Strengths Challenges

Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence

• Take a photo each day capturing something which inspires a sense of beauty, awe and wonder.
• If you prefer to write, you can spend 10 minutes a day capturing what was beautiful, excellent or uplifting in your day and truly savour these experiences.
• Go for a walk in nature and make the effort to really appreciate your surroundings. Or explore these awe-inspiring locations virtually.

Courage

• Learning something new.
• Taking on a leadership position in your House: this can be a formal or informal position.
• Speaking up about something you really believe in.

Creativity

• Allocate some time each day to engage in a creative activity which you usually don't make time for.
• Tackle a challenge you are facing with some creative problem-solving. Brainstorm even the most unlikely solutions; share your thoughts with at least one person.
• How can you turn even the most mundane daily tasks into an opportunity to be creative?

Curiosity

• Set yourself the goal of learning one new thing each day. Make a note of what you learn.
• When you are in class, think of three questions you could ask to expand your knowledge beyond the content of the lesson.
• When you are with friends and family, ask them three questions about themselves. You might be surprised about how much more you learn about the people in your life!

Fairness

• What can you do each day to make life a little easier for your friends, classmates, family and teachers? Be deliberate in your consideration of others.
• Own your mistakes. As you conclude each day, reflect on any mistakes you have made, acknowledge your actions and consider how you might do things differently next time.
• Acknowledge when you see an injustice, such as racism, sexism or when someone is being left out. What can you do to ensure that everyone in your community gets a fair go?

Forgiveness

• Write a letter to someone towards whom you have been holding an grudge. Identify the action which hurt you and how your grudge is affecting yourself and the other person. Offer this person your forgiveness - this can simply be an action to help you move on, or you may want to share this letter with that person.
• Sometimes, we need to forgive ourselves, too. Spend 10 minutes at the end of each day acknowledging anything you are judging yourself for and responding to yourself as you would a good friend. Try some of these self-compassion practices.

Gratitude

• Create a daily gratitude habit by identifying three things that went well each day and what made them possible.
• Put some time aside each day to express your gratitude to someone in your life for the positive impact they have had on you, large or small.
• Create a visual or virtual collage of all the things you are grateful for in your life. You can add to this collage each day.

Honesty

• Is there a situation in your life in which you are not being completely honest? Write about this situation and ways you can approach it in a more transparent, authentic way.
• Say it like it is. Try to give honest and constructive feedback to the people in your life when they seek it - in a way that makes them feel respected and valued.
• Are you honest with people when they have hurt your feelings? If you find it hard to be assertive in these situations, talk it through with a trusted adult or friend and role-play ways you can tactfully speak up for yourself.

Hope

• Spend some time envisioning and writing about a future life which is inspiring and hopeful. You can find a helpful prompt for this Best Possible Self reflection here.

• Put aside some time each day to work on a passion project. One which leverages your strengths and interests and which makes you hopeful about the future.
• Consider a goal you would like to achieve and create a Hope Map for it, detailing the pathways towards that goal and ways to maintain your motivation. Keep your Hope Map displayed somewhere you can see it each day for inspiration.

Humility

• Let others shine. Every day, engage in at least one deliberate action which celebrates the success of someone else and allows them the opportunity to shine.
• Ask someone you trust to give you constructive feedback about areas in which you can grow and develop. This could be in class, in a co-curricular endeavour, or in your personal life.
• At the end of each day, honestly appraise your actions. What did you do well and what could you improve upon? Without judgement, consider how you might do something differently tomorrow.

Humour & Playfulness

• At the start of each day, take some time to speak to someone who always makes you smile. How can you make someone else smile, too?
• Create time for fun in each day. This can be by watching a funny video, having a laugh with friends, engaging in a sporting or creative activity which you know will life your mood. Create some time for daily jolts of joy.
• Compile a list of funny films to watch when you need to boost your mood. Ask friends and family to contribute to the list and share it with them as well for when they need a mood boost.

Judgement & Open Mindedness

• Seek out opposites. Once a day, spend at least 10 minutes researching new ideas which challenge your assumptions and biases. This can be by speaking to someone with a different opinion, or doing some research online.
• Get involved in a debating team. Engaging in a debate which has you arguing for a viewpoint which is in opposition to your own can be a helpful way to overcome personal biases and see the merit in other viewpoints.
• When you face a difficult decision, write a list of best-case scenarios, wort-case scenarios and most likely outcomes before coming to a conclusion as how to respond.

Kindness

• Engaging in a daily Loving Kindness Meditation to help you cultivate kindness and compassion for the people in your life, even those you find difficult.
• Aim to engage in one Random Act of Kindness a day. You can do this anonymously to help spread kindness in your community.
• How can you be of service to others? What can you do each day in order to support someone in your community or beyond who is vulnerable or struggling? Link in to charity organisations or local volunteer groups to make a meaningful contribution.

Leadership

• How can you show leadership in your school community? A leader can take on a formal role or can work in an informal capacity. Make a deliberate effort to be a support to your peers each day.
• Get inspired. It helps to have examples of leaders which guide our own actions. Spend some time each day reflecting on examples of great leadership. What makes these individuals great leaders? What are their strengths? How can you emulate these qualities?
• Leadership takes courage. Consider how you might deliberately build this strength to support your ability to lead by example.

Love

• At least once a day, take the time to reach out to someone in your life so that they know that they are loved and cared for. This can be a message, phone call, making them a cup of tea, or another caring gesture.
• Schedule daily and weekly time with loved ones. This might be virtually or in person. Spending time with loved ones on a regular basis is good for our wellbeing and theirs too; but we sometimes neglect this in the busyiness of our lives.
• Self-love is important too. Find one thing each day you can do for yourself that is caring and nurturing. This could be time with friends, exercise, listening to music or engaging in a meditation.

Love of Learning

• Take the time each day to learn something new for the sheer joy of learning. Share what your have learned with at least one other person.
• Learn about other people: try to interact with someone new each week. Learn about where they are from, their strengths and their challenges.
• Sign up for a course or activity that interests you. This could extend the skills or knowledge you already have or help you develop a whole new skill and knowledge set.

Perseverance

• Set a goal each morning to accomplish before the end of the day. Consider how you will manage your time to prioritise this daily goal.
• Engage in regular brain breaks throughout the day. These help you maximise your performance and avoid burnout. The pomodoro technique is a helpful approach to help you persevere with the most challenging tasks.
• Whatever you want to achieve, engaging in deliberate practice can help you reach your goals. This involves: setting a stretch goal, focusing 100% on that goal, seeking feedback on your performance, then reflecting and refining your approach and from this, setting another stretch goal and engaging in the cycle again.

Perspective

• Learn from others. Take time to read the stories of others who have achieved goals you admire. What can you learn from their experience to help guide your journey?
• Consider a challenge you are facing from the perspective of a teacher, mentor, coach or someone else you admire. What would they do in response to this challenge and how could you respond in a similar way?
• How can you help someone else see their own challenges from another perspective? Sometimes some carefully considered advice from others can help us see a situation from a different angle.

Prudence

• Plan ahead. Before acting, make time to consider the potential outcomes of a choice you have to make. What might be the consequences in a week, a month, or a year?
• Create a daily planner to assist you with organising your day. Factor in learning time, brain breaks, physical & creative activity, leisure time, time for prep and be realistic. Refine your daily planner each day so that it is as achievable as possible.
• Seek the input and advice of others when making difficult decisions. Spend some time weighing up the pros and cons and their impact and importance in relation to your decision.

Self-Regulation

• Start early. Spend the morning completing important tasks and activities when your self-regulation is at its highest. Studies show it decreases over the course of the day.
• Manage your emotions. Over the course of the day, be mindful of your feelings and how they are causing your to act. Identify the events that trigger your most difficult emotions and how you can manage these better. Journalling can help with this process.
• Engage in a daily mindfulness practice to increase self-regulation. Factor this practice into your daily schedule: is it best to do in the morning, during the day or before you go to bed?

Social Intelligence

• Helping others feel safe. Notice when the people around you are feeling stress or uncertainty. Consider their reactions, emotions and how you can assist them as they work through them.
• Help connect people. Who is new in the community or a little on the outer? How can you include them in daily interactions so that they feel more accepted and connected?
• Spot strengths in others. Deliberately seek out the strengths of those in your community and make the effort to share your observations with them. This will not only give them a boost but will train you to see the best in those around you; cultivating positive connections.

Spirituality

• Find your 'why' by completing this sentence: "everything I do is to...so that....". For example: "everything I do is to develop my skills and knowledge so that I can make a positive contribution in the lives of others".
• Take some time each day for prayer and contemplation. This could involve going to Chapel, meditating, writing or praying. Whatever your personal practice.
• Spend some time learning about other faiths and religions. What do these traditions have in common? What sets them apart? How do their underlying belief systems align or contrast with your own?

Teamwork

• Get involved. Put your hand up to be a part of a new team. This could be in class, a co-curricular activity or outside of school. Being involved in something bigger than yourself is inspiring and rewarding.
• Offer to coach others who may benefit from your skills and experience. How can you help someone else set a goal and navigate a pathway towards achieving it?
• Each day, do something for someone in your house, class, sporting team or another group you are involved with to be a team player. This action will not only benefit the team but set a precedent for others.

Zest

• Prioritise your health and wellbeing. Factor in time each day for physical activity, eat well, make time for rest and ensure a sound sleep routine. This will ensure that you have the energy and enthusiasm to achieve your goals.
• Factor in time with those who 'fill your bucket' each day. These are the people in our lives who bring happiness and laughter and energise us. There are also some who zap our energy too...so be mindful about who you spend your time with.
• Try something new each day. Create a list of micro-adventures you can undertake on campus or when you are back at home. This could include undertaking a new physical or creative activity, exploring a new environment or learning a new skill.