1. WELCOME Strengths-Based Leadership
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2. TAKE 15 Record Your Responses to three key questions.
STRENGTHS REFLECTION
TAKE 15 Record Your Responses to three key questions.
Consider your experience during the year-long practicum and specifically the application of your knowledge about strengths. At your table, take a few minutes to process your thoughts on the following questions and capture:
What stands out in your memory about strengths and how to best apply them in a work situation?
What single thing might you be able to point to where your knowledge made a difference in the way your practicum unfolded during the year?
How, if at all, were you able to apply your knowledge of strengths outside your work environment?
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3. STRENGTHS REFLECTION NAME IT! AIM IT! CLAIM IT! Who am I?
What makes me successful?
How am I unique?
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4. Reflection Overview Strengths Review Alignment New Insights
Application
Self
Team
Case Vignettes
Summary & Reflection
At its core, the Strengths Movement is a social movement intended to change how we view ourselves, others, and our world. The Strengths Movement has its roots in positive psychology. Its central premise is that people will be more productive, better adjusted, healthier, and experience more meaningful lives when the focus at school, work, and in personal relationships is on their strengths rather than their weaknesses. In this session we revisit the subject of strengths, what they are, where they come from, and why they matter. More importantly, we seek to connect the subject to the world around us, specifically our team and our organization. The intended outcomes for this session include:
Reflect and more fully understand strengths as they applied to the practicum process.
Review and gain new insights on material that was covered in week one related to the top five signature strengths.
Assess the progress that was made toward achieving alignment as it relates to strengths.
Explore results that reveal your top signature themes and assess their significance personally and professionally.
Be able to apply acquired knowledge about strengths in various circumstances.
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5. What are they? Where do they come from? Why do they matter?
STRENGTHS REVIEW
What are they?
Where do they come from?
Why do they matter?
Talent (a natural way of thinking, feeling, or behaving)
X Investment (time spent practicing, developing your skills, and building your knowledge base)
_________________________________________________
= Strength (talents used productively)
During week one, each participant had an opportunity to survey their signature strengths using Gallup’s methodology. Gallup’s focus on strengths traces back to the firm’s earliest work nearly 50 years ago when Donald Clifton, a University of Nebraska psychologist, was trying to determine what kinds of people thrived in various jobs. Clifton did not find much in the way of universal markers that applied to every job. But when he ran people through batteries of tests (“Are you analytic or passionate?), he found patterns that seemed to define who thrived in particular work settings.
Initially, Don Clifton and a team of researchers started with 600 questions or statements that seemed to have some relevance to job success. They narrowed that list to about 180, allowing only 20 seconds for a response. The way responses were clustered helped to pinpoint key talents, leading to a refined trait that appeared to be distinct and could be named in one word. Psychology professors at Harvard and UCLA helped test early versions on hundreds of subjects so methods could be refined. Eventually, Gallup’s survey design allowed for the identification of 34 key traits — all of them judged to be virtues that at the least may explain “why”, and in other instances actually may “move” us to do things, often times extraordinary things, when we truly leverage them and the innate talents they are linked to toward any given task.
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6. STRENGTHS—WHAT ARE THEY?
A strength is the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance in a specific activity. According to Dr. Alex Linley, Director, Center for Applied Positive Psychology, “A strength is or represents a pre‐existing capacity for a particular way of behaving, thinking, or feeling that is authentic and energizing to the user and enables optimal functioning, development, and performance.”
The key to creating a strength is to identify your dominant talents – the ways in which you most naturally think, feel, and behave as a unique individual – then complement them by acquiring knowledge and skills pertinent to the activity. The theory behind strengths is based on positive psychology: everyone has talents they are born with and you may or may not be able to readily identify them. As we grow and evolve, these talents may well become strengths. In theory, by identifying your strengths and matching yourself to a particular role, you will enjoy it more and perform better than those who have to try hard to fill the role.
When you are using your strengths you demonstrate “flow.” When involved in flow activities you have a sense of energy and engagement; you often lose your sense of time because you are so engrossed in the task; you rapidly learn new information and approaches; you show high levels of performance. You want to do things that use your strengths – even when you are tired or stressed.
Using your strengths focuses on doing more of what you are good at rather than what you are just capable of doing. High achievers spend most of their time using their strengths. They focus on developing strengths and managing weaknesses. They may not have more strengths than the average individual, but they HAVE learned to utilize them better and to apply them to new situations.
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7. STRENGTHS—WHERE THEY COME FROM
DONALD CLIFTON
Development of a strength in any activity requires talents, which are naturally recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied. Knowledge and skill are key components of strengths, but to possess true strength you must use the best of your natural self: your dominant talents. Because talents are naturally enduring, it is unlikely that your top themes will change significantly over the course of your life. However, by shifting your focus and acquiring new skills and knowledge to capitalize on your greatest talents in different ways, you can develop new strengths.
The purpose of the Clifton StrengthsFinder assessment that forms the basis for our discussion is to help you begin to discover your most dominant talents by identifying the areas, or “themes”, in which they fall. It does so by presenting you with a situation in which you are forced to select between two choices that are different, but not necessarily opposite. Obviously, if you can not make a selection because you feel that neither choice applies to you, your neutral response will not count in the final scoring process. Less obviously, if you can not make a selection because you feel that both choices apply to you, your neutral response will still not count in the final scoring process. Why? Because sometimes the most revealing choices are between two positives. If you can not make a choice – if both statements apply to you equally – this pair of statements probably is not tapping into one of your most dominant themes.
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8. STRENGTHS—WHY THEY MATTER
People who routinely use their strengths:
Are happier
Are more confident
Have higher levels of self-esteem
Have higher levels of energy and vitality
Experience less stress
Are more resilient
Are more likely to achieve their goals
Perform better at work
Are more engaged at work
Are more effective at developing themselves and growing as individuals
We rightly associate much of what we know about the diagnosis and application of personal strengths to the Gallup organization and their one-time chief executive and principal researcher on the subject, Donald Clifton. While their research has been ground breaking and commercially represents a global success story, there is ample evidence that strengths matter from the perspective of multiple research efforts.
People who use their strengths more are happier. In a study of 214 university students, Govindji and Linley (2007) showed that people who used their strengths more reported higher levels of subjective well-being (i.e., happiness) and psychological well-being (i.e., fulfilment). Similarly, Proctor, Maltby, and Linley (2009) reported similar findings with a study of 135 university students. Seligman, Steen, Park, and Peterson (2005) found that people who used their strengths in a new and different way every day reported higher levels of happiness and lower levels of depression, and this lasted over time. Minhas (2010) showed that people who developed their realized or unrealized strengths reported higher levels of happiness and well-being over a four-week period. Park, Peterson, and Seligman (2004) found that people who reported higher levels of character strengths also reported higher levels of life satisfaction, especially for so-called “strengths of the heart”.
People who use their strengths more are more confident. Govindji and Linley (2007) found that people who used their strengths more reported higher levels of self-efficacy, which is a scientific conception of confidence – the belief that we are capable of achieving the things we want to achieve. This finding was replicated by Proctor, Maltby, and Linley (2009) in a study with 135 university students.
People who use their strengths more have higher levels of self-esteem. Minhas (2010) found that people who developed their realized or unrealized strengths reported increases in self-esteem over a four-week period. Govindji and Linley (2007) reported that people who used their strengths more reported higher levels of self-esteem. In a study with 135 university students, Proctor, Maltby, and Linley (2009) found that strengths use was associated with higher levels of self-esteem.
People who use their strengths more have higher levels of energy and vitality. Govindji and Linley (2007), in a study with 214 university students, found that strengths use was associated with higher levels of psychological vitality, that is, having feelings of positive energy and buzz.
People who use their strengths more experience less stress. Over a six-month time period with a community sample of 207 people, those people who used their strengths more reported lower levels of stress. This was the case at both the baseline period, where strengths use was associated with less stress, and also over the three-month and six-month follow ups, where higher strengths use predicted lower stress over time (Wood, Linley, Maltby, & Hurling, 2010).
People who use their strengths more are more resilient. Analysis of an Ego Resiliency Scale showed that strengths use is associated with higher levels of resilience (CAPP, 2010). The two highest correlations were with Resilience (as you might expect) and Adventure, which suggests that stretching yourself outside of your comfort zone can be a way to build your resilience.
People who use their strengths more are more likely to achieve their goals. Linley, Nielsen, Wood, Gillett, and Biswas-Diener (2010) showed that people who used their strengths in striving to achieve their goals were far more likely to achieve those goals. When they achieved their goals, they satisfied their psychological needs and were happier and more fulfilled as a result.
People who use their strengths more perform better at work. In a study of 19,187 employees from 34 organizations across seven industries and 29 countries, the Corporate Leadership Council (2002) found that when managers emphasized performance strengths, performance was 36.4% higher, and when they emphasized personality strengths, performance was 21.3% higher. In contrast, emphasizing weaknesses led to a 26.8% decline for performance weaknesses and a 5.5% decline for personality weaknesses. Research results show that people working from their strengths perform better and stay with the company longer (Stefanyszyn, 2007).
People who use their strengths more are more engaged at work. The opportunity to do what you do best each day, that is, using your strengths, is a core predictor of workplace engagement, which in turn is a core predictor of a range of business outcomes (Harter, Schmidt, & Hayes, 2002). Similarly, Minhas (2010) found that work engagement increased when people developed either their realized or unrealized strengths.
People who use their strengths more are more effective at developing themselves and growing as individuals. When focusing on self-development, people improve faster on areas where they are already strong than they do in areas where they are weak, contrary to some popular perceptions that focusing on weakness development brings the greatest return (Sheldon, Kasser, Smith, & Share, 2002). Case study evidence from BAE Systems showed that business leaders who focused on developing themselves and their teams on the basis of their strengths were more effective and successful (Smedley, 2007).
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9. “THE TRUTH ABOUT YOU” 3 Myths About Strengths and Weaknesses
Myth 1 – As you grow, your personality changes.
Myth 2 – You will grow the most in your areas of greatest weakness.
Myth 3 – A good team member does whatever it takes to help the team.
3 Truths About Strengths and Weaknesses
Truth 1 – As you grow, you become more of who you already are.
Truth 2 – You will grow the most in your areas of greatest strength.
Truth 3 – A good team member deliberately volunteers their strengths to the team most of the time.
For nearly two decades Marcus Buckingham, a Clifton protégé, served as a senior researcher at the Gallup Organization working to break through the preconceptions about achievements and get to the core of what drives success. Having moved on from Gallup, Buckingham has become internationally renowned and celebrated as the go-to consultant in his field, a sought-after speaker and a New York Times best-selling author. Challenging accepted and entrenched social theory that dominated much of the 19th and 20th centuries, Buckingham emphasizes that we will be dramatically more effective, successful, and fulfilled when we play to our strongest skills rather than attempting to improve our weaknesses.
In his best-selling video series “The Trombone Player” and “The Truth About You”, Buckingham highlights three myths that tend to dominate our thinking, along with three truths he suggests we should more readily embrace.
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10. ALIGNMENT Plan Responses Core Purpose/Mission
Why do you exist? What is your essential purpose?
Identity
Who do you claim to be? How do others see you?
Values/Beliefs
What values and/or beliefs are closest to your heart?
Capabilities/Strengths
What are your signature talents and strengths?
TOP Five
Behaviors/DiSC Style
What is your behavioral style?
Constraints
What is limiting your progress or potential?
Hopes/Dreams/
Expectations
What do you hope to achieve as the leader in your life and/or the life of others?
Measures
What does success look like?
During week one you should have captured your top five signature themes. Why only the top five? Several reasons, chief among them was concern over our propensity to go right to the bottom of the list and determine areas of potential weakness, or at least areas where we are least represented. Second, there is our inability to really remember or connect with too many descriptors. Finally, research indicates we really live our lives around our top themes, thus, seldom would we see something represented in the bottom third or even half of our list move towards our top ten.
That said, there may be movement over time. Occasionally this may link to the strength of the theme itself (some themes may more reliably attach to us than others). In other instances the measured statistical difference between your top five and, say, the next five themes (themes 6-10) may be very slight, thus allowing for themes in 1-5 to slip or fade given the circumstances and the demands being placed on you, while a theme listed as being 6-10 might rise a bit.
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11. LOOKING AT ALL 34 Achiever Competition Focus Learner Activator
Connectedness
Futuristic
Maximizer
Adaptability
Consistency
Harmony
Positivity
Analytical
Context
Ideation
Relator
Arranger
Deliberative
Includer
Responsibility
Belief
Developer
Individualization
Restorative
Command
Discipline
Input
Self-Assurance
Communication
Empathy
Intellection
Significance
Strategic
Woo
Examine the summary table provided and highlight your top five signature strengths. Now based on what you’ve learned about yourself and or others have reported they may have observed about you—highlight 3-5 other strengths you “feel” apply to you at this point in time (use a different color of highlighter). As you complete this exercise, don’t just highlight the strengths you “wish” you had, but seriously consider the evidence supporting your selection; each strength highlighted represents a personal attribute that allows you (and/or motivates you) to apply your talents in a positive and constructive way—something that enriches you—that makes completing an assigned task easier just because you feel the talents it allows you to apply make the task fun and exciting, as opposed to something that depletes you.
This exercise, while not scientifically valid, reflects your ability to read signs in yourself and potentially others that link to personal talents and strengths. If you “know” it you can “own” it. Remember, your top 10 signature strengths statistically fall within a very narrow range—so the fact that the Gallup report only lists your tip five does mean you should overlook signs of other strengths that may readily be applied to what you love to do both personally and professionally. IF these strengths are truly evident in your life, you don’t need to turn them on and off like a light switch in a room—they surface quite naturally and move you to accomplish assigned tasks in a way that leverages your talents and serves to enrich your spirit.
Finally, consider the things you routinely are asked or expected to do both professionally and personally—and then match the talent or strength you have that may contribute towards your ability to successfully perform them on a consistent basis.
Activity Talent(s) Strength(s)___________________________
1.__________ ___________________________________________________________________
2.____________________________________________________________________________________________
3.____________________________________________________________________________________________
As you review the results, pick a partner at your table and discuss the following questions regarding your results.
What insights do you draw from the results?
What, if anything, surprises you about the results?
Now that you have the results, what more would you like to know to leverage your strengths to some good purpose?
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12. Week 1 - 10 - Practicum Components
FRAMING THE THEMES
Week Practicum Components
EXECUTING: Achiever, Arranger, Belief, Consistency, Deliberative, Discipline, Focus, Responsibility, Restorative
INFLUENCING: Activator, Command, Communication, Competition, Maximizer, Self-Assurance, Significance, Woo
RELATIONSHIP BUILDING: Adaptability, Developer, Connectedness, Empathy, Harmony, Includer, Individualization, Positivity, Relator
STRATEGIC THINKING: Analytical, Context, Futuristic, Ideation, Input, Intellection, Learner, Strategic
In Strengths Based Leadership, the authors (Tom Rath and Barry Conchie) organize the 34 talent themes into four domains of leadership strength. Each domain describes how strengths can be leveraged in leadership for the effectiveness of the organization. The four domains include Executing, Influencing, Relationship Building, and Strategic Thinking.
EXECUTING - Leaders whose strengths are primarily in the executing domain are great at making things happen. The bottom line for these leaders is their ability to get things done.
INFLUENCING - Leaders with strengths in the influencing domain are able to help the team reach a broader audience by selling the team’s ideas inside and outside the organization.
RELATIONSHIP BUILDING - Leaders with relationship building strengths are like the glue of the organization and have the ability to create groups that are greater than the sum of their parts.
