What is an Asset?

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#009966" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>What is an Asset?</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=165 BGCOLOR="#AAAAAA" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="132" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 35 ><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="21"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id43.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Title 43"><U><B><IMG SRC="008151d0.gif" border=0 width="21" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="20"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="35" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="20" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Why Build Community Collaboration?"><U><B><IMG SRC="00d0d1d0.gif" border=0 width="13" height="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="29" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" WIDTH="27"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <div> <A HREF="mailto:crpetersen@yahoo.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:crpetersen@yahoo.com"><U><B><IMG SRC="00f2c330.gif" border=0 width="44" height="51" ALT="Send E-Mail" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#AAAAAA" TEXT="#080000"> <div> An asset can be many things.  It can be financial, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, or social.  It can be relationships, skills, time, attitude, energy, wisdom, values, or property.</div> <div> Certain <A HREF="id42.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Title 42"><U>Developmental Assets</U></A> have been found to be extremely important in the raising of healthy, caring, and responsible youth.</div> <div> Every community, family, and individual has assets.  The key is to locate, develop, integrate, and enhance, existing assets, being open to the possibilities.  This can also require a shift in thinking.  Instead of focusing on what is going wrong, one must spend more energy looking for what is going right.  Instead of spending most of your time finding and recognizing problems, you must refocus your thinking towards solutions.  Abilities are infinitely more important and useful to consider than are disabilities.  It is usually easier to strengthen an asset than to eliminate a deficit.  Amazingly, deficits often decrease or even disappear as assets are developed.  An asset or  strength based approach appreciates that the glass is half full, asks why it is half full, and then finds ways to fill it even more.</div> <div> This is not a suggestion to hide your head in the sand and ignore deficiencies, which sometimes must be addressed.  This is a suggestion that WHAT WE FOCUS ON INCREASES.  Spend more time on the positive, quickly deal with the negative when it is required, and you will be amazed at how much more quickly the positive increases.</div> <div> **********************************</div> <div> You may also be interested in the concept of and research on <A HREF="id43.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Title 43"><U>Resiliency</U></A>. </div> </td> </tr></table></body>