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Go Put Your Strengths to Work: 6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance
Marcus Buckingham’s books have guided millions to become top performers in everything they do by focusing on their strengths. In Go Put Your Strengths to Work, a Wall Street Journal bestseller, Buckingham will show you how to hone and apply your strengths for maximum success in your career.
Research data show that most people do not come close to making full use of their assets at work—in fact, only seventeen percent of the workforce believe they use all of their strengths on the job. Go Put Your Strengths to Work aims to change that through a six-step, six-week experience that will reveal the hidden dimensions of your strengths. Buckingham shows you how to seize control of your assets and rewrite your job description under the nose of your boss. You will learn:
-Why your strengths aren't “what you are good at” and your weaknesses aren’t “what you are bad at.”
-How to use the four telltale signs to identify your strengths.
-The simple steps you can take each week to push your time at work toward those activities that strengthen you and away from those that don’t.
-How to talk to your boss and your colleagues about your strengths without sounding like you’re bragging and about your weaknesses without sounding like you’re whining.
-The fifteen-minute weekly ritual that will keep you on your strengths path your entire career.
With structured exercises that will become part of your regular workweek and proven tactics from people who have successfully applied the book's lessons, Go Put Your Strengths to Work will arm you with a radically different approach to your work life. As part of the book's program you'll take an online Strengths Engagement Track, a focused and powerful gauge that has proven to be the best way to measure the level of engagement of your strengths or your team's strengths. You can also download the first two segments of the renowned companion film series Trombone Player Wanted.
Go Put Your Strengths to Work will open up exciting uncharted territory for you and your organization. Join the strengths movement and thrive.
Research data show that most people do not come close to making full use of their assets at work—in fact, only seventeen percent of the workforce believe they use all of their strengths on the job. Go Put Your Strengths to Work aims to change that through a six-step, six-week experience that will reveal the hidden dimensions of your strengths. Buckingham shows you how to seize control of your assets and rewrite your job description under the nose of your boss. You will learn:
-Why your strengths aren't “what you are good at” and your weaknesses aren’t “what you are bad at.”
-How to use the four telltale signs to identify your strengths.
-The simple steps you can take each week to push your time at work toward those activities that strengthen you and away from those that don’t.
-How to talk to your boss and your colleagues about your strengths without sounding like you’re bragging and about your weaknesses without sounding like you’re whining.
-The fifteen-minute weekly ritual that will keep you on your strengths path your entire career.
With structured exercises that will become part of your regular workweek and proven tactics from people who have successfully applied the book's lessons, Go Put Your Strengths to Work will arm you with a radically different approach to your work life. As part of the book's program you'll take an online Strengths Engagement Track, a focused and powerful gauge that has proven to be the best way to measure the level of engagement of your strengths or your team's strengths. You can also download the first two segments of the renowned companion film series Trombone Player Wanted.
Go Put Your Strengths to Work will open up exciting uncharted territory for you and your organization. Join the strengths movement and thrive.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
203 people are currently reading
6093 people want to read
About the author
Marcus Buckingham
84 books613 followersIn a world where efficiency and competency rule the workplace, where do personal strengths fit in?
It's a complex question, one that intrigued Cambridge-educated Marcus Buckingham so greatly, he set out to answer it by challenging years of social theory and utilizing his nearly two decades of research experience as a Sr. Researcher at Gallup Organization to break through the preconceptions about achievements and get to the core of what drives success.
The result of his persistence, and arguably the definitive answer to the strengths question can be found in Buckingham's four best-selling books First, Break All the Rules (coauthored with Curt Coffman, Simon & Schuster, 1999); Now, Discover Your Strengths (coauthored with Donald O. Clifton, The Free Press, 2001); The One Thing You Need to Know (The Free Press, 2005) and Go Put Your Strengths To Work (The Free Press, 2007). The author gives important insights to maximizing strengths, understanding the crucial differences between leadership and management, and fulfilling the quest for long-lasting personal success. In his most recent book, Buckingham offers ways to apply your strengths for maximum success at work.
What would happen if men and women spent more than 75% of each day on the job using their strongest skills and engaged in their favorite tasks, basically doing exactly what they wanted to do?
According to Marcus Buckingham (who spent years interviewing thousands of employees at every career stage and who is widely considered one of the world's leading authorities on employee productivity and the practices of leading and managing), companies that focus on cultivating employees' strengths rather than simply improving their weaknesses stand to dramatically increase efficiency while allowing for maximum personal growth and success.
If such a theory sounds revolutionary, that's because it is. Marcus Buckingham calls it the “strengths revolution.”
As he addresses more than 250,000 people around the globe each year, Buckingham touts this strengths revolution as the key to finding the most effective route to personal success and the missing link to the efficiency, competency, and success for which many companies constantly strive.
To kick-start the strengths revolution, Buckingham and Gallup developed the StrengthsFinder exam (StrengthsFinder.com), which identifies signature themes that help employees quantify their personal strengths in the workplace and at home. Since the StrengthsFinder debuted in 2001, more than 1 million people have discovered their strengths with this useful and important tool.
In his role as author, independent consultant and speaker, Marcus Buckingham has been the subject of in-depth profiles in The New York Times, Fortune, Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, USA Today and the Wall Street Journal and is routinely lauded by such corporations as Toyota, Coca-Cola, Master Foods, Wells Fargo, Yahoo and Disney as an invaluable resource in informing, challenging, mentoring and inspiring people to find their strengths and obtain and sustain long-lasting personal success.
A wonderful resource for leaders, managers, and educators, Buckingham challenges conventional wisdom and shows the link between engaged employees and productivity, profit, customer satisfaction, and the rate of turnover. Buckingham graduated from Cambridge University in 1987 with a master's degree in Social and Political Science.
It's a complex question, one that intrigued Cambridge-educated Marcus Buckingham so greatly, he set out to answer it by challenging years of social theory and utilizing his nearly two decades of research experience as a Sr. Researcher at Gallup Organization to break through the preconceptions about achievements and get to the core of what drives success.
The result of his persistence, and arguably the definitive answer to the strengths question can be found in Buckingham's four best-selling books First, Break All the Rules (coauthored with Curt Coffman, Simon & Schuster, 1999); Now, Discover Your Strengths (coauthored with Donald O. Clifton, The Free Press, 2001); The One Thing You Need to Know (The Free Press, 2005) and Go Put Your Strengths To Work (The Free Press, 2007). The author gives important insights to maximizing strengths, understanding the crucial differences between leadership and management, and fulfilling the quest for long-lasting personal success. In his most recent book, Buckingham offers ways to apply your strengths for maximum success at work.
What would happen if men and women spent more than 75% of each day on the job using their strongest skills and engaged in their favorite tasks, basically doing exactly what they wanted to do?
According to Marcus Buckingham (who spent years interviewing thousands of employees at every career stage and who is widely considered one of the world's leading authorities on employee productivity and the practices of leading and managing), companies that focus on cultivating employees' strengths rather than simply improving their weaknesses stand to dramatically increase efficiency while allowing for maximum personal growth and success.
If such a theory sounds revolutionary, that's because it is. Marcus Buckingham calls it the “strengths revolution.”
As he addresses more than 250,000 people around the globe each year, Buckingham touts this strengths revolution as the key to finding the most effective route to personal success and the missing link to the efficiency, competency, and success for which many companies constantly strive.
To kick-start the strengths revolution, Buckingham and Gallup developed the StrengthsFinder exam (StrengthsFinder.com), which identifies signature themes that help employees quantify their personal strengths in the workplace and at home. Since the StrengthsFinder debuted in 2001, more than 1 million people have discovered their strengths with this useful and important tool.
In his role as author, independent consultant and speaker, Marcus Buckingham has been the subject of in-depth profiles in The New York Times, Fortune, Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, USA Today and the Wall Street Journal and is routinely lauded by such corporations as Toyota, Coca-Cola, Master Foods, Wells Fargo, Yahoo and Disney as an invaluable resource in informing, challenging, mentoring and inspiring people to find their strengths and obtain and sustain long-lasting personal success.
A wonderful resource for leaders, managers, and educators, Buckingham challenges conventional wisdom and shows the link between engaged employees and productivity, profit, customer satisfaction, and the rate of turnover. Buckingham graduated from Cambridge University in 1987 with a master's degree in Social and Political Science.
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February 21, 2012
Go Put Your Strengths to Work: Marcus Buckingham
Central Truths
1. The profitable question to ask is “How can we build the kind of workplace where more than two out of 10 people use their strengths for most of the day.
2. It is wise to look to a person’s behavior for clues to his underlying personality – it is wise to conclude that his underlying personality will be consistent across time and situations.
3. I will not learn and grow the most in my areas of weakness.
4. I will learn the most, grow the most, and develop the most in my areas of greatest strength.
5. My strengths are defined by my actual activities. They are things I do and more specifically, things I do consistently and near perfectly.
6. Strengths are made up of three separate ingredients: talents, skills, and knowledge.
Applications:
1. To identify strengths, pay close attention to how specific activities make me feel: powerful, confident, authentic, great or drained, frustrated, wiped out, forced, or irritated.
2. Learn new skills and techniques to sharpen each strength.
3. Build my job toward each strength; turn the best of my job into most of my job.
4. Manage around weaknesses: stop doing activity (see if anyone cares); team up with someone who is strengthened by very activity that weakens me; or offer up one of my strengths and gradually steer my job toward this strength and away from this weakness.
5. Seize control of my time at work.
6. Capture which activities over the course of a week played to my strengths and which ones played to my weaknesses.
7. Clarify the specific activities I have captured – arrive at statements that are both precise enough to preserve the original emotional punch and general enough for me to apply each week.
8. Confirm that these are indeed my most dominant strengths.
9. Strong Week Plan: identify two specific actions that I will take each week to free my strengths and two actions to stop my weaknesses – devise plan each week to push toward two specific activities and away from two others.
Other Facts:
1. Four signs of a strength: S (success); I (instinct); G (growth); and N (needs).
2. Success: for an activity to be labeled a strength, I must have ability in it. When I do it, I feel effective.
3. Instinct: I am drawn to certain activities repeatedly. Before I do it, I actively look forward to it.
4. Growth: how I feel during activity. Simple to learn. I want to learn more. While I am doing it, I feel inquisitive and focused.
5. Needs: how I feel after the activity: satisfying feeling. It feels authentic and correct.
6. Need to be aware of my Is (Instinct), my Gs (Growth), and my Ns (Needs) – they drive my Ss (success).
7. I draws me in, G keeps focused, and the N makes me feel great.
Central Truths
1. The profitable question to ask is “How can we build the kind of workplace where more than two out of 10 people use their strengths for most of the day.
2. It is wise to look to a person’s behavior for clues to his underlying personality – it is wise to conclude that his underlying personality will be consistent across time and situations.
3. I will not learn and grow the most in my areas of weakness.
4. I will learn the most, grow the most, and develop the most in my areas of greatest strength.
5. My strengths are defined by my actual activities. They are things I do and more specifically, things I do consistently and near perfectly.
6. Strengths are made up of three separate ingredients: talents, skills, and knowledge.
Applications:
1. To identify strengths, pay close attention to how specific activities make me feel: powerful, confident, authentic, great or drained, frustrated, wiped out, forced, or irritated.
2. Learn new skills and techniques to sharpen each strength.
3. Build my job toward each strength; turn the best of my job into most of my job.
4. Manage around weaknesses: stop doing activity (see if anyone cares); team up with someone who is strengthened by very activity that weakens me; or offer up one of my strengths and gradually steer my job toward this strength and away from this weakness.
5. Seize control of my time at work.
6. Capture which activities over the course of a week played to my strengths and which ones played to my weaknesses.
7. Clarify the specific activities I have captured – arrive at statements that are both precise enough to preserve the original emotional punch and general enough for me to apply each week.
8. Confirm that these are indeed my most dominant strengths.
9. Strong Week Plan: identify two specific actions that I will take each week to free my strengths and two actions to stop my weaknesses – devise plan each week to push toward two specific activities and away from two others.
Other Facts:
1. Four signs of a strength: S (success); I (instinct); G (growth); and N (needs).
2. Success: for an activity to be labeled a strength, I must have ability in it. When I do it, I feel effective.
3. Instinct: I am drawn to certain activities repeatedly. Before I do it, I actively look forward to it.
4. Growth: how I feel during activity. Simple to learn. I want to learn more. While I am doing it, I feel inquisitive and focused.
5. Needs: how I feel after the activity: satisfying feeling. It feels authentic and correct.
6. Need to be aware of my Is (Instinct), my Gs (Growth), and my Ns (Needs) – they drive my Ss (success).
7. I draws me in, G keeps focused, and the N makes me feel great.
April 1, 2019
I give this book 3.5 stars. The idea makes sense - build on your strengths rather than work on your weaknesses. This way, you go from good to great in using skills you enjoy. Most managers focus on addressing employees' weaknesses, which just brings that particular skillset from terrible to bad. The book expands on these steps to put your strengths to work:
1. Bust the myths (for example, you will grow by working on your weaknesses).
2. Get clear on what your strengths are.
3. Free your strengths (make the most of what strengthens you).
4. Stop your weaknesses (cut out what weakens you).
5. Speak up (let others know what your strengths are).
6. Build strong habits (continually build on your strengths).
It's unfortunate that the book isn't better written and has better real-life examples. Also, it uses mneomics that are forced to work, like 'SIGN' (which isn't memorable):
Success: Which activities do you do most successfully?
Instinct: Which do you feel like doing most intuitively?
Growth: Are you continually getting better in these activities, in an almost natural way?
Needs: Do these activities matter to you, making you feel fulfilled and content?
1. Bust the myths (for example, you will grow by working on your weaknesses).
2. Get clear on what your strengths are.
3. Free your strengths (make the most of what strengthens you).
4. Stop your weaknesses (cut out what weakens you).
5. Speak up (let others know what your strengths are).
6. Build strong habits (continually build on your strengths).
It's unfortunate that the book isn't better written and has better real-life examples. Also, it uses mneomics that are forced to work, like 'SIGN' (which isn't memorable):
Success: Which activities do you do most successfully?
Instinct: Which do you feel like doing most intuitively?
Growth: Are you continually getting better in these activities, in an almost natural way?
Needs: Do these activities matter to you, making you feel fulfilled and content?
March 27, 2011
Last year I was reading in Success magazine about how two coaches approached giving feedback to their teams. The first coach made the team watch the video of the game and he pointed out everything the team did wrong. The second coach also made his team watch the replay, but he pointed out everything the team did right. Researchers found that the team that improved the most was the one where the coach had focused on his team's strengths.
In "Go, Put Your Strengths to Work", Marcus Buckingham shows how to apply the advice of the wiser coach to your career. Many employees lack the opportunity to use their strengths at work. First Buckingham explodes the myths that keep people focused on their weaknesses, then he helps you identify your strengths and learn how to put them to work, he addresses the question of dealing with weaknesses, and closes by showing how to make focusing on your strengths a habit.
Buckingham is another one of those authors whose work I've been familiar with because ideas are game-changing. He writes clearly, using emotional logic to convince you to focus on your strengths and address obstacles you may face on the way.
Employees and managers will get better at their game if they focus on their strengths.
In "Go, Put Your Strengths to Work", Marcus Buckingham shows how to apply the advice of the wiser coach to your career. Many employees lack the opportunity to use their strengths at work. First Buckingham explodes the myths that keep people focused on their weaknesses, then he helps you identify your strengths and learn how to put them to work, he addresses the question of dealing with weaknesses, and closes by showing how to make focusing on your strengths a habit.
Buckingham is another one of those authors whose work I've been familiar with because ideas are game-changing. He writes clearly, using emotional logic to convince you to focus on your strengths and address obstacles you may face on the way.
Employees and managers will get better at their game if they focus on their strengths.
March 29, 2008
I am not going to finish this book. Even though my boss told me to read it. I got up to page 160, which was like pulling teeth. The book says you shouldn't do this that make you feel tired and depleted, things that you dread doing. Well, that description perfectly fits how I feel about reading this book. Unless you're a complete moron, it will bore you to death to read this drivel.
March 22, 2015
كتاب تمريني رائع جدا .. سأعود له حينما أحتاجه مرة أخرى
وأنصحكم به جميعا
وأنصحكم به جميعا
December 29, 2012
I read this books as part of a reading group at work. It is a mediocre book with highly valuable information if you are willing to dig through the business speak and find it. As such, reading it in a group worked well. At our meetings, we were able to weed out the valuable information.
The theme of this book is that people do best when they focus on their strengths. This flies in the face of much popular wisdom which says that you should work to improve in your weakest areas. Instead, the authors of this book are of the opinion that focusing on your weaknesses will, at best, bring you up to mediocre. Focusing on those areas where you have natural talent and passion will bring success. They say that successful teams are balanced, but successful individuals invest in developing their unique talents.
This book contains a six step system for discovering and developing your strengths. Buckingham excels at the art of business babble, which makes this book something of a chore to read. However, the system itself is useful. At a high level, the steps in this system are:
1. Attitude realignment: Stop believing the myth that you should work on improving your weaknesses. (I wouldn't really call this a step, but whatever.)
2. Strength discovery: Spend a week noting which activities you love and loathe and turn those into strengths statements. A strength is a specific activity that makes you feel strong. For example, "I evaluate an already defined set of options against a set of well defined criteria" is a strength. "I make decisions" is not. The first one defines specific preconditions that must be met before the strength can apply: both the options and the criteria must be predefined.
3. Use your strengths: Find more way to apply these strengths in your job.
4. Stop your weaknesses: Find ways to spend less time on the activities you loathe.
5. Talk about it: Talk to your manager about how you can use your strengths to improve the team. Then, once you have demonstrated that you're not just trying to get out of work, talk to your manager about those things which drain you and figure out how to spend less time on them or change them to be more in line with your strengths.
6. Build strong habits: Set up a structure which will encourage you to build up your strengths every week. Also, reevaluate your strengths periodically; they will change as your role and interests change.
Our reading group focused mostly on the second step: strength discovery. I found this to be one of the most useful parts of the whole reading group. Just by spending a week being conscious of what I do and do not like, I gained a lot of insight into my work day. The exercise of turning those very specific statements into strengths statements that were general enough to be applicable from week to week without being so general as to be meaningless helped me to figure out why I enjoyed the activities that I enjoyed.
That said, I have been having a hard time focusing on really putting my strengths into practice. I am pretty good at noticing when I am using one of my strengths, but it takes time to figure out how I can spend more time using my strengths. I have not yet taken the time to sit down and do this.
Like any program, the real value is proportional to the amount of time you are willing to put into it. The answers the books give you are just a start. I found Go Put Your Strengths to Work to be valuable starting points in figuring out how I could really apply my strengths to my job.
The theme of this book is that people do best when they focus on their strengths. This flies in the face of much popular wisdom which says that you should work to improve in your weakest areas. Instead, the authors of this book are of the opinion that focusing on your weaknesses will, at best, bring you up to mediocre. Focusing on those areas where you have natural talent and passion will bring success. They say that successful teams are balanced, but successful individuals invest in developing their unique talents.
This book contains a six step system for discovering and developing your strengths. Buckingham excels at the art of business babble, which makes this book something of a chore to read. However, the system itself is useful. At a high level, the steps in this system are:
1. Attitude realignment: Stop believing the myth that you should work on improving your weaknesses. (I wouldn't really call this a step, but whatever.)
2. Strength discovery: Spend a week noting which activities you love and loathe and turn those into strengths statements. A strength is a specific activity that makes you feel strong. For example, "I evaluate an already defined set of options against a set of well defined criteria" is a strength. "I make decisions" is not. The first one defines specific preconditions that must be met before the strength can apply: both the options and the criteria must be predefined.
