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StrengthsFinder 2.0 Report

© 2000, 2006-2012 GALLUP, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Strengths Insight and Action-Planning GuideSURVEY COMPLETION DATE: 01-18-2015

Alexandra Vitale

Your Top 5 Themes

HarmonyEmpathyIncluderConsistencyDiscipline

What's in This Guide?

Section I: Awareness

A brief Shared Theme Description for each of your top five themes

Your Personalized Strengths Insights, which describe what makes you stand out from otherswith the same theme in their top five

Questions for you to answer to increase your awareness of your talentsSection II: Application

10 Ideas for Action for each of your top five themes

Questions for you to answer to help you apply your talentsSection III: Achievement

Examples of what each of your top five themes "sounds like" -- real quotes from people whoalso have the theme in their top five

Steps for you to take to help you leverage your talents for achievement

671745162 (Alexandra Vitale)© 2000, 2006-2012 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Section I: Awareness

HarmonyShared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Harmony theme look for consensus. They don’t enjoyconflict; rather, they seek areas of agreement.

Your Personalized Strengths Insights

What makes you stand out?

Because of your strengths, you may be good-natured and even-tempered in your dealings withindividuals. Perhaps your friendly disposition causes people to feel comfortable in your presence. Youmight accept the differences and commonalities you find between yourself and others. Driven by yourtalents, you occasionally carve out time to envision what might be accomplished in the coming weeks,months, years, or decades. People may welcome your ideas when they appear practical or doable.Perhaps you refuse to force anyone to embrace your initiative exactly as you have outlined it. Maybeyou add a few of their ideas so the plan becomes theirs rather than yours alone. Sometimes yourdiplomatic approach prevents misunderstandings or disagreements from arising later in the process.Instinctively, you sometimes seek out and listen to the opinions of others before you express your ownviews. Chances are good that you might educate yourself about the basic facts surrounding certaintypes of issues or situations. To reduce the possibility of conflict, you may consider everyone’s pointof view. Perhaps you help some individuals see where they are in agreement with others. Now andthen, you can move specific individuals toward consensus — that is, a judgment arrived at by most ofthose concerned. It’s very likely that you occasionally separate into parts certain types of techniques,programs, or mechanisms. Then you might map the steps needed to perform a task. You also mightpinpoint how each part fits or fails to fit perfectly with the one preceding it and the one following it.Having completed your investigation, you may expect specific people to abide by the establishedguidelines, rules, policies, or procedures. To some degree, you resist making exceptions forindividuals.

Questions

1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out toyou?

2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?


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EmpathyShared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Empathy theme can sense the feelings of other people byimagining themselves in others’ lives or others’ situations.



Chances are good that you might find that people tell you their innermost thoughts or feelings.Perhaps they know you will accept them without judging what they say. You may like knowing thatcertain individuals depend on you to listen. Because of your strengths, you might be prompted by anatural impulse to answer questions, deal with perplexing issues, or overcome obstacles. This need todo something arises from deep within yourself. Instinctively, you are keenly aware of others’ moods.Your insights can be especially valuable when you are helping someone develop strength byacquiring a skill, gaining knowledge, or using a talent. It’s very likely that you may feel honored whenspecific individuals trust you enough to share their innermost thoughts and feelings. Perhaps youunderstand that the act of listening is both helpful and healing. By nature, you might play games forthe pure joy of them. You may do what you can to help others enjoy themselves, too. Perhaps havingfun is more important to you than winning.

Questions




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IncluderShared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Includer theme are accepting of others. They showawareness of those who feel left out, and make an effort to include them.



Chances are good that you gravitate to situations where you will be in the company of others. You aremuch less inclined to be solitary or a loner. It’s very likely that you intentionally involve all kinds ofindividuals in groups or activities. You refuse to inflict emotional pain by making people feelunwelcome. Your sensitivity causes many to describe you as a nice, kind, and caring human being.Because of your strengths, you hope just about every person you encounter greets you warmly, thinkswell of you, and chooses to spend more time with you. You truly enjoy the company of others. Youtrust they feel the same way. By nature, you find a way to involve everyone so each person has agood experience. You strive to create a sense of belonging and acceptance. When someone feels leftout, you often are the person who finds a way to engage that individual in the group’s activities andconversations. Instinctively, you might be a cheerful and easygoing person. Maybe you emphasizewhat you have in common with people. Occasionally you are diplomatic, and you sidestep areas ofdisagreement. Perhaps your even-tempered nature and friendly disposition permit you to see good inpractically everyone. You may feel sad for those who look for the worst in others and are gleeful whenthey find it.

Questions




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ConsistencyShared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Consistency theme are keenly aware of the need to treatpeople the same. They try to treat everyone in the world with consistency by setting up clear rules andadhering to them.



It’s very likely that you sometimes have fun setting up routines for yourself and your students or thepeople you mentor. Perhaps you provide structure for individuals who struggle to stay organized. Youmay feel your efforts are rewarded when you make it easier for someone to grasp a concept or mastera skill. Chances are good that you sometimes break certain types of daily, weekly, monthly, or annualactivities into their basic parts. Now and then, you examine these separately and in relation to oneanother. Perhaps you devise labor-saving ways to perform some repetitive tasks. Once you haveexplained your systems to others, you might expect everyone to use them for the common good.Periodically you are frustrated by individuals who insist on doing things their way or the old way.Maybe you can predict with some accuracy how their resistance will jeopardize the group’s overalleffectiveness or efficiency. Driven by your talents, you might create systems that ensure no person isgiven an edge — that is, a special advantage. Perhaps you reduce the risk of showing favoritismtoward anyone by establishing standard policies and practices. Maybe your commitment to “even theplaying field” — that is, give every person the same opportunities, resources, time, or training — isevident in your personal relationships as well. Instinctively, you sometimes welcome opportunities toacquire additional knowledge or new skills. From a practical perspective, ongoing education mightallow you to take advantage of experiences or engage in activities for the first time. You may wantothers to be informed about these training sessions. Perhaps it strikes you as unjust or elitist — thatis, snobbish — not to make this news available to everyone. Because of your strengths, you mightengage some individuals in friendly and matter-of-fact conversations when the situation demands it.Perhaps being uniformly sociable and responsive to certain types of people is practical in youropinion.

Questions




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DisciplineShared Theme Description

People who are especially talented in the Discipline theme enjoy routine and structure. Their world isbest described by the order they create.



It’s very likely that you may be inclined to check and double check things you do or are accountablefor doing. Perhaps you are motivated to make sure everything is done right. You occasionally identifyareas where you might need to upgrade your skills for creating structure or putting things in order.Instinctively, you occasionally establish weekly performance targets for yourself. You may alsoorganize or plan new projects. This partially explains why you know where you are headed, how youplan to proceed, and when you might reach your goal. To some extent, pushing hard for desiredresults excites you. Driven by your talents, you may prefer to do your work in a methodical manner.Perhaps you create an orderly flow from one step of a project to the next. Sometimes this ensureseach task receives your undivided attention once you identify your top priorities. To some degree, youwant to eliminate troublesome distractions. You might realize these can break your concentration andslow your progress. By nature, you may enjoy hearing people describe you as more serious thansome of your colleagues, classmates, teammates, friends, or coworkers. Because of your strengths,you may be described as level-headed. Perhaps you use reason to determine which activities need tobe done first, second, and third. Sometimes you are eager to finalize your plan so you can startworking.

Questions




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Questions1. How does this information help you better understand your unique talents?2. How can you use this understanding to add value to your role?3. How can you apply this knowledge to add value to your team, workgroup, department, or

division?4. How will this understanding help you add value to your organization?5. What will you do differently tomorrow as a result of this report?


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Section II: Application

HarmonyIdeas for Action:

Use your Harmony talents to build a network of people with differing perspectives. Rely onthese people when you need expertise. Your openness to these differing perspectives willhelp you learn.When two people are arguing, ask others in the group to share their thoughts. Byincreasing the number of voices in the conversation, you are more likely to find areaswhere all parties can agree. You can draw people together.Avoid roles that will lead you to confront people on a daily basis. Sales roles based on“cold calls” or roles in highly competitive workplaces, for example, will frustrate or upsetyou.Practice your techniques for resolving conflict without confrontation. Without thesepolished techniques, you might find yourself simply running away from conflicts, leavingthem unresolved. This could lead you to passive-aggressive behavior.Partner with someone especially talented in Command or Activator. When all your bestefforts to resolve a conflict have met with no success, this person can help you confront ithead-on.Create interactions and forums in which people feel like their opinions are truly beingheard. In doing so, you will help others become more engaged in group projects andactivities.Be aware that your attempts to create harmony by allowing everyone a turn to speakmight actually create disharmony in some people. Individuals with exceptional Achievertalents, for example, may be anxious to make a decision and take action. Learn to brieflyyet effectively communicate the value of listening.Understand that some may take advantage of your efforts to produce harmony. Onoccasion, when everyone is getting an opportunity to speak, some individuals might wastetime positioning themselves or getting into lofty debates that have little relevance to thetask at hand. At these times, do not hesitate to jump in and turn the conversation aroundto more practical matters. A balance between listening and efficiency is key to harmony.In discussions, look for the practical side of things. Help others see this practical side. It isthe starting point of agreement.Deference comes naturally for you. You easily step aside when someone with superiorexpertise enters. Take the next step by inviting those with greater expertise to consult.

Questions

1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are most likely totake.

2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you willtake in the next 30 days.


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EmpathyIdeas for Action:

Help your friends and colleagues be more aware when one of your peers is having adifficult time. Remember, most people do not have your ability to pick up on sensitivesituations.Act quickly and firmly when others behave in a way that is unhealthy for themselves orothers. Understanding someone’s emotional state does not mean that you must excusethis behavior. Be aware that when your empathy turns to sympathy, others might see youas a “bleeding heart.”Partner with someone with strong Command or Activator talents. This person will help youtake needed action, even though people’s feelings might suffer as a result.Consider serving others as a confidante or mentor. Because trust is paramount to you,people are likely to feel comfortable approaching you with any need. Your discretion anddesire to be genuinely helpful will be greatly valued.At times, your empathy for others may overwhelm you. Create some rituals that you canuse at the end of your day to signal that work is over. This will help buffer your emotionsand prevent burnout.Identify a friend who has strong Empathy talents, and check your observations with him orher.Sensitive to the feelings of others, you readily gauge the emotional tone of a room. Useyour talents to forge a bridge of understanding and mutual support. Your empathy will beespecially important during trying times because it will demonstrate your concern, therebybuilding loyalty.Witnessing the happiness of others brings you pleasure. Consequently, you are likely tobe attuned to opportunities to underscore others’ successes and positively reinforce theirachievements. At each opportunity, deliver a kind word of appreciation or recognition. Indoing so, you are likely to make a profound and engaging impression.Because you are observant of how others are feeling, you are likely to intuit what is aboutto happen before it becomes common knowledge. Although your intuitions may at timesseem nothing more than ‘hunches’, take conscious note of them. They may turn out to bevaluable assets.Sometimes empathy does not require words at all. A kind gesture may be all someoneneeds to be reassured. Use your Empathy talents to nonverbally comfort others with aglance, a smile, or a pat on the arm.

Questions




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IncluderIdeas for Action:

Consider roles in which you can take responsibility for representing voices that are notusually heard. You will derive a great deal of satisfaction from being a spokesperson forthese people.Look for opportunities to bring together people of diverse cultures and backgrounds. Youcan be a leader in this area.Help those who are new to an organization or group get to know other people. You willalways be adept at quickly making people feel accepted and involved.An anti-elitist, you may clash with those who feel they have earned the right to perks andpower. Rather than disputing their claim, use your Includer insights to help everyone findcommon ground and value in their contributions.Acknowledge the dissonance you feel when you must be the bearer of bad news. Look forpartners who can help you justify your position so you don’t apologize or soften themessage too much.Not every person is lovable or even likeable. While many of your friends or colleaguesmay be put off by difficult people, you have a natural capacity to truly care for all people.Let others know that if they ever come to the end of their rope with a problematicindividual, they can call on you to step in.Choose roles in which you are continuously working and interacting with people. You willenjoy the challenge of making everyone feel important.Partner with someone who has dominant Activator or Command talents. This person canhelp you when you have to deliver news that might hurt someone’s feelings.Realize that people will relate to each other through you. You are a conduit forinformation. You can interact with all parts and all people in a group and keep themeffectively connected to each other.Explain what we all have in common. Help others understand that to respect thedifferences among us (our diversity), we must begin by appreciating what we all share(our similarity).

Questions




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ConsistencyIdeas for Action:

Make a list of the rules of consistency by which you can live. These rules might be basedon certain values that you have or on certain policies that you consider “non-negotiables.”Counterintuitively, the more clear you are about these rules, the more comfortable you willbe with individuality within these boundaries.Seek roles in which you can be a force for leveling the playing field. At work or in yourcommunity, become a leader in helping provide disadvantaged people with the platformthey need to show their true potential.Cultivate a reputation for pinpointing those who really deserve credit. Make sure thatrespect is always given to those who truly performed the work. You can become known asthe conscience of your organization or group.Find a role in which you can enforce compliance to a set of standards. Always be ready tochallenge people who break the rules or “grease the wheels” to earn an unfair advantagefor themselves.Keep your focus on performance. Your Consistency talents might occasionally lead you tooveremphasize how someone gets work done, and ignore what he or she gets done.Because you value equality, you find it hard to deal with individuals who bend the rules tofit their situation. Your Consistency talents can help you clarify rules, policies, andprocedures in ways that will ensure that they are applied uniformly across the board.Consider drafting protocols to make sure that these rules are clearly stated.Partner with someone with powerful Maximizer or Individualization talents. This personcan remind you when it is appropriate to accommodate individual differences.Always practice what you preach. This sets the tone for equality and encourages peacefulcompliance.Others will appreciate your natural commitment to consistency between what you havepromised and what you will deliver. Always stand up for what you believe, even in the faceof strong resistance. You will reap long-lasting benefits.Leverage your Consistency talents when you have to communicate “not so pleasant”news. You can be naturally adept at helping others appreciate the rationale behinddecisions, which will make the situation easier on them — and you.

Questions




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DisciplineIdeas for Action:

Don’t hesitate to check as often as necessary to ensure that things are right. You feel anurge to do it anyway, and soon others will come to expect it from you.Accept that mistakes might depress you. Precision is a core part of who you are; however,you must find ways to move through these moments of annoyance to prevent becomingdiscouraged.Recognize that others may not be as disciplined as you are. More than likely, their clumsyprocess will frustrate you, so try to look beyond it, and focus on their results, not on theirprocess.Exactitude is your forté; you enjoy poring over details. Seek opportunities to perusecontracts, important communications, or financial documents for errors. You can saveyourself and others from making costly mistakes and looking foolish.Increasing efficiency is one of your hallmarks. You are a perfectionist at heart. Discoversituations in which time or money is being wasted because of inefficiency, and createsystems or procedures to improve efficiency.You not only create order, you probably also crave it in the form of a well-organizedspace. To completely free your Discipline talents, invest in furniture and organizationsystems that enable you to have “a place for everything and everything in its place.”Timelines motivate you. When you have a task to complete, you like to know the deadlineso you can plan your schedule accordingly. Apply your Discipline talents by outlining thestep-by-step plan you will use. Others will appreciate your cues because they will helpkeep everyone “on task.”Others may confuse your Discipline talents with rigidity. Help them understand that yourdiscipline helps you pack more effectiveness into a day — often because you prioritizeyour time. When working with others who are not as disciplined, ask them to clarifydeadlines so you can adjust your workload to accommodate their requests.Seek out roles and responsibilities that have structure.Create routines that require you to systematically follow through. Over time, people willcome to appreciate this kind of predictability.

Questions




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Section III: Achievement

Look for signs of achievement as you read these real quotes from people who share your top fivethemes.Harmony sounds like this:

Jane C., Benedictine nun: “I like people. I relate to them easily because I am very strong inadjustment. I take the shape of the vessel into which I am poured, so I don’t irritate easily.”

Chuck M., teacher: “I don’t like conflict in class, but I have learned to let things run their courseinstead of trying to stop it right away. When I first started teaching, if someone said somethingnegative, I would think, ‘Oh, why did you have to say that?’ and try to get rid of it right away. But now Isimply try to get the opinion of someone else in the class so that perhaps we can have different pointsof view on the same topic.”

Tom P., technician: “I can remember vividly when I was ten or eleven and some of the kids in myschool would get into arguments. For some reason, I would feel compelled to get in the middle ofthings and find the common ground. I was the peacemaker.”


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Empathy sounds like this:

Alyce J., administrator: “Recently, I was in a meeting of trustees where one of the individuals waspresenting a new idea that was critical to her and to the life of this group. When she was finished, noone heard her opinion, no one really heard her. It was a powerfully demoralizing moment for her. Icould see it in her face, and she wasn’t herself for a day or two afterward. I finally raised the issue withher and used words that helped describe how she was feeling. I said, ‘Something’s wrong,’ and shestarted to talk. I said, ‘I really understand. I know how important this was for you, and you don’t seemlike yourself,’ and so on. And she finally gave words to what was going on inside her. She said,‘You’re the only one who heard me and who has said one word to me about it.’”

Brian H., administrator: “When my team is making decisions, what I like to do is say, ‘Okay, what willthis person say about this? What will that person say about it?’ In other words, put yourself in theirposition. Let’s think about the arguments from their perspective so that we can all be morepersuasive.”

Janet P., schoolteacher: “I never played basketball because they didn’t have it for women when I wasa kid, but I believe I can tell at a basketball game when the momentum is changing, and I want to goto the coach and say, ‘Get them revved up. You are losing them.’ Empathy also works in large groups;you can feel the crowd.”


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Includer sounds like this:

Harry B., outplacement consultant: “Even as a child, although I was very shy, I always made sure thatI was the one inviting others to play. When picking teams or sides in school, I never wanted anyonenot to participate with us. In fact, I can remember when I was ten or eleven, I had a friend who wasnot a member of our church. We were at a church banquet, and he showed up at the door becausetypically we had our youth activity at the church on that night. Immediately, I got up, brought him overto our family, and sat him down at the table.”

Jeremy B., defense lawyer: “When I first started this job, I met people and became fast, furious friendswith them almost on day one, only to find out later that, you know, this person’s got a lot of issues,and I’ve already included them in dinner parties and our social circle. My partner, Mark, is like, ‘Whatis it exactly that made you want to include this person?’ And then it’s a matter of figuring out whatpushed my buttons when I first met them, what made me enjoy them so much. And, you know,making sure that this is the aspect of them that Mark and I focus on . . . because once I includesomeone in my circle, I don’t dump them.”

Giles D., corporate trainer: “In class, I seem to be able to sense when someone is disengaging fromthe group discussion, and I immediately draw them back into the conversation. Last week, we got intoa lengthy discussion about performance appraisals, and one woman wasn’t talking at all. So I justsaid, ‘Monica, you’ve had performance appraisals. Any thoughts on the subject?’ I really think this hashelped me as a teacher because when I don’t know the answer to something, very often it is theperson I pull in who supplies the answer for me.”


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Consistency sounds like this:

Simon H., hotel general manager: “I often remind my senior managers that they shouldn’t be abusingtheir parking privileges or using their position to take golf tee times when there are guests waiting.They hate my drawing attention to this, but I am just the kind of person who dislikes people abusingtheir perks. I also spend a great deal of time with our hourly employees. I have tremendous respectfor them.”

Jamie K., magazine editor: “I am the person who always roots for the underdog. I hate it when peopledon’t get a fair shot because of some circumstance in their life that they couldn’t control. To put someteeth to this, I am going to set up a scholarship at my alma mater so that journalism students of limitedmeans can do internships in the real world without having to keep paying for their college tuition. I waslucky. When I was an intern in New York at NBC, my family could afford it. Some families can’t, butthose students should still get a fair shot.”

Ben F., operations manager: “Always give credit where credit is due; that’s my motto. If I am in ameeting and I bring up an idea that one of my staff actually came up with, I make sure to publiclyattribute the idea to that person. Why? Because my bosses always did that with me, and now it seemslike the only fair and proper thing to do.”


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Discipline sounds like this:

Les T., hospitality manager: “The turning point in my career was attending one of those time-management courses some years back. I was always disciplined, but the power grew when I learnedhow to use that discipline in an organized process every day. This little Palm Pilot means that I call mymom every Sunday rather than letting months go by without calling. It means I take my wife out fordinner every week without her asking. It means that my employees know that if I say I need to seesomething on Monday, I will be calling on Monday if I haven’t seen it. This Palm Pilot is so much apart of my life that I have lengthened all of my pants pockets so that it fits right there on my hip.”

Troy T., sales executive: “My filing system may not look that pretty, but it is very efficient. I writeeverything by hand because I know that no customer is going to see these files, so why waste timemaking them look pretty? My whole life as a salesperson is based on deadlines and follow-up. In mysystem, I keep track of everything so that I take responsibility not only for my deadlines and follow-upbut for all of my customers’ and colleagues’ as well. If they haven’t gotten back to me by the time theypromised, they’re going to receive an e-mail from me. In fact, I heard from one the other day who said,‘I may as well get back to you because I know you’re going to call me if you haven’t heard from me.’”

Diedre S., office manager: “I hate wasting time, so I make lists — long lists that keep me on track.Today my list has ninety items on it, and I will get through ninety-five percent of them. And that’sdiscipline because I don’t let anybody waste my time. I am not rude, but I can let you know in a verytactful, humorous way that your time is up.”


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Questions1. Talk to friends or coworkers to hear how they have used their talents to achieve.

2. How will you use your talents to achieve?


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