STRATEGIC THINKING - Leaders whose strengths lie in strategic thinking have the ability to keep the team focused on the future, to stretch thinking, and to innovate new ideas.
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13. PLOT YOUR TOP FIVE EXECUTING INFLUENCING RELATIONSHIP
STRATEGIC THINKING
Achiever
Arranger
Belief
Consistency
Deliberative
Discipline
Focus
Responsibility
Restorative
Activator
Command
Communication
Competition
Maximizer
Self-Assurance
Significance
Woo
Adaptability
Developer
Connectedness
Empathy
Harmony
Includer
Individualization
Positivity
Relator
Analytical
Context
Futuristic
Ideation
Input
Intellection
Learner
Strategic
All of these attributes are desirable and necessary for a team to succeed. But of all the leaders studied by Gallup, not one had world-class strength in every domain. The researchers found that the best leaders have 1-2 dominant domains. Those who strive to be competent in all four domains become the least effective leaders overall.
The most effective leaders surround themselves with the right people and build on each person’s strengths. If leaders insist on trying to be good at everything, it is doubtful they will reach excellence at anything. Instead, they must be wise enough to get the right strengths on their teams. With an awareness of their strengths and limitations, these leaders partner with the right people to create extraordinary growth.
Plot your top five themes on this chart. With a partner, and based on the descriptions provided previously, discuss the relationship between your themes the way they are framed above.
Does this provide any added insights on your leadership style or preferences for engaging in certain types of activities?
_________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________
Review your dominant domain(s) of leadership strengths. Does this change your viewpoint in any way?
_____________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________
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14. INTERPRETING THE RESULTS
EXECUTING 
INFLUENCING 
RELATIONSHIP
STRATEGIC THINKING
Achiever
Arranger
Belief
Consistency
Deliberative
Discipline
Focus
Responsibility
Restorative
Activator
Command
Communication
Competition
Maximizer
Self-Assurance
Significance
Woo
Adaptability
Developer
Connectedness
Empathy
Harmony
Includer
Individualization
Positivity
Relator
Analytical
Context
Futuristic
Ideation
Input
Intellection
Learner
Strategic 10 5 3 7
Consider an academic department of 5 assigned faculty with an array of strengths as outlined above. You are the department chair. It is an appointed position, not elected or rotating. You have been in the chair position for just over a year and you have noticed that it has been a struggle to get the team to move forward on some major initiatives. As you examine the results of the strengths survey for the team as a whole, you highlight your own strengths and wonder if these results might offer some insights on about the concerns you have.
What are the major considerations you might have as their leader?
What might you do to move the team forward?
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15. INTERPRETING THE RESULTS
EXECUTING 
INFLUENCING 
RELATIONSHIP
STRATEGIC THINKING
Achiever
Arranger
Belief
Consistency
Deliberative
Discipline
Focus
Responsibility
Restorative
Activator
Command
Communication
Competition
Maximizer
Self-Assurance
Significance
Woo
Adaptability
Developer
Connectedness
Empathy
Harmony
Includer
Individualization
Positivity
Relator
Analytical
Context
Futuristic
Ideation
Input
Intellection
Learner
Strategic 27 9 42 22
Now assume that you lead a significantly larger team of 20 personnel. Since this team is made up of 20 individuals, that means 100 strengths are represented in the sum of everyone’s Top 5. The totals for each theme are listed below. Your strengths are in RED.
Without knowing anything about the team itself, consider the following questions:
What does this team likely tend to do well?
What does this team probably tend to struggle with?
What, if any, issues would you anticipate might be of concern as you lead this team?
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16. TEAMS and STRENGTHS
Take some time to consider a team to which you are connected.
Can you plot their strengths on this chart?
Given what you know about the members of your team, can you identify some opportunities to better leverage their unique talents and strengths any better or differently than perhaps has been the case in the past? How?
