In this episode, Amy interviews her co-host, Dr. Cheryl Priest, for a deep-dive into one of her biggest passions: cultivating a strength-focused mindset.

Cheryl shares how her interest in strengths and positive psychology has been woven through her personal and professional life for over 25 years—dating all the way back to her doctoral work on character strengths in early childhood.

The conversation centers around the VIA Character Strengths Survey, which outlines 24 universal character strengths. Everyone has all 24—just in different orders.

Cheryl’s signature strengths? Gratitude, love of learning, hope, appreciation of beauty and excellence, honesty, humor, and creativity. (With a strong “five-ish” mindset!)

She explains how understanding and using your strengths can lead to:

More energy at work

Deeper joy (which she distinguishes from happiness)

More authentic relationships

Better teamwork—by allowing people to lean into their strengths when divvying up tasks

Cheryl offers reflections on how a shift in mindset—away from fixing weaknesses and toward building on natural strengths—can help people thrive, whether they’re 4, 52, or 85.

There’s also a compelling case for bringing strength-based practices into early childhood, to help kids name and own what they’re good at before self-doubt creeps in.

A free link to the VIA Character Survey is offered for listeners who want to explore their own strengths.

The episode ends with an invitation: Use this link to take the free 20-minute strength survey and then visit https://cherylpriest.com/ to see a few quick and “easy to try” strength-based strategies.  Use the comments to share what you tried and what you noticed—because your path to joy and success might start with simply recognizing what’s already strong within you.