3. Use your strengths: Find more way to apply these strengths in your job.
4. Stop your weaknesses: Find ways to spend less time on the activities you loathe.
5. Talk about it: Talk to your manager about how you can use your strengths to improve the team. Then, once you have demonstrated that you're not just trying to get out of work, talk to your manager about those things which drain you and figure out how to spend less time on them or change them to be more in line with your strengths.
6. Build strong habits: Set up a structure which will encourage you to build up your strengths every week. Also, reevaluate your strengths periodically; they will change as your role and interests change.
Our reading group focused mostly on the second step: strength discovery. I found this to be one of the most useful parts of the whole reading group. Just by spending a week being conscious of what I do and do not like, I gained a lot of insight into my work day. The exercise of turning those very specific statements into strengths statements that were general enough to be applicable from week to week without being so general as to be meaningless helped me to figure out why I enjoyed the activities that I enjoyed.
That said, I have been having a hard time focusing on really putting my strengths into practice. I am pretty good at noticing when I am using one of my strengths, but it takes time to figure out how I can spend more time using my strengths. I have not yet taken the time to sit down and do this.
Like any program, the real value is proportional to the amount of time you are willing to put into it. The answers the books give you are just a start. I found Go Put Your Strengths to Work to be valuable starting points in figuring out how I could really apply my strengths to my job.
August 14, 2018
6 Powerful steps to achieve outstanding performance
1: Bust the myths
2: Get clear
3: Free your strengths
4: Stop your weaknesses
5: Speak up
6: Build strong habits
June 26, 2021
Good, practical tips for playing to your strengths
Currently reading
November 3, 2016checked out from Washington Co. Cooperative Library Services, 11/13 list.
from the library
from the library computer
Buckingham, an authority on workplace issues, provides a road map for managers to learn for themselves and then teach their employees how to approach their work by emphasizing their strengths rather than weaknesses. He offers a six-step plan for six weeks of reading and habit-forming action for discerning strengths, along with optional tools to enhance the process such as online questions for measuring strengths and downloaded films (two of which are free). The steps of his plan are belief that the best way to compete is capitalizing on your strengths, identifying your strengths and weaknesses, volunteering your strengths at work, lessening the impact of your weaknesses on your team, effectively communicating the value of your strengths while limiting work utilizing weaknesses, and building habits and pushing activities that play to strength. Although everyone will not agree with all the elements of Buckingham's approach, he offers valuable insight into maximizing employees' strengths rather than the more common focus on weaknesses and failure. ((Reviewed March 15, 2007)) Copyright 2007 Booklist Reviews.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Lead this Movement
The First Stage: How to Label
The Second Stage: How To Take Action
You Are Here
And You're Closer Than You Think
The 6-Step Discipline
Trombone Player Wanted
Step 1: Bust the Myths ``So, What's Stopping You?''
Meet Heidi
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
Step 2: Get Clear ``Do You Know What Your Strengths Are?''
The Four Signs of a Strength
Who Is the Best Judge of Your Strengths?
Capture, Clarify, and Confirm Your Strengths
Will Your Strengths Stay the Same Year after Year?
Heidi Gets Clear
Step 3: Free Your Strengths ``How Can You Make the Most of What Strengthens You?''
How Heidi Got Weak
How Heidi Got Strong
Your Strong Week Plan
Four Strategies to Put Your Strengths to Work
Your Free Interview
Step 4: Stop Your Weaknesses ``How Can You Cut Out What Weakens You?''
153 (46)
What Are Your Most Dominant Weaknesses?
Capture, Clarify, and Confirm Your Weaknesses
Quit ``Should-ing''
Four Strategies to Stop Your Weaknesses
Heidi Stops Calling
Your Stop Interview
Step 5: Speak Up ``How Can You Create Strong Teams?''
199 (44)
``Your Strengths Weaken Me''
Conversation 1: The Strengths Chat
Conversation 2: ``How I Can Help You''
Conversation 3: The Weakness Chat
Conversation 4: ``How You Can Help Me''
Tips for Strengths-Based Managers
Team Georgia
Step 6: Build Strong Habits ``How Can You Make This Last Forever?''
243 (24)
The End of the Beginning
The Strongest Habits
``And What Happens if . . .''
``. . . I don't know if I should take this job.''
``. . . I don't think I should have taken this job.''
``. . . I'm new to the job.''
``. . . I'm overworked.''
``. . . my manager doesn't understand me.''
``. . . my manager is an idiot.''
``. . . I'm burned out.''
``. . . in the grand scheme of things, my job's just not that important.''
``. . . deep down, I don't think I'm as good as everyone says I am.''
Coda: Take Your Stand
Acknowledgments
from the library
from the library computer
Buckingham, an authority on workplace issues, provides a road map for managers to learn for themselves and then teach their employees how to approach their work by emphasizing their strengths rather than weaknesses. He offers a six-step plan for six weeks of reading and habit-forming action for discerning strengths, along with optional tools to enhance the process such as online questions for measuring strengths and downloaded films (two of which are free). The steps of his plan are belief that the best way to compete is capitalizing on your strengths, identifying your strengths and weaknesses, volunteering your strengths at work, lessening the impact of your weaknesses on your team, effectively communicating the value of your strengths while limiting work utilizing weaknesses, and building habits and pushing activities that play to strength. Although everyone will not agree with all the elements of Buckingham's approach, he offers valuable insight into maximizing employees' strengths rather than the more common focus on weaknesses and failure. ((Reviewed March 15, 2007)) Copyright 2007 Booklist Reviews.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Lead this Movement
The First Stage: How to Label
The Second Stage: How To Take Action
You Are Here
And You're Closer Than You Think
The 6-Step Discipline
Trombone Player Wanted
Step 1: Bust the Myths ``So, What's Stopping You?''
Meet Heidi
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
Step 2: Get Clear ``Do You Know What Your Strengths Are?''
The Four Signs of a Strength
Who Is the Best Judge of Your Strengths?
Capture, Clarify, and Confirm Your Strengths
Will Your Strengths Stay the Same Year after Year?
Heidi Gets Clear
Step 3: Free Your Strengths ``How Can You Make the Most of What Strengthens You?''
How Heidi Got Weak
How Heidi Got Strong
Your Strong Week Plan
Four Strategies to Put Your Strengths to Work
Your Free Interview
Step 4: Stop Your Weaknesses ``How Can You Cut Out What Weakens You?''
153 (46)
What Are Your Most Dominant Weaknesses?
Capture, Clarify, and Confirm Your Weaknesses
Quit ``Should-ing''
Four Strategies to Stop Your Weaknesses
Heidi Stops Calling
Your Stop Interview
Step 5: Speak Up ``How Can You Create Strong Teams?''
199 (44)
``Your Strengths Weaken Me''
Conversation 1: The Strengths Chat
Conversation 2: ``How I Can Help You''
Conversation 3: The Weakness Chat
Conversation 4: ``How You Can Help Me''
Tips for Strengths-Based Managers
Team Georgia
Step 6: Build Strong Habits ``How Can You Make This Last Forever?''
243 (24)
The End of the Beginning
The Strongest Habits
``And What Happens if . . .''
``. . . I don't know if I should take this job.''
``. . . I don't think I should have taken this job.''
``. . . I'm new to the job.''
``. . . I'm overworked.''
``. . . my manager doesn't understand me.''
``. . . my manager is an idiot.''
``. . . I'm burned out.''
``. . . in the grand scheme of things, my job's just not that important.''
``. . . deep down, I don't think I'm as good as everyone says I am.''
Coda: Take Your Stand
Acknowledgments
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2022
I think I would have enjoyed this read more if I'd read it closer to its original release date--namely, when SimplyStrengths.com was still an active site (it's since been replaced, with only limited functionality and resources available). So much of the content is dependent on and fleshed out by material presumably on the website at that time.
BUT, that being said, there's still a lot to enjoy and glean from this read. It's practical and applicable, especially if you've read the other books in the series (First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently and Now, Discover Your Strengths: The revolutionary Gallup program that shows you how to develop your unique talents and strengths). This is where the rubber truly meets the road.
BUT, that being said, there's still a lot to enjoy and glean from this read. It's practical and applicable, especially if you've read the other books in the series (First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently and Now, Discover Your Strengths: The revolutionary Gallup program that shows you how to develop your unique talents and strengths). This is where the rubber truly meets the road.
April 5, 2009
The most useful of the books about the Clifton Strengths finder. Although it probably helped having read some of the other associated work, and being at an organization that uses this work. Not sure that I'll actually follow the suggested program, but it does give me something to aim towards. Most useful are its suggestions for taking the "strengths themes" and turning them into something actually useful on the job. Wish I'd had some of these ideas at hand when I was younger and thinking about what kind of career I wanted to head into.
July 13, 2008
Too esoteric and not that helpful. Some of it is practical, some application is not. I think some of the skills he mentions are innately practiced by high-performing individuals, but the exercises as a whole don't add up for many. A bit of a snoozer for me. He is a bit full of himself, too.
October 1, 2008
Great book! This puts the focus on what you do best not what your weak points are. Great for college students or those out in the business world. Instead of focusing on those C's or D's focus on the A's and B's you get in school or in the real world.
March 8, 2010
As with the others in this series, this was a real eye-opener into what really motivates us and how to best capture- no, make that cultivate, peak performance from ourselves and our teams
July 24, 2011
Read MAY 2007
This is a must read for anyone struggling with being effective and/or lost in the mire of all the various systems and programs out there. Very simple. Very effective.
This is a must read for anyone struggling with being effective and/or lost in the mire of all the various systems and programs out there. Very simple. Very effective.
July 26, 2019
As someone who is pretty fond of the Strengthsfinder test [1] and its implications, it was perhaps unsurprising that I would take to this book by one of the people involved in researching the test and would seek to ponder the way in which we can shape our lives around that which we do best. The author comes off as being a bit whiny with his English accent, but his points are driven home with both logic and a fair amount of sarcasm and some strong analogical reasoning. Throughout this book, over and over again, we see that the world as a whole doesn't care about your strengths and that it is the responsibility of people to communicate their strengths and weaknesses to others and to work to ensure that, as best as possible, they are able to manage their life to leverage their strength and to avoid their weaknesses. That most people do not do this well is quite sad, and can even be the source of much of life's tragedy where people find that they are simply not in a place where they can do their best work, and do not always know how to find the right job that does play to their strengths in what they do day in and day out.
This particular audiobook is in six discs and continually pushes the reader to act on what the author is saying. The author refers over and over again to the Strengths finder website as well as to the various .pdf files that are meant to encourage a practical response by the reader to discover their strengths as well as to deeply analyze their job and to think of creative ways, in cooperation with one's boss, to change the job to better capitalize on strengths and to minimize and avoid areas of weakness. The argument the author uses, the productivity gains one has when doing what one is strong at and the losses in productivity that result in doing what weakens us, is one that is meant to resonate with employers focused on bottom line results (which is all them), rather than to appeal to some sort of vagueish positive psychology. The author uses his own stories as well as a few recurring examples, like a talented Hampton brand manager, to illustrate his points on how people can better work within their strengths and therefore achieve far more at work than they would otherwise, and the message the author has about making one's life better rather than seeking to leave jobs because of the frustration one has is certainly a message that will be welcome to employers and strengths-minded workers alike.
Indeed, when reading this book I was struck by the way that managing any team or group effectively is rather like being an athletic coach. Everyone has roles that they perform best in, and teams work best when people are placed where they can best succeed and then pushed to work hard within those roles. One would stick a punter at left tackle and then berate him for not blocking well, nor would one expect a nose tackle to be a good placekicker and then be hard on him for missing field goals and extra points. But why do we do that when it comes to the teams that work in or volunteer in, where people are told that doing what frustrates us will make us stronger or that we need to be well-rounded. No one expects elite athletes to be well-rounded--rather we exploit the talents and strengths they have and make sure that the team as a whole is well-rounded. Why don't we act that way when it comes to other areas of life?
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
This particular audiobook is in six discs and continually pushes the reader to act on what the author is saying. The author refers over and over again to the Strengths finder website as well as to the various .pdf files that are meant to encourage a practical response by the reader to discover their strengths as well as to deeply analyze their job and to think of creative ways, in cooperation with one's boss, to change the job to better capitalize on strengths and to minimize and avoid areas of weakness. The argument the author uses, the productivity gains one has when doing what one is strong at and the losses in productivity that result in doing what weakens us, is one that is meant to resonate with employers focused on bottom line results (which is all them), rather than to appeal to some sort of vagueish positive psychology. The author uses his own stories as well as a few recurring examples, like a talented Hampton brand manager, to illustrate his points on how people can better work within their strengths and therefore achieve far more at work than they would otherwise, and the message the author has about making one's life better rather than seeking to leave jobs because of the frustration one has is certainly a message that will be welcome to employers and strengths-minded workers alike.
Indeed, when reading this book I was struck by the way that managing any team or group effectively is rather like being an athletic coach. Everyone has roles that they perform best in, and teams work best when people are placed where they can best succeed and then pushed to work hard within those roles. One would stick a punter at left tackle and then berate him for not blocking well, nor would one expect a nose tackle to be a good placekicker and then be hard on him for missing field goals and extra points. But why do we do that when it comes to the teams that work in or volunteer in, where people are told that doing what frustrates us will make us stronger or that we need to be well-rounded. No one expects elite athletes to be well-rounded--rather we exploit the talents and strengths they have and make sure that the team as a whole is well-rounded. Why don't we act that way when it comes to other areas of life?