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17. LEADING FROM THE EMERGING FUTURE
Week Practicum Components
In Theory U (2008), Otto Scharmer, a senior lecturer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management, cites observations stemming from his experience working with some of the world's most accomplished leaders and innovators. He demonstrates how groups and organizations can develop seven leadership capacities in order to create a future that would not otherwise be possible. In a follow-up work entitled Leading from the Emerging Future (2013), Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaufer ask, why do we collectively create results nobody wants? Meeting the challenges of this century requires updating our economic logic and operating system from an obsolete “ego-system” focused entirely on the well-being of oneself to an eco-system awareness that emphasizes the well-being of the whole.
In a biological sense, an eco-system is a community of plants, animals, and smaller organisms that live, feed, reproduce, and interact in the same area or environment — the more in-tune the system is to the needs and desires of each individual component, the more vibrant the system becomes. Since each part of the community depends on the other, it is important to maximize the potential of component parts without drawing too much away from the whole. It is in this area of balance that ecosystems may survive and thrive.
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18. SEEKING THE SWEET SPOT
In any structured situation there is likely to be work you are required to do that is outside your comfort zone and/or strengths pattern — but because it is in your portfolio or assigned to your department, the task at hand defaults to you. There are also likely to be things (activities) you are passionate about that do not fall within that same portfolio. The object of your desire should be, when and where possible, to achieve alignment between those things you are truly passionate about, those things you are good at and enjoy doing, and those tasks that tend to default to you because of who you are and what you may be assigned to do. It is a constant balancing act, but when you find that sweet spot you will discover how much easier it is to get through even the most arduous day.
Equally important is allowing and/or empowering those around you to find their sweet spot. That is a true leadership challenge.
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19. “YOU” ARE UNIQUE
YOU
At your core there exists a unique set of talents, skills, and abilities. These are not difficult to discover. There are many “strength finder” type assessments that are capable of pointing out these abilities. What usually goes unnoticed are the multiple enablers that surround our lives and enhance our abilities. They make our talents and abilities come alive. And they come in many forms. They stem from opportunities and circumstances that are unique to us. Some are from the place of privilege (which is true of most, even though often not apparent). And some are from the place of adversity. They are the parts of life that make you one of a kind. It is more than your strengths. It is your strengths combined with your life’s events.
You might share some of the same strengths as someone else, but the opportunities and circumstances surrounding your origin, environment, and experiences make you unique. Consider some of the enablers surrounding your strengths that make you unique — not just the skills you have mastered, or your bubbling personality, or even your special areas of interest and core values. There are a variety of influencers and factors that contribute to your uniqueness.
Your Character is Unique – this is an essential — not an elective. It is a must if you want to do something of significance. This usually gets top billing when you are observed.
Your Experiences are Unique – the total of your experiences have left an indelible mark. You cannot deny them, make them up, nor change them. They are yours. Even though time moves on, it passes to the present from those experiences. They are, therefore, to be embraced.
Your Advantages are Unique – there are things in life that have given you a potential leg-up on life. Do you know what they are? Others do! They are what they are – advantages. No two people’s advantages are the same – so rule out comparison. Ignorance will underplay them. Acknowledgment will leverage them.
Your Obstacles are Unique – no one gets far in life without some “game-threatening” challenge. The victim posture never creates learning. At best it will neutralize you and at worst it will nullify you. Neither one is a good option. The resilient person is either up, or getting back up. Your obstacles have been significant in making you who you are today. Your greatness lies outside your circle of comfort.
Because you are unique, the value you bring to others (family, friends, colleagues, etc.) may also be unique. There is an ascending and descending scale of the value we bring to people. We can bring a number of valuable things their way, but not all of them are of the same value to the recipient. The value you bring is multiplied in its benefit. Since they are a part of who you are, the recipient gains more than you give. It is exponential for them, and therefore a great investment of your efforts.
