CliftonStrengths® by Gallup® is an online assessment that identifies areas where an individual’s most significant potential for building strengths exist. There are 34 themes, and each is ranked with the top 5 considered signature themes and demonstrated the most in their everyday life. Each theme has a balcony and basement. The key is to recognize when your strength (balcony) becomes a weakness (basement) and adjust your behavior.
My five signature themes are Ideation, Individualization, Achiever, Responsibility, and Adaptability. The descriptions are below, but I simply summarize these themes into three words: Explore, Collaborate, Execute.
EXPLORE COLLABORATE EXECUTE
People exceptionally talented in the Ideation theme are fascinated by ideas. They are able to find connections between seemingly disparate phenomena.
Balcony: improves on the existing, learns quickly, agile mind
Basement: serendipitous, lack follow-through, creates more work
People exceptionally talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how different people can work together productively.
Balcony: sees the uniqueness in all individuals, intuitively knows that “one size doesn’t fit all,” appreciates the differences in others
Basement: unable to synthesize when it comes to people, has difficulty placing group above individual, difficulty in making people decisions
People exceptionally talented in the Achiever theme work hard and possess a great deal of stamina. They take immense satisfaction in being busy and productive.
Balcony: tireless, strong work ethic, leads by example, go-getter, hungry
Basement: unbalanced, brown-noser, overcommitted, can’t say no, burns the candle at both ends, too concentrated on work
People exceptionally talented in the Responsibility theme take psychological ownership of what they say they will do. They are committed to stable values such as honesty and loyalty.
Balcony: committed, accountable, independent, trusted, conscientious
Basement: micromanager, obsessive, can’t say “no,” takes on too much
People exceptionally talented in the Adaptability theme prefer to go with the flow. They tend to be “now” people who take things as they come and discover the future one day at a time.
Balcony: flexible, comfortable in times of change, easy to get along with, goes with the flow
Basement: directionless, indecisive, sheep, inconclusive, whimsical
“What will happen when we think about what is right with people rather than fixating on what is wrong with them?”
Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. psychologist and business executive