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2011...
November 18, 2018
A good central idea -- you'll do your best work when you feel engaged, strong, and successful -- but not very useful overall. Why not?
1. Unsupported arguments. The three myths in Step 1 refer lightly to some twin studies, but overall, the reasoning given against the myths (and elsewhere in the book) is largely "because I say so."
2. Redefining ordinary terms. Previously, this author collaborated on an assessment named the StrengthsFinder. But now he says those aren't actually strengths, they're really talents, or "merely patterns." For this book, he wants to redefine strengths. His definition is very specific to your current job and your feelings. Advice to author: If you want to talk about something different from most people's definition of strengths, then you need a new word. Strengths is taken.
3. Unmemorable acronyms. The author introduces three acronyms to help you identify your strengths, move away from your weaknesses, and plan strong weeks at work. Unfortunately, the acronyms seem to have been chosen more because he liked the final word, not because of a strong match between the ideas and the letters. For example, the R of FREE is for Release: "Find the missed opportunities in your current role." But release means letting go, and this step involves identifying and adapting instead.
4. Annoying examples. If you're a 10-year-old with a stutter, then public speaking is not one of your strengths. Perhaps you like to do it, you have a good theoretical understanding of it, and one day you'll end up good at it, but it's not a strength at that time. And why take your competition-obsessed kid to a professional sports event? Maybe everyone would have more fun if you participated in activities that weren't competitions!
5. Dependence on web links. The book directs you to take a survey online, watch a video online, pay for other videos online, download special forms online, and integrate your work team's data online. Two issues here: The website has changed (it appears to forward successfully, but I couldn't use it), and a library copy of the book gets you zero access to this information after the first library user has entered the special code from the book jacket. For a book to have lasting relevance, all the necessary data should be IN the book, not online. (Or consider selling a slightly different edition for library use.) I had no motivation to do any of the later exercises in the book after being unable to do the first one online.
1. Unsupported arguments. The three myths in Step 1 refer lightly to some twin studies, but overall, the reasoning given against the myths (and elsewhere in the book) is largely "because I say so."
2. Redefining ordinary terms. Previously, this author collaborated on an assessment named the StrengthsFinder. But now he says those aren't actually strengths, they're really talents, or "merely patterns." For this book, he wants to redefine strengths. His definition is very specific to your current job and your feelings. Advice to author: If you want to talk about something different from most people's definition of strengths, then you need a new word. Strengths is taken.
3. Unmemorable acronyms. The author introduces three acronyms to help you identify your strengths, move away from your weaknesses, and plan strong weeks at work. Unfortunately, the acronyms seem to have been chosen more because he liked the final word, not because of a strong match between the ideas and the letters. For example, the R of FREE is for Release: "Find the missed opportunities in your current role." But release means letting go, and this step involves identifying and adapting instead.
4. Annoying examples. If you're a 10-year-old with a stutter, then public speaking is not one of your strengths. Perhaps you like to do it, you have a good theoretical understanding of it, and one day you'll end up good at it, but it's not a strength at that time. And why take your competition-obsessed kid to a professional sports event? Maybe everyone would have more fun if you participated in activities that weren't competitions!
5. Dependence on web links. The book directs you to take a survey online, watch a video online, pay for other videos online, download special forms online, and integrate your work team's data online. Two issues here: The website has changed (it appears to forward successfully, but I couldn't use it), and a library copy of the book gets you zero access to this information after the first library user has entered the special code from the book jacket. For a book to have lasting relevance, all the necessary data should be IN the book, not online. (Or consider selling a slightly different edition for library use.) I had no motivation to do any of the later exercises in the book after being unable to do the first one online.
July 16, 2014
Once upon a time, about nine years ago, I read a book called "Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton. It required me to take a survey online which asked me several questions about how I process information, relate to people, and so on, and then it gave me my top five "strength talents," things that I'm wired to do naturally. The premise of the book declared that by knowing these strengths, I could then start pursuing a career more meaningful to me, and that I would be better at it than at a job where I only focused on trying to improve my weaknesses.
They called it The Strengths Revolution.
This was all well and good, but sadly, while amazing in its precision and inspiring in its intent, it lacked sufficient practical application, at least for me. I finished the book with a greater sense of self-awareness, but little else.
Thankfully, that's not where the story ends.
My last employer (of over eight years) recently eliminated my department, and my father-in-law, knowing how miserable I was most of the time at my old job, and how distressed I felt over "what do I do now," loaned me "Go Put Your Strengths to Work" with this advice: The best way to know what to do next is to first understand how I've been designed.
"Go Put Your Strengths to Work" is justifiably called the companion book to "Now, Discover Your Strengths" because it contains all the practical and practicable application I wanted so much.
Buckingham's intent with this book is to identify six steps to achieving outstanding performance, and in each step, give the reader the tools they need to apply his tactics in their current situation, in their current role. The first four interested me highly, as I could apply them right now, but the last two didn't hold my attention so much since I don't currently have a manager. However, all are useful and insightful, and I know that later, when I'm working at my next job, I'll come back to this book and utilize it the way Buckingham intended.
There are three main ideas that resonate with me:
1. The myths.
Buckingham claims there are myths about our jobs and our lives that are so ingrained in us we aren't even aware of them, and even when they're brought to our attention, we continue to believe them because we think it BENEFITS us to do so, or because we believe that it would cost us too much to change our perspective. Buckingham reveals these to us, debunks them, presents a truth statement, and then asks questions to try and shake us out of this entrenched thinking.
2. The biology argument.
Science has proven over and over that when a person learns new things, the brain forms new neural pathways. Buckingham presents the argument that since the brain will ALWAYS try and use existing pathways instead of creating brand new ones (path of least resistance), each one of us will learn faster and better something that is related to what we already knows, and something we are already predisposed to know based on our innate talents (aforementioned strengths talents), our skills learned, and our knowledge acquired.
3. The emotions factor.
From the biology argument, Buckingham then proceeds to inform us that the sign of a strength activity is how we FEEL about it - what do we love doing? What makes us feel energized or excited or enthusiastic? What are we doing when we lose track of time, even to the extent of forgetting to eat? Those things are tied to strengths, clusters of neural networks in our brain, and it makes us HAPPY to do them. Our capacity for these things is greater, our contribution stronger, and our efficiency higher.
Likewise, something that we loathe doing, that makes us feel drained or bored or anxious, that seems to drag on and on and on - that is a weakness activity, and for a person to be truly efficient, they should avoid such activities as much as possible.
I discovered just how much this applies to me, in two specific ways, after a conversation I had with a writer friend this morning.
