Lesson 1: Personal strengths

Conflict resolution

• Conflict at home and at school. • Reasons for conflict. • Conflict resolution. • Read about safe environments and how to avoid conflict.

IMPORTANT TERMINOLOGY

• Strengths: A person’s positive characteristics that he/she can use to achieve success, e.g. conscientiousness, loyalty. • Weaknesses: Characteristics a person wants to change, e.g. a short temper or impatience. • Role model: A person who is a positive inspiration to you. • Respect: When someone or something is important to you and you handle them/it with consideration and care. • Conflict: When two parties disagree about something.

Lesson 1: Personal strengths

Recommended resources: study guide, pictures from magazines, books about role models and successful people, and newspaper articles

1.1 Identify, examine and appreciate your own strengths

Who are you?

Paste a photograph of yourself in the block below.

Look at the photograph of yourself in the block. Now answer the following questions in your workbook. Be honest with yourself! 1. What is the first thing you notice when you look at the photograph? 2. Are you satisfied with what you see? 3. Give a good reason for your answer to question 2. 4. Make a list of your strengths, in other words all your strong points. 5. Make a list of your weaker points – those are the things you would like to change about yourself.

You will now have a clearer picture of yourself as a person. We all have strengths and weaknesses. That is why we have successful as well as less successful experiences. It is important that you know which points you need to work on, in order for you to reach your full potential. You must appreciate and use your strengths to reach your goals. You must realise that you will have less successful experiences, but that you can learn something positive from each of these experiences.

You might think of Superman when I use the word “strengths”. But that is not the kind of strength I am talking about here. Your strengths are the things you can do well. The following is a list of strengths: • Creativity • Healthy curiosity for knowledge • To be open-minded • Thirst for knowledge • Willingness to take risks • Perseverance • Vivaciousness • Good heartedness • Leadership qualities • Can apply self-control • Good sense of humour

It is equally important to know your weaknesses. It often happens that someone who is unsuccessful cannot understand why they fail repeatedly. If, however, you can identify your weaknesses, you can improve on them and then you can be successful in everything you do.

The following is a list of weaknesses that can get in the way of success: • Aggression • Arrogance • Insensitivity to others’ feelings • Prejudice • Hard-headedness • Bossiness • Anxiety