, which provides comprehensive consulting services exclusively to orthodontists and orthodontic practice employees.

Vicki was attracted to strengths because she had been a "lifelong mother" -- always wanting to guide others through challenges. Finding the CliftonStrengths assessment and the strengths movement was an eye-opening moment for Vicki. She finally had a tool and a language that could help her help others.

Through her consulting practice, Vicki has found that all orthodontists, as well as their employees, are perfectionists. They always want to improve their business, their skills and their in-operatory manner. In much the same way, Vicki is a perfectionist when she chooses to take on a client -- she only selects those who have an innate desire to improve their professional skills and their practice.

Vicki's favorite examples of strengths improving a person's life come mostly from her in-house team members. For example, a former employee whom Vicki had coached was applying for a job at another company, so this employee contacted Vicki for assistance. She wanted to create a slideshow explaining how her Top 5 strengths made her an ideal candidate. Vicki and her former employee developed this slideshow, which secured her the new job.

Vicki's wealth of experience with orthodontics practices has allowed her to fine-tune a process for introducing and teaching strengths to her clients. She starts by having all of the practice employees complete the CliftonStrengths assessment. Then she studies each of their results so she can understand the employees. Also, it gives her insight into the team's dynamics. Next, Vicki meets with the orthodontist to conduct one-on-one coaching. She helps him or her understand the strengths philosophy and practice, explaining the deep and comprehensive research behind strengths and how it can impact a company's bottom line. The field of orthodontics relies upon extensive research, so orthodontists readily appreciate and relate to this data-driven discussion. Vicki also reaches out to the rest of the practice team by explaining their strengths, creating strengths boards and encouraging employees to learn each other's strengths.

All of these measures help strengths become a part of the daily conversations between employees in the orthodontics practice. In this way, Vicki believes strengths propel the orthodontic practice to the next level.

To learn more about Vicki and her coaching experiences and expertise, watch the full video or listen to the audio above.

Vicki Newell's Top 5 CliftonStrengths are Maximizer, Learner, Self-Assurance, Arranger and Connectedness.