Focus on Strengths
Focus on Strengths
Art Winstanley was the first Denver police officer arrested and sent to prison, out of nearly 750, in the largest case of police corruption in US History. He had moved from being a young whipper-snapping officer of the law, with a young wife and children at home, to being a safe-cracking robber who would lose his family, his home and eventually his freedom.
When I met Art, I was 19 and had no idea about the tumultuous life he had lived. To me, he was merely my sister’s new brother-in-law, had silver hair and light blue eyes that sparkled with a playful charm. Nearly 30 years later, Art called to ask if I would help him write his memoir. That’s when I learned the complicated story behind the twinkle in his eyes.
The “plot” and “characters” are made-for-TV material: -- a young man from a troubled home, filled with energy and fierce determination, lands a spot at the Police Academy. Works hard, makes friends, wants to impress his peers, too much… The pace is brisk with plenty of car chases, “good guys” and “bad guys.” But sadly, the events are true, not TV drama, and tragically this young man’s life unravels before our eyes. We follow him into the horrors of the state penitentiary, through his remorse, his antics, achievements, and eventually back out into the unfamiliar world…and back to prison again.
The Art I had known, had nothing to do with this reckless criminal. I couldn’t help but wonder how he had moved from being a normal kid to a serious felon, and then on to a life of responsibility and marital bliss. He is a spry 70 something now, with a happy home and a big commitment to helping others. How did he do this? I couldn’t help but wonder what his signature character strengths would be.
When we finished his memoir, Art took the VIA survey and became the first official interview for Where You Come In, my current book-in-progress. I will share more excerpts along the way. For now, take a peek at Art’s strengths and his feelings about them:
“The first strength on the list was Kindness & Generosity. I think that one is right on. Knowing that, I will now have a rule for myself, “if you don’t do something nice for someone every day, you are a loser!
My second was Humor & Playfulness – when it gets uncomfortable I can usually make some kind of levity out of the situation to make things better. That seems to work well for me.
Third was Capacity to Love & Be Loved- I take a lot of strengths from the people who are close to me and I am pretty loyal. The people who are close are really close. I don’t have a lot of friends, but I am pretty careful to cherish the ones that I do have.
# 4 was Zest, Enthusiasm & Energy – I don’t often start a project that I quit. I stay with it, like it writing my book. It probably took more courage than anything I’ve ever done. Spilling your guts is just about as appealing as it sounds!
The last was Hope, Optimism & Future – Mindedness – I do have a lot of faith in the way things are going to turn out. I am optimistic enough to think that things are going to be the best. And I have always pretty much felt that way, that it will all work out. Lots of times we look back on things that happened during our lifetime and realize it was pretty terrible, but it probably was for the best in the long run. “
What was your initial reaction when you saw the list of strengths?
“I thought, man, that was right on. It pretty much hit me close to home. I was surprised at how quickly they analyzed the questions I had answered and came up with a profile that was so accurate. I wonder how much enlightenment other people could get if they did this . . .and how different things might have been if I’d seen this when I was young.”
Share a specific story about a time in your life that illustrates your character strengths in action. Maybe a time when you really felt "in stride" and like you were being who you felt you were 'meant to be.'
“I’ve thought a lot about this and I am not sure there’s been a time I used these strengths specifically to really feel in sync or in step with the world. I think probably there are times I have been so far down that I lost track of the strengths that I had and I didn’t call upon them to help me. I just felt overwhelmed with sorrow or self-pity or whatever you want to call it. And I think now, had I known what my strengths are, I would have been able to handle those bad times better.
The time I think was probably the worst in my life was being so hungry, and having waited so long to get something to eat when I was in the prison chow line – and then having another inmate spit in my plate. I had vowed that I would not let anybody see me cry, and tears just ran down my cheeks. I felt so far gone that I had no strength left and no reserve to fall back on to help me cope. And I think now, maybe I could have handled it better, though I don’t know.
Now, there have been some times when I have been pretty far up, too. I have had some pretty frank talks with some people since I wrote the book. It has been therapeutic to talk about it and it is bringing me comfort to know that I said what I had to say, and that it might help others. I have talked to people at signings and had people ask me if there was anything more that I think I should have said, or anything I would take out. The answer is No. I had a good time writing it, and a difficult time – it was soul searching and took a lot of courage. Now that it is out there, I am OK with it. “
Did you use these strengths when you were in prison?
Oh yeah. Lots of times. Particularly in my humor in trying to make other people laugh. In trying to make fun of it and look at the bright side of the situation or turn it around. I think that that worked really well for me in helping me to survive. Sometimes we have to use our imagination to think about how funny things really are sometimes. I used to write home and say things like, “This is great! Not everyone gets to live in a gated community!” Or, “do you have my cell number?”
Do you think you use these strengths now?
When I look at the list of my strengths, the ones that have served me best are the last two: Hope & Optimism and Zest & Enthusiasm – in getting things done. The number one – Kindness and Generosity has helped me, too, because I think about how I hope to have people feel they were glad they knew me. I think that might be true because of my kindness. I would never intentionally hurt someone. But being hopeful and optimistic has probably been my main ingredient that has helped me. My enthusiasm for getting the job done has been a big factor in just about everything I have ever done.”
Interested in Art’s story? Click here for a link to Burglars in Blue.
Copyright © 2010 Mary Judd Communications
Strengths Behind Bars
Tuesday, April 27, 2010