1. Several months ago, she suggested I try a different approach to my stories, since I seemed to have such a hard time with "writer's block." At the time, I was writing random scenes that occurred to me, then filling in blanks later - a connect the dots of sorts. I love to write, and I especially love to write stories, but this frustrated me to no end, made me feel disappointed and drained and inept. I was nearly at a point of giving up on the whole enterprise.
Then my friend suggested I try using an outline instead.
What Sharon didn't know at the time is that I used to be incredibly good at writing research papers in college because I had mastered the use of outlines - planning ahead what I'm going to say, and having side notes in a notebook or cards to keep my thoughts in order.
I realized today just how much I LOVE planning. I do it with everything, from my workout regime to my wardrobe, from my chores to my vacations. Even if I don't follow my plans exactly, I feel secure in the foundation I've laid, so that when deviations happen (because they always do), I can refer back to my baseline and adapt as needed. I feel energized and excited after I've created an amazing plan. Perhaps this is why I handle maps so well - there's the structure of the thing, and so long as I keep where we eventually want to be in sight, I can navigate around roadblocks and detours, and I don't feel anxious about it because of the original plan.
Ergo, using an outline for writing my stories is PERFECT for me. It's a strength, something I like to do, and do well if given the necessary information.
2. During our conversation this morning, Sharon did give me the feedback I wanted, but she did it in exactly the way I suddenly realized is a strength for me - she affirmed what I was doing well, praised me for it, and then gave me a handful of things to "tweak" to make my story even better.
I've had two types of feedback experiences, employment related or not: one is the laundry list of things I need to fix, and the other is the aforementioned "tweaking" method, where I'm told exactly what I'm doing well, and then one or two concrete things I can adjust slightly to make what's already good even better. My last coach was amazing at this method, and Sharon did this without even knowing it feeds my strengths.
How do I know, you ask? Because of how I felt afterwards. I didn't feel despair or a sense of failure, but rather I felt excited that she liked what I had written, and that there were specific things I could do to improve it as I work on my next draft. I had an overwhelming desire to tackle the thing RIGHT THEN, and I was happy doing it.
Since I found this book so useful, I'm positive there are others out there who will as well, and have the same kind of revelations I did, and feel empowered to do something about it.
Support your local library!
They called it The Strengths Revolution.
This was all well and good, but sadly, while amazing in its precision and inspiring in its intent, it lacked sufficient practical application, at least for me. I finished the book with a greater sense of self-awareness, but little else.
Thankfully, that's not where the story ends.
My last employer (of over eight years) recently eliminated my department, and my father-in-law, knowing how miserable I was most of the time at my old job, and how distressed I felt over "what do I do now," loaned me "Go Put Your Strengths to Work" with this advice: The best way to know what to do next is to first understand how I've been designed.
"Go Put Your Strengths to Work" is justifiably called the companion book to "Now, Discover Your Strengths" because it contains all the practical and practicable application I wanted so much.
Buckingham's intent with this book is to identify six steps to achieving outstanding performance, and in each step, give the reader the tools they need to apply his tactics in their current situation, in their current role. The first four interested me highly, as I could apply them right now, but the last two didn't hold my attention so much since I don't currently have a manager. However, all are useful and insightful, and I know that later, when I'm working at my next job, I'll come back to this book and utilize it the way Buckingham intended.
There are three main ideas that resonate with me:
1. The myths.
Buckingham claims there are myths about our jobs and our lives that are so ingrained in us we aren't even aware of them, and even when they're brought to our attention, we continue to believe them because we think it BENEFITS us to do so, or because we believe that it would cost us too much to change our perspective. Buckingham reveals these to us, debunks them, presents a truth statement, and then asks questions to try and shake us out of this entrenched thinking.
2. The biology argument.
Science has proven over and over that when a person learns new things, the brain forms new neural pathways. Buckingham presents the argument that since the brain will ALWAYS try and use existing pathways instead of creating brand new ones (path of least resistance), each one of us will learn faster and better something that is related to what we already knows, and something we are already predisposed to know based on our innate talents (aforementioned strengths talents), our skills learned, and our knowledge acquired.
3. The emotions factor.
From the biology argument, Buckingham then proceeds to inform us that the sign of a strength activity is how we FEEL about it - what do we love doing? What makes us feel energized or excited or enthusiastic? What are we doing when we lose track of time, even to the extent of forgetting to eat? Those things are tied to strengths, clusters of neural networks in our brain, and it makes us HAPPY to do them. Our capacity for these things is greater, our contribution stronger, and our efficiency higher.
Likewise, something that we loathe doing, that makes us feel drained or bored or anxious, that seems to drag on and on and on - that is a weakness activity, and for a person to be truly efficient, they should avoid such activities as much as possible.
I discovered just how much this applies to me, in two specific ways, after a conversation I had with a writer friend this morning.
1. Several months ago, she suggested I try a different approach to my stories, since I seemed to have such a hard time with "writer's block." At the time, I was writing random scenes that occurred to me, then filling in blanks later - a connect the dots of sorts. I love to write, and I especially love to write stories, but this frustrated me to no end, made me feel disappointed and drained and inept. I was nearly at a point of giving up on the whole enterprise.
Then my friend suggested I try using an outline instead.
What Sharon didn't know at the time is that I used to be incredibly good at writing research papers in college because I had mastered the use of outlines - planning ahead what I'm going to say, and having side notes in a notebook or cards to keep my thoughts in order.
I realized today just how much I LOVE planning. I do it with everything, from my workout regime to my wardrobe, from my chores to my vacations. Even if I don't follow my plans exactly, I feel secure in the foundation I've laid, so that when deviations happen (because they always do), I can refer back to my baseline and adapt as needed. I feel energized and excited after I've created an amazing plan. Perhaps this is why I handle maps so well - there's the structure of the thing, and so long as I keep where we eventually want to be in sight, I can navigate around roadblocks and detours, and I don't feel anxious about it because of the original plan.
Ergo, using an outline for writing my stories is PERFECT for me. It's a strength, something I like to do, and do well if given the necessary information.
2. During our conversation this morning, Sharon did give me the feedback I wanted, but she did it in exactly the way I suddenly realized is a strength for me - she affirmed what I was doing well, praised me for it, and then gave me a handful of things to "tweak" to make my story even better.
I've had two types of feedback experiences, employment related or not: one is the laundry list of things I need to fix, and the other is the aforementioned "tweaking" method, where I'm told exactly what I'm doing well, and then one or two concrete things I can adjust slightly to make what's already good even better. My last coach was amazing at this method, and Sharon did this without even knowing it feeds my strengths.
How do I know, you ask? Because of how I felt afterwards. I didn't feel despair or a sense of failure, but rather I felt excited that she liked what I had written, and that there were specific things I could do to improve it as I work on my next draft. I had an overwhelming desire to tackle the thing RIGHT THEN, and I was happy doing it.
