MY STORY
Everyone's different somehow.
That was clear to me very early on. Chinese-Cuban-American, female, usually the youngest in the room, equally good at math and art... Whatever the situation, I was always different. (And those were just the layers I could see as a kid. Of course, most of what shapes how a person sees things isn't visible at all.)
So I got curious about what parts of me shape what I see. And I got just as curious about what shapes everyone else.
Being different was never an excuse to keep to myself. Instead, it sent me looking for what others and I had in common. And, what are you seeing that I'm not?
I did what was expected, and it was OK until it wasn't.
In college, I chose to pursue engineering because it was the practical, safe path. I landed in a product management role at a global company, and for a while it was a great fit. The work took me all over the world, working with people from the factory floor to the executive suite and from various cultures (which kept feeding the same curiosity).
Over my 15 years there, the company grew through acquisitions and mergers - from about 500 people worldwide when I started to almost 200,000 by the end. I kept doing well. Promoted multiple times, assigned lead roles in key projects and product lines, reviews still high. On paper, everything was fine. But I'd stopped lighting up. Nothing pulled me in, and I found there was nothing I was working towards.
I couldn't explain it. Something had to change.
My last manager was a good one. She could tell my heart wasn't in my work anymore, and she offered to help create a new role for me. But there wasn't anything I was interested in. Whatever I picked would have been a temporary band-aid, and I knew I'd be back at the same conclusion six months later.
At the same time, my dad had been diagnosed with cancer a few months earlier, so leaving meant I could be there for him. I walked away with no plan. At the time, I couldn't have told you what I was moving towards - only that staying wasn't for me.
I had my CliftonStrengths results for 14 years before I understood the power underneath them.
I first took the assessment around 2002, back when it was still called StrengthsFinder®. I took it again in 2009, with a coach my company paid for. She included the assessment in her work, but Strengths wasn't her focus. Both times, something resonated. And both times, I didn't know what to do with the results. I'd only ever met it as a work tool.
The third time was in 2016, the same year I left my career. I trained as a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach. I wasn't planning on doing this for a living. I was just curious. But going deep is what finally showed me the power behind the Talent Themes, and put words to what had been going on with me for years. The disengagement wasn't a problem to fix. It was information I hadn't learned to read.
I found my fit. Now I help other people find theirs.
I didn't find it by landing a better job. I found it by finally understanding what I was working with, and choosing from there - in my work, and in everything around it. For me, that meant leaving. For most people it doesn't.
That's the part I love most now. Watching someone realize that what they'd written off as ordinary is the thing nobody else brings. It's why I teach the concepts underneath, not just the results. And why my focus expands beyond solely work.
My CliftonStrengths Top 5
And how each one shows up when we work together.
Connectedness®
I see connections in everything. When you talk, I pick up patterns - and those patterns, good and bad, don't stay at work. They follow you home. It's why I don't limit this to just your job.
Relator®
Trust comes first, so I go slower than some people expect. I'd rather you feel comfortable enough to say what's actually going on. The more open you are, the more you'll get out of this.
Belief®
I believe in this work. People do better, behave better, and get further when they know who they are, trust that, and live by what's right for them. And that ripples outward to everyone around them. I'm not neutral about this, and you'll feel that.
Responsibility®
I take this seriously. It's why I push for depth. Surface-level work won't get you the value. CliftonStrengths is a powerful tool, and it asks something of you. I'll do my part.
Adaptability®
Every person and every group is different, so I don't run a set curriculum. That's why I ask questions upfront. Then I shape the topics, the activities, and the agenda around what you're actually working through.
These five, in this order, are 1-in-33.4 million.
So is your combination.
That's not a fun fact. It's the reason this work starts with your results.
Where to next?
Plenty of people are here for both.
For You
You have your CliftonStrengths results, or you're about to, and you want more than five words on a page. One-to-one, online.
For Teams
You want your people to understand what they each bring, and to start seeing each other differently. Workshops and coaching, in person and online.
Based in Miami, Florida. CliftonStrengths-based coaching and workshops for individuals and teams, online and in person.
© 2026 Elvira Marie Chang. All rights reserved.
The non-Gallup information you are receiving has not been approved and is not sanctioned or endorsed by Gallup in any way. Opinions, views and interpretations of CliftonStrengths, Clifton Youth StrengthsExplorer or BP10 results are solely the beliefs of Elvira Marie Chang.
Gallup®, CliftonStrengths®, StrengthsFinder® and the 34 theme names of CliftonStrengths® are trademarks of Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved. To learn more about CliftonStrengths®, please visit https://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths.