“Go Put Your StrengthsTo Work”

6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance

By Marcus Buckingham

LYS – Supporting Your StrengthsJanuary 25, 2010

Introductions• Name• Top 5 Strengths

Living Your Strengths• Now you know your strengths, so what??

• “As each one has a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace.”– 1 Peter 4:10– Ephesians 2:9-11

Does This Sound Like You?• You take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.• You anticipate obstacles and take deep care in making

decisions or choices.• You have a great desire to learn and want to continuously

improve.• You feel self-confident in managing your own life and

confidence that your decisions are right.• You create alternative ways to proceed and quickly spot the

relevant patterns and issues.• You are independent and want to be recognized.• You seek to transform something good into something superb.

Go Put Your Strengths To Work• How engaged are your strengths?• Get your SET score to see how engaged

your strengths are compared to the rest of the working world– SET = Strengths Engagement Track

• Track activities and engagement levels

What’s Stopping You?• Think back when you were a child

– Can you see any positive patterns that have stayed with you since as far back as you can remember?

– How have they developed over the years?– How do you channel and focus these

strengths today?

What’s Stopping You?• Do you find yourself dwelling on your

weaknesses a lot?– How does it make you feel?– Why do you do it?– Who asks you to?– Do you think you should?

What’s Stopping You?• Do you know anyone who is passionate

about what they do and seem to spend a lot of time doing activities they love?– How often do they get to play to their strengths?– How do they make this happen?– Do they ever find it difficult to stay on their

strengths path?– Do they ever find themselves straying from this

path, and how do they get back on track?

What Strengthens You?• Which specific activities do you find yourself

looking forward to this week?– Do you always seem to look forward to these

activities? Why?• Was there any time this past week when

you were “in your zone?”– And you found it very easy to concentrate?– And time just flew by?– What were you doing?

What Strengthens You?• Look back for all these telltale signs of a

strength– Can you see anything?– Which specific activities made you strong?– Are your strengths central to your week at

work?

Four SIGNs of Strengths• S – Success; something you are good at• I – Instinct; instinctual and can’t help but

be drawn to certain activities repeatedly• G – Growth; it feels easy, like you are not

trying very hard as you grow and improve• N – Needs; activities that leave you

fulfilled, satisfied, restored, the opposite of drained; you want this feeling again!

Your SIGNs of a Strength• Individual reflection• Group discussion

Strengths Development

How Engaged Are Your Strengths – Survey Question Comparisons

I am the best judge of my strengths.

0%0%0%0%0%

Strongly Disagree... Disagree (D) Neutral (N) Agree (A) Strongly Agree (SA)

Best Practice

National

1. SD 2.9% .5%

2. D 18.4% 12.5%

3. N 25.7% 36.2%

4. A 32.7% 36.2%

5. SA 20.3% 14.6%

1. Strongly Disagree (SD)2. Disagree (D)3. Neutral (N)4. Agree (A)5. Strongly Agree (SA)

I have the freedom to modify my work to fit my strengths better.

0%0%0%0%0%

Strongly Disagree... Disagree (D) Neutral (N) Agree (A) Strongly Agree (SA)

Best Practice

National

1. SD 1.3% 3.3%

2. D 9.2% 19.5%

3. N 19.9% 27.2%

4. A 43.6% 39.0%

5. SA 26.0% 11.0%

1. Strongly Disagree (SD)2. Disagree (D)3. Neutral (N)4. Agree (A)5. Strongly Agree (SA)

How frequently do you feel an emotional high from your work?

0%0%0%0%

Every day (ED) Weekly (W) Monthly (M) Rarely (R)

Best Practice

National

1. ED 31.1% 15.7%

2. W 54.9% 35.1%

3. M 6.7% 15.7%

4. R 7.3% 33.5%

1. Every day (ED)2. Weekly (W)3. Monthly (M)4. Rarely (R)

How often do you get so involved in what you are doing at work that you lose track of time?

0%0%0%0%

Every day (ED) Weekly (W) Monthly (M) Rarely (R)

Best Practice

National

1. ED 55.6% 38.8%

2. W 35.4% 34.1%

3. M 3.0% 8.8%

4. R 6.0% 18.3%

1. Every day (ED)2. Weekly (W)3. Monthly (M)4. Rarely (R)

What percentage of a typical work day do you spend doing things that you really like to do?

0%0%0%0%

Less than 25% 25-49% 50-74% 75-100%

1. Less than 25%2. 25-49%3. 50-74%4. 75-100%

Best Practice

National

1.

6.5% 28.3%

2.

21.3% 29.3%

3.

39.4% 28.3%

4.

32.8% 14.1%

When discussing your work, how often do you catch yourself whining?

0%0%0%0%

Every day (ED) Weekly (W) Monthly (M) Rarely (R)

Best Practice

National

1. ED 5.3% 13.6%

2. W 20.9% 23.8%

3. M 24.4% 15.8%

4. R 49.4% 46.8%

1. Every day (ED)2. Weekly (W)3. Monthly (M)4. Rarely (R)

What most influenced your decision to leave your previous job and apply for your current position?

0%0%0%0%

Increased account... Better Compensation Greater opportuni... I didn’t like my ...

1. Increased accountability2. Better compensation3. Greater opportunity to do

what I really like to do4. I didn’t like my previous job

Best Practice

National

1. 14.5% 5.7%

2. 10.5% 34.8%

3. 64.7% 37.5%

4. 10.3% 22.0%

Entire Database Profile (4,004,419)Top 10 Signature Themes Bottom 5 Signature Themes

Achiever DeliberativeRelator Self-AssuranceLearner Significance

Responsibility EmpathyStrategic Command

InputMaximizerHarmony

AdaptabilityArranger

Next Steps• Reflect and apply• One-on-one coaching if interested• Spread the word!

“Go Put Your StrengthsTo Work”

6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance

By Marcus Buckingham

LYS – Supporting Your StrengthsJanuary 25, 2010