My strengths

For the first time in about a year, I suddenly realised that I needed 10 hours of Continuing Professional Development that was centred around connecting with the social work community. Panicked, I hit up the website of the peak body and found that they were still doing networking nights for people working in private practice, so I signed up for the meeting in June.

It was such a pleasure to attend. I loved hearing my colleagues in the sector talk about not putting people in boxes, and what a privilege it was to share their journeys for a short time, and the magic of helping someone connect the dots and see themselves clearly for the first time. As they spoke, there was one colleague in particular who gave me a great sense of hope and joy, that people were coming to him and that he was able to help them at a time when they could potentially be quite vulnerable.

I made some comments on how much I enjoyed hearing him speak, and he messaged me privately to thank me. We chatted briefly, and I said “I call it like I see it.” He answered “You see it ’cause you have it.” And it was a lesson I haven’t picked up in a while. I love the idea that the things I value in others are also the things that I value in myself (and therefore have probably worked to cultivate).

So, in a reflective exercise, here’s what I liked about my colleague (and therefore myself). He was:

• Measured
• Kind
• Eloquent
• Sensitive
• Respectful
• Gentle
• Thoughtful
• Intelligent
• Good at healing
• Broken, and finding strength in it