We love our Strengthsfinder themes, right? They are the best! 5 words that perfectly and positively describe exactly how I’m amazing! But what happens when we get stressed out and our strengths go south?

Ah, strengths in overdrive that have gone to the dark side. We call that the “basement” of our strengths. Take the theme of Responsibility, for example. When it’s used well, it’s someone you can count on, someone who sets the bar high and produces high quality work. But under stress, it might look like someone who says yes too often, someone who beats themselves up over and over for mistakes, and a micromanager. Ouch. That’s the Basement of Responsibility.

Other basements you might recognize:

Empathy in the basement looks emotional.  Achiever in the basement looks unbalanced and overworked.  Maximizer in the basement looks critical and picky. Command in the basement looks bossy & confrontational.  Deliberative in the basement looks negative. Harmony in the basement looks indecisive.  There is a basement for every strength!

So what do we do about our basements? Take a moment to recognize them. Ask yourself:

• How does this strength sometimes get in my way?
• How I can I use this strength more positively? Think of 1 or 2 tactics.
• Try it in an upcoming meeting or interaction. Practice using the “balcony” instead of the basement of strengths.

It takes time and no one will ever fully escape their basements, but with some work you can become aware and bring the strength back into your strengths!