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20. Coaching and Talent Development Encouraging the Heart
TOPICS ON STRENGTHS
Change
MLQ/LSPS
Managing People
Coaching and Talent Development
Encouraging the Heart
Today we have addressed strengths largely through a singular lens. As the week continues, we will contextualize your knowledge and understanding of strengths as we engage in discussions on many other topics. For example, you will be asked to consider how your strengths relate to the ability to embrace change, we will explore the options and opportunities for you to engage in activities that leverage your strengths as a transformational leader, you will be asked to apply your knowledge on strengths to exercises related to coaching and talent development, and finally, you will consider how you can better connect to those around you by way of identifying and encouraging others to apply their strengths in the workplace and in their lives on a more routine basis.
The research indicates that in most countries where survey results are available, most of us report we do not live and work to our strengths on a daily basis. According to the Gallup organization, “globally, only 20 percent of employees working in the large organizations we surveyed feel that their strengths are in play every day. Most bizarre of all, the longer an employee stays with an organization and the higher he climbs the traditional career ladder, the less likely he is to strongly agree that he is playing to his strengths.” By focusing our time and attention on the options and opportunities we have to truly live and work to our strengths, we hope to move the needle in a more positive direction.
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21. A strengths-based philosophy should permeate the workplace.
SUMMARY
Strengths Matter!
A strengths-based philosophy should permeate the workplace.
You are unique— so is your team!
Apply strengths to other aspects of leadership and management.
People and organizations who know and use their strengths tend to be better performers. Workers who received strengths feedback had turnover rates that were lower than for employees who received no feedback. In a study which looked at comparative productivity data, teams with managers who received strengths feedback showed greater productivity post-intervention than teams with managers who received no feedback. A Gallup study of business units ranging from small to large found units with managers who received strengths feedback showed greater profitability post-intervention relative to units in which the manager received no feedback. Applying the strengths philosophy reliably and consistently contributes to personal engagement, well-being, and productivity.
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22. OTHER STRENGTHS SURVEYS
Identity
Market Reach
VIA
120 Questions
15 Minutes
24 Strengths
Over 2.6 Million
StrengthsFinder
180 Statements/Choices
30 Minutes
34 Strength Themes
Over 10 Million
Realise2
240 Questions
20 Minutes
60 Strengths
70,000
StandOut
34 Situations
20-25 Minutes
IDs Strength Roles (9 Total)
,000
While we emphasize Gallup’s Clifton StrengthsFinder survey in this program, there are other competing models available for use and application.
The VIA Survey was created by Chris Peterson who scanned time and space to find the strengths that were most valued historically and cross-culturally. Their final list encompasses 24 strengths, and versions are available for children and youth. The VIA has been taken by over 1.3 million people around the world. A VIA report will give you insight into your ability to access all 24 strengths.
The Clifton StrengthsFinder from Gallup has been updated over the years to reflect trends in business and application. It has been taken by millions of people who have either purchased a book or a code, and it provides information about relative strengths of 34 talents themes. Gallup researchers, notably Donald Clifton, Marcus Buckingham, and Tom Rath, created the list of talents based on studies of human behavior in organizations that occurred over 40 years. A StrengthsFinder report will give you insight into your top 5 talent themes that become strengths when you bring them into play in the real world.
More recently, the Realise2 has come onto the scene. Realise2 was developed by the Centre for Applied Positive Psychology (CAPP) in the United Kingdom. Where previous strengths assessments were based on the assumption that all you needed to do was know and build on your strengths, Realise2 is more nuanced and provides insight not just into your realized strengths, but also into your learned behaviors (those strengths that you can use well but do not energize you), your unrealized strengths, and your weaknesses.
StandOut from The Marcus Buckingham Company represents the newest contribution to the mix that is positioned as both an individual and team assessment. It has a business focus. The report has sections to help you build on your strengths in leadership, management, customer service, sales, and forming your ideal career. The slogan is “Find your edge. Win at work.” This assessment promises to help you stand out in your professional work environment. As the website says, the purpose of the strengths assessment is not to affirm, but rather “to help you accelerate your performance and contribution.”
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23. REFLECTION Reflect on the discussion that we had in this seminar.
What are the major issues and ideas you noted?
________________________________________________
Which of these issues relate most to your journey as a leader?
___________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
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