Strengths and the nontraditional student

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Comment by Colleen R on August 29, 2009 at 9:12pm

I have worked with the nontraditional student for over a decade. Often they are very unsure of themselves and question whether they can be successful in school. The first thing I do with every student is to give them the CSF. When they begin to realize they have strengths that have always been in them their attitudes begin to change. They begin to dream about what they can do. They look at who they are, their talents, and their opportunities. They toy with the idea of moving into a career that they want instead of a job they have no real interest in. Life changes, hope is introduces into their lives. I have been blessed to see amazing changes in peoples lives.
What a wonderful thing to see!

Comment by Phil Nienhuis on August 29, 2009 at 2:04pm

I'm a counselor in Grand Rapids MI who has worked with many young adults who know only one thing about their career: they hate it and dread the thought of being stuck in it for many years to come. Yet, they hesitate to make any decisions about returning to school or job changes because of the lack of confidence that they would be successful in that new direction. I encouraged them to take CSF and we would spend several sessions working through it. The results? the started asking the right questions. they started identifying and affirming their natural inclinations, etc.

I remember several years ago a couple was coming to me for marital therapy. (This was well before I knew abut CSF.) The husband was a seior surgical resident, only a few months away from launching his surgical practice. During on session, out of the blue, he exclaimed in exasperation, "I hate beng a surgeon....but I love being a doctor." I asked him to explain. This is what he said: of all the rotations in medical school he most enjoyed was the pediatric. "I love kids!" He then went onto explain that he went against his natural inclincation and accepted a fellowship in the surgical residency because it offered him the mot money. How sad!