Since I found this book so useful, I'm positive there are others out there who will as well, and have the same kind of revelations I did, and feel empowered to do something about it.
Support your local library!
August 24, 2023
This was another book that I had encountered as part of a Scaling Up reading list and I could only get it as an audiobook. This may not be the best way to consume content like this, but the companion PDF does help address some of the visuals and exercises discussed.
The core principle of the book sounds simple enough - try to pursue your strengths at work - but how they explain the process of discovering your strengths and how to shift things around is really where the meat is. And the book has some interesting case studies as examples using real-life examples as opposed to a lot of theoreticals, which I really appreciate.
Like many books of this nature, it's directed at the individual first with some additional perspectives for leaders later on. But I liked the balance of the approach here versus some other books that skew very heavily as a self-help book and then just have a chapter or two at the end for how to adapt the material for your team or your department.
It's a pretty solid experience and I am now wondering how I get more people at work to read it as well for their betterment - or maybe how I can relay this information to at least get more people thinking.
The core principle of the book sounds simple enough - try to pursue your strengths at work - but how they explain the process of discovering your strengths and how to shift things around is really where the meat is. And the book has some interesting case studies as examples using real-life examples as opposed to a lot of theoreticals, which I really appreciate.
Like many books of this nature, it's directed at the individual first with some additional perspectives for leaders later on. But I liked the balance of the approach here versus some other books that skew very heavily as a self-help book and then just have a chapter or two at the end for how to adapt the material for your team or your department.
It's a pretty solid experience and I am now wondering how I get more people at work to read it as well for their betterment - or maybe how I can relay this information to at least get more people thinking.
November 1, 2018
I absolutely loved this book! It provides a clear template of how to work to your strengths, instead of to your weaknesses. Most people are conditioned to believe that we need to focus on improving our areas of weakness in order to grow, both personally and professionally. However, the opposite is actually true. You need to focus on where you are already strong, and continue to build upon and enhance those skills. It is then imperative to direct your work days so that most tasks being performed are being done from one of your areas of strength. The book provides step-by-step processes for determining your strengths and how to maximize them on the job, as well as getting buy-in from your boss and coworkers. This is an excellent read and one I am sure I will find myself going back to again and again.
December 2, 2018
This book was okay. I read it as part of a book club for work - the discussions we ended up having were excellent but the book itself was just okay. It starts off sounding extremely promising and in theory most of it is very promising. It can be very challenging to follow everything the book suggests to do but the least you can do is try and ask. The book itself was a bit boring at times and seems like it could have been condensed. Overall, it's a great thing to think about and consider (doing more of what makes you strong and doing less of what makes you weak) but I'm not so sure I'd recommend this book. Also, it mentions a SET (Strengths Engagement Track) survey but that is no longer available... so all the parts of the book that talk about it are no long applicable.
May 17, 2020
I thought it was a well written and well laid out book. It was easy to follow the prompts and cues. However, for me personally, as someone who started a business using my strengths, it was tough to weed through the areas of the book that didn’t apply to me. Normally I can still apply key concepts even if in a general sense. This time, there were entire chapters devoted to handling co-workers and collaborating with employers to best utilize strengths and cope with weaknesses.
Overall, I appreciate the idea of working with strengths and outsourcing weaknesses. I wish more people COULD do it. This book surely could at least start the process. If nothing else, this book has reinforced my appreciation for my strengths and the way I handle my weaknesses.
Overall, I appreciate the idea of working with strengths and outsourcing weaknesses. I wish more people COULD do it. This book surely could at least start the process. If nothing else, this book has reinforced my appreciation for my strengths and the way I handle my weaknesses.
February 12, 2019
Im stuck between a 3 and a 4. It has its moments, but to me it didnt quite hit my needs. I feel that I am aware of my strengths and weaknesses. I have put myself in place to use them as often as possible. I think this is a great book for someone that may be looking for a life change, or isnt happy with their current situation, which would move it to that 4 spot. Up and coming professionals should give this a try, maybe even young people that are torn about their future. But for me, didnt do me much good.
June 17, 2020
This book is the sequel to "Now, Discover Your Strengths" and provides templates and examples for figuring out which tasks and activities represent your strengths and which represent your weaknesses. I liked the offering of concrete steps to take, but I think I will probably need to reread and redo these steps in a few months, since many of my tasks and activities have changed due to COVID-19. The reasoning sound, though, and I look forward to figuring out ways to play to my strengths once work goes back to "normal" (whatever that is!)
July 4, 2017
The book was ok. I appreciate the topic and Marcus Buckingham's work. The book just didn't add anything to my understanding how to work using my strengths. I've read several other books, so I think this book overlapped what I had read before.
The book came out in 2007, so 10 years later and the website Simply Strengths that he refers the reader to several times is no longer a domain he owns.
If you are new to Strengths studies, this may be a useful book. For me, it was just ok.
The book came out in 2007, so 10 years later and the website Simply Strengths that he refers the reader to several times is no longer a domain he owns.
If you are new to Strengths studies, this may be a useful book. For me, it was just ok.
September 22, 2019
The book has a few good points, but falls a bit flat as it relies heavily on familiarity with previous books, but simultaneously doesn't want to repeat the content of those books (maybe trying to sell a few more?).
The book is heavily skewed to the perspective of an individual contributor rather than a manager. Only half a chapter towards the end is dedicated to how to use the concepts for managers.
The book is heavily skewed to the perspective of an individual contributor rather than a manager. Only half a chapter towards the end is dedicated to how to use the concepts for managers.
March 21, 2021
Better than most books of this ilk because it didn't involve taking an online, one-time-use-code computer test (hard to do with a library book) or just assume that you're all set once you've identified your strengths. This book focuses on what to do next--how to shape your work around those strengths (and minimizing the activities that are your weaknesses), and even how to talk to your boss and colleagues about taking this approach.
January 28, 2024
If you have taken Clifton Strengthsfinder and wondered great now what...this is the book for you. It totally covers the now what. I'll be honest, I just read through it to get the big picture of what they are talking about. If you really want to get the most out of this book, take the time to do the exercises. What's the worst that can happen? You end up playing to your strengths while downplaying your weaknesses.
March 1, 2019
"Conventional wisdom tells us that out ideal job is far removed from our present situation, "out there" somewhere in a mythic world where we are our own boss, telecommuting from our cabin in the hills, doing what we love, making loads of money along the way, disturbed only by the whinnying of our horse and the scent of the wet trees".
August 8, 2021
3½ stars. A truly practical approach to handling work-life-performance hiccups and larger issues. I learned about Buckingham through Oprah, and it was quite nice to have him read this book himself, as the stresses and highlights were where they were supposed to be. Of course, this kind of book is more practical as a hardcover copy, but the listening experience was not bad either.
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