Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder

by Jim Clifton

Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder delves into the psychology of the entrepreneur. Gallup research shows that decisions and actions, influenced by the personality of the entrepreneur, impact the survival and growth of the venture.

Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder is about understanding what drives entrepreneurs to start, sustain, and grow a successful company. What are the personality characteristics and behaviors that lead to venture creation and success? Can one learn to be an entrepreneur, or are you born with it? The book attempts to answer these questions with the hope that if you are planning to start a business or are managing one, you can discover your entrepreneurial talents and in the process, increase your potential to start or grow your venture.

Written in an engaging, conversational style, Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder includes strategies and action items for building successful ventures. It also features an online test that measures readers’ entrepreneurial potential.

Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder is meant for several audiences � from those who are planning to start or grow a business to investors and coaches who can help identify talent and then foster and support that talent to start or grow a business.

Genres: Business, Entrepreneurship, Personal Development, Nonfiction, Self Help, Management, Leadership

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 10, 2014

Reviews

[PG "I ain't finna read that"]

Can't really read the book with taking the quiz.
I took the quiz.
I'm glad I did.

[Michael David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wouldn't have bought this book if it weren't on sale, but since it was on sale, and I was a bit curious, I purchased it.

This book caters more to the students of entrepreneurship. Jim Clifton was right in saying that entrepreneurship isn't scouted as efficiently as intelligence or athleticism, but is as important as the two.

Sangeeta Badal distills the ten entrepreneurial strengths that make certain people great entrepreneurs. These are:

1) Business Focus
2) Confidence
3) Creative Thinker
4) Delegator
5) Determination
6) Knowledge-Seeker
7) Promoter
8) Relationship-Builder
9) Risk-Taker
10) Independent (I forgot this)

Whenever a person possess all ten strengths, he is destined to become a great entrepreneur. However, even if he doesn't, like the other CliftonStrengths, he can supplement his weaknesses by finding people that could address them (thus the Delegator strength is also important). I probably won't have any use for this, seeing that the world of business is far too unpredictable and cutthroat for me to enjoy, but I love learning about these things.

Confidence, Determination, Independent, and Knowledge-Seeker are most likely my strengths. Should I be a CEO? Probably not.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the book was ok. Author basically believes that entrepreneurs are born and not made. One can develop traits of an entrepreneur, but they will never be as good as someone inherently born one. Not sure if I buy into that belief. I can to some degree. For example, not everyone can be great at basketball. I probably can work at it every day but only be so good at it as I do not have a natural talent for it. On the other hand, this idea that you are inherently born an entrepreneur seems to be in conflict with the growth mindset. I do think to some degree, certain personality types are suited for entrepreneurship but most people prefer being employees over being in charge of their employment. I do like the idea that people are too fixated on innovation and it's better to focus on nurturing entrepreneurship. I would agree with this, although being innovative is important as we are always evolving economically and a business won't be successful in the long-run if it doesn't try to adapt and evolve with the changing times.

[Aaron Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great quick read with lots of nice highlights on skills that you may have, how you can better them, and help you define which skills you might be lacking. Includes a nice introduction by Jim Clifton about the importance of finding and empowering youth who have these desirable entrepreneurial skills and the importance of entrepreneurs in building a strong economy.

[Lino Verde · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do not agree with the authors 100% on everything, but I did learn something new.
It was good to learn my strength and my weakness, and to understand the dominant, contributing and supporting talents of mine.

[Chinarut · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got a lot of benefit from StrengthsFinder 2.0 over the course of a year and a Gallup-certified strengths coach recommended I look into the EP10. I agree with others that the results are not so "mind blowing" as you might find Strengths Finder. At the end of the day, it took a few months for the key suggestion to really sink in - in my case, to refocus on my personal branding - turns out this hit the nail on the head and was able to monetize my personal brand I developed through Business Model You fairly quickly so this was a pleasant surprise. I dock a star because Gallup decided to reformat the report and I can't say I'm a big fan of the new b&w format - in particular, the new report was missing the piece of coaching that made the EP10 worthwhile for me! The new format just seems a lot more sparse and less sophisticated (and for those of you who know how detailed and in-depth the Strengths Finder report is, prepare to be underwhelmed). That said, I still recommend the assessment, it came in really handy while sitting down with a career coach because I was able to validate his observations by sharing my EP10 results. I really look forward to seeing this part of Gallup expand as this part of the movement grows.

[Meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

A somewhat interesting little book. It comes with a code so you can go online and assess your strengths in 10 entrepreneurial qualities. It then explains the pros and cons of those strengths and how best to use them to achieve your business goals. It's a quick read and one would easily be able to go back and re-reference the skills to see how one can improve. A good peruse for those interested in beginning and running their own businesses - not so much as to the practicalities of how to set up a business, but how to act in order to be successful. Not really something that interests me, but sometimes I like to read books in order to find ways to improve my skill set.

[Matt Sternisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started off with a promising opening, but after the initial chapters it failed to offer any tangible advice and generally only offered very cliche recommendations. It was neat that you get the opportunity to take a self-assessment to better understand your entrepreneurial strengths, but overall it seemed more theoretical and less practical. I did really like the quotes and excerpts from current business leaders which exemplified each strength discussed. But again, overall it seems that this book lack a certain practicality in the application of its points. I would likely not recommend this book.

[Dr. Chad Newton, PhD-HRD · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall, this book contained informal descriptions with subjective arguments for a particular paradigm. Although some terms of industrial psychology emerged, the writers used "you" statements without carefully addressing who the intended audience was. Therefore, I recommend an edited version with more APA-formality in order to minimize confusion about audience, narrative meanings, and intended points of emphasis.

[Two Readers in Love · Rating 1 out of 5]

I disagree with the author's premise that entrepreneurs are born not made, and that city leaders need to develop programs to identify these "God-given" entrepreneurs and put them in public programs to nurture their talent. But I read lots of books I disagree with, and I don't rate them poorly as long as they articulater their points. This book gets one star because it turns out to be just a long advertisement to sell the "Gallup Entrepreneurial StrengthsFinder" itself to city leaders.

[Amanda Huber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is meant for those just beginning their entrepreneur careers. The beginning has some good content and the test at the end gives you more clarity in where your strengths are and how to use them. I will be referring back to this book now and then as a reminder of my strengths and what to focus on.

[Vernée Norman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this from a friend and am glad I did--it's not worth $30. As other reviewers mentioned, there's nothing particularly mind blowing about the content. The information about the 10 Strengths was okay but there was a lack of diversity among the successful entrepreneurs they featured. It was a quick and easy read but I probably wouldn't revisit it in the future.

[Toshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read again after 7 years, as I've been actually an entrepreneur. 7 Years ago, I was an employee of P&G. After reading, I did Builder Profile 10 online profiling test, and I found myself lacking 'sales' strength. This led me to put up an open job posting for sales position, and now I'm very happy with new members!

[Beck · Rating 1 out of 5]

The actual content of this book could fit on the front and back of a single piece of notebook paper. In summary: entrepreneurs are what drives a countries economy, so we should identify people with the innate skill of being an entrepreneur early, the same way we test for high IQ in grade school.

[Tony Bradshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some great quotes in this book, and I was surprised by the target audience: City Leaders! Then the second half seemed to be targeted at young professionals to get them to have the traits of an entrepreneur. Not what I expected from this book.

[Abdulrahman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple, to the point, and easy to read. At points repetitive but still nonetheless useful.

[H.frietze · Rating 5 out of 5]

DELEGATOR - RELATIONSHIPS

Shared with DATOHE AND NECASM

[Kelsey Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good stuff.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative

Easy to read and descriptions of the various types was useful. Also enjoyed the quotes from company leaders. I recommend this book.

[Sandeep Gautam · Rating 5 out of 5]

a small, concise book; but a good guide to understanding the EP10.

[Sybil · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short and informative book. Easy read!

[Walter Oh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great opening about entrepreneurship and the economy plus the ability to systemize the skills through a framework. The rest is in the online quiz attached. A book to be referred to occasionally.

[Gunhee Park · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although a promising opening, the book failed to offer any tangible advice and generally only offered very cliche recommendations

[Julianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly just bought the book so I could take the test. I found the test interesting, the book a little less so. I didn't feel like this one clicked as much as the traditional StrengthsFinder.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting opening about innovators (thinkers) vs. entrepreneurs (doers). Quick read. I checked this book out at a library, so I didn't have access to the online assessment.

[Ryan Barretto · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good insight on the traits of an entrepreneur with the Strengthsfinder for Entrepreneurs.

[Norm · Rating 5 out of 5]

quick and easy read. provides great value on identifying strengths and weaknesses of what is required to be a successful entrepreneur. only .5% of the population are "born" with pure skills, the rest have to work at it. also talks of the importance for the country, states, and cities to develop the skills of creating successful businesses.