A New Thanksgiving Tradition

Last year, while I was on book tour, a woman who attended one of my events messaged me on LinkedIn. Inspired by our conversation, she decided to change up her Thanksgiving gathering. Instead of asking everyone what they were grateful for, she asked her family to take our  superpowers quiz .

The results were enlightening. She has two college-aged sons. Her older son’s superpower results were Leading, Performing, and Achieving—fitting perfectly with his role as the life of the party and captain of every team. Her younger son’s results were Knowing, Believing, and Self-Sustaining as his superpowers.

These insights led her to realize something she hadn’t considered before:

• When her boys were younger, she would introduce her eldest as the outgoing one, encouraging him to entertain others at family gatherings. But with her younger son, she would often tell people he was shy and “don’t talk to him because he doesn’t like people.”

  
  

• With the quiz results, she realized how different things could have been if she had embraced her younger son’s unique strengths. Instead of labeling him as “shy,” she could have shared his passions, like his love for pandas after finishing a school report on them. She could have said, “He just finished an entire book on pandas and knows so much about them! Feel free to ask him questions; he loves to talk to people one-on-one.”

This change in perspective created a new understanding within their family. On the way to the airport, her younger son opened up about what it felt like to grow up as an introvert in an extroverted family and world. Though he’d found “his people” in college, he shared that it had been hard growing up feeling out of place, wishing others had seen him for his strengths—even when they didn’t fit the traditional mold.

This Thanksgiving, I invite you to discover your loved ones’ superpowers at  www.MyConfidenceLanguage.com . Whether over a slice of pie, while lounging, or watching the big game, the quiz is a fun way to spark meaningful conversations and uncover strengths you might have overlooked.

I asked the same person what she planned to do this year, and she said, “I’m going to ask my family how they each got stronger this year and if they have any new superpowers to share!”

Give the gift of empowerment this holiday season. Perfect for your colleagues and loved ones—because great style and a powerful message deserve to be shared. Gift wrapping included. Now through Sunday, 11/24.