Another Haller Fellowship Day in the books! Today was incredibly impactful, all from one little exercise. I went into it thinking I already knew myself pretty well, and I still do, but this experience gave me deeper insight and reaffirmed what I’ve always understood about how I think and work. We completed the CliftonStrengths assessment from Gallup, a strengths finder exercise where we had 20 seconds to respond to each prompt on a scale (from “most like me” to “least like me”). At first, I was skeptical. I assumed it would be like a horoscope or give out false information, but I was pleasantly surprised. It was thought-provoking, practical, and accurate!
Our instructor, Mike Kijowski, really elevated the session. He encouraged us to focus on our best qualities and demonstrated how to use these strengths intentionally in interviews, teamwork, and our careers. Instead of a regular class exercise where we take the test and then return to normal, he made it clear to me that a good teacher can make or break how meaningful an exercise like this feels.
My top five strengths were: Futuristic, Learner, Context, Input, Focus, in that order. The first four fall under the Strategic Thinking column, while focus is in the Executing category. I found these results incredibly accurate as I’ve always been analytical, deeply curious, and able to maintain intense focus on the things that matter to me. But the one that I found surprising was “Futuristic,” as I’m constantly brainstorming and imagining solutions to complex issues, especially in politics. For example, I’ve envisioned a foreign policy initiative to rebuild Yemen, inspired by the UN-led and U.S.-backed reconstruction of Cambodia. This time with support from stable, resource-rich countries in the Middle East region, as well as U.K. and U.S. companies. It’s an idea aimed at revitalizing global trade routes while addressing humanitarian needs. This way of thinking reflects exactly why Futuristic was my top strength.
What I appreciated most was how real the session felt. It helped me to understand how these strengths apply in real life and our teams for this fellowship. It’s clear to me how this will help my group as we work to support the town of Carrigart. I know I excel at asking thought-out questions and conducting in-depth research, while my teammates are stronger in executing and relationship building. I’ve noticed that we work quite well together, as our traits complement and mesh well. We can utilize some of my teammates’ stronger relationship-building skills for international communication. This will allow us to work more effectively together and help deliver better ideas and a final product to Carrigart.
It also gives me confidence going into Pitt in the fall after this trip. I will utilize my Focus strengths to adhere to projects and deadlines, ensuring I never will have a late assignment. I can also leverage my learning strengths to stay engaged in new fields, such as advanced business and economics courses. Honestly, I wish we had done this exercise earlier at the start of this trip.
We also had a lunch meeting with Kathleen Foody-Malus, former Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager at Freddie Mac. It was both exciting and inspiring to speak with someone so experienced and insightful. I asked her about the growing polarization in U.S. politics and whether it was already affecting the economy, including long-term investment, the debt crisis, and the dollar’s role as the global reserve currency. She agreed and noted that we’re already seeing the effects, especially with the increasing politicization of the Federal Reserve. For me, this was the highlight of my day. With my passion for politics and economic policy, hearing her perspective was fascinating.
Lastly, what stood out to me was how much the University of Pittsburgh’s staff genuinely care about helping students succeed. So far on this trip everyone is so supportive, at other universities, the approach felt like a factory moving people in and out. Pitt, on the other hand, feels personally invested in each student’s journey, including mine.
Tomorrow is going to be another exciting day in beautiful Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania!