Have you heard of Gallup's StrengthsFinder? It's one of those personality tests, like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (I'm an INJF) and the Enneagram (I'm a Type 1).

StrengthsFinder, now called CliftonStrengths, focuses on identifying your top 5 strengths, which tend to remain consistent throughout your life. The idea is to cultivate these strengths instead of dwelling on frustrating weaknesses. To compensate for your Achilles heel, it suggests finding partners or team members that have them as their strengths, encouraging a volting in of superpowers that spell success.

My top 5 strengths, according to StrengthsFinder, are Strategy, Ideation, Learner, Connectedness, and Analytical. Interestingly, four out of the five fall under the strategic theme. This means I thrive on sifting through various scenarios and possibilities to find the best way forward. I'm perfectly comfortable with a plethora of options to analyze.

If you're not like me, the rest of this entry might not be your cup of tea. It's going to be full of options and links that could make your head spin. Heehee!

New Podcast Episodes for "I Suck At Smalltalk"

I've uploaded three new episodes, bringing my total up to six. Woot!

I'm oh so happy to be catching up with lovely people and dipping our feet into something new and unfamiliar together. I mean, who records conversations with friends? I do.🤣 You can binge-watch them on Spotify or choose your happy pill from the list below.

* Watch Ep 04: Chef Sinag Adviento's Insights on Machismo, Language Barriers, and Grit Abroad

* Watch Ep 05: Mon Limcaoco's Journey from Manila to Sydney during the Pandemic

* Watch Ep 06: Nicole Maas Tells the Story of Crossing the Pyrenees by Foot and Other Mountain Adventures

Help! Check if “I Suck at Smalltalk” is on Apple Podcasts

Quick favor to ask… When you click on the button, can you see my podcast on Apple? Can you let me know by replying to this or however way we chat with each other? Lol. I'm not sure if it's only accessible to me or if it's successfully published. UGH. Tech troubles!

Building Work Portfolio

I've been pretty occupied living my enthusiastic student life. (Why are studies so much more interesting as an adult?!) I’ll admit that my job search is taking a back seat.

But to help me figure myself out, and share my personal journey to potential employers, I’ve added a new section on Substack called "Work Portfolio". Here are some of my articles that you might find interesting. Not a reader? I recorded audio for them too!

* My Journey to Confidence

* Takeaways from Preparing Country Reports for Japan, Qatar, and the Netherlands

* Becoming a More Effective Writer and Content Strategist by Ranting (and Raving!) about SEO

Wars of the World

There's more than one, two, or a shitload of conflicts and disasters at the moment. How are you coping? Hindi ko pa napo-process lahat.😩

“Today, Explained” Episodes on the Israel-Hamas Conflict

Sending out virtual hugs. Hayyy.

Thanks for reading Janine Ramirez - I Suck at Smalltalk Podcast! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit janinayramirez.substack.com