OCD can be a little overwhelming at times. You can feel like your whole life is defined by OCD and its negative influence and forget that you do, in fact, have strengths.
Which is why StrengthsFinder 2.0 is a must-have book for people with OCD.
The main premise of the book is that everyone has strengths, and that playing to your strengths is a better strategy than trying to be good at everything. The book goes beyond just talking about strengths, however. Each book contains a unique code that allows you to take Gallup’s StrengthFinder assessment online and receive a detailed PDF report describing your top five strengths*.
Redefining a “strength”
I have taken a number of these types of assessments over the years, but this was definitely one of the most helpful because it helped me think of “strengths” in new ways. For instance, my top strength is Learner. I have always known I love to learn, but I have never thought of it as a strength. In fact, I have often discounted my love of the process of learning in favor of more “doing” oriented activities, which I thought were more useful or productive.
But after taking the assessment and reading the book, I have changed my mind. I see how being a Learner can be a 
strength, for me and for my clients with OCD. For instance, I always have 4-5 books I’m reading, and at least half of them are psychology books or books about OCD. Because I’m always reading, I’m constantly learning new information about OCD and its research-based treatment, exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy, which will hopefully help my clients as they go through the process of overcoming their OCD.
Why should I read StrengthsFinder 2.0?
OCD can color the way its sufferers view the world. We can sometimes view the world negatively, for instance, because of the negative consequences with which OCD is always threatening us. We can begin to view ourselves negatively as well, which only slows down our ability to do our exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy and get well. Reading StrengthsFinder 2.0 and taking the assessment can help to counter that negativity
- It helps us see our top strengths, and we all have them, even if we’re in the midst of OCD.
- It can help us recognize strengths that we may have been ignoring. Once we acknowledge those capabilities as strengths, we can use them to help improve the quality of our lives.
- Reading the book and taking the assessment can be a fun activity. The book is short and easy to read, and the assessment only takes 20-30 minutes. In fact, it would be a fun activity for self-help support groups. Everyone could take the assessment and share what their strengths are with the rest of the group.
Boy, you’d think I was getting paid to market this book! Alas, I am not, which hopefully will give this Aha! Moment even more credibility. I highly recommend this book for people suffering from OCD. Remember, OCD likes us to feel weak as that helps it keep its power. Learning your strengths can help you take some of this power back!
*The unique code can only be used once and is why you need to buy a new copy of the book and not a used copy if you want to take the assessment.
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