CliftonStrengths is no ordinary personality test. This business-focused profiling tool utilises 34 highly detailed Strengths to provide highly individualistic reports.
The online questionnaire uses a complex algorithm. It’s tough to fool. There’s only a 1 in 275,000 chance of having the same top Strengths as someone else. And just a 1 in 33,000,000 chance of having the same complete profile.
There is great power in knowing your top 10 Strengths. They give an indication of who you are (increasing your self-awareness), as well as giving you a strong idea of your development areas and your true potential. This individual information is invaluable, but what happens when you turn your attention to the Strengths of your colleagues?
Here we’ll be explaining what we’d like to call The Power of Three. Sets of 3 complimenting Strengths that, when appearing together in one person’s top 10, or brought together through collaboration, become a recipe for success.
Powerful Partnerships vs The Power of Three
Knowing your Strengths means that you and anyone that manages you can play to them, and that’s great. When it comes to your development areas, the temptation may be to push yourself to improve your weakness; filling the gaps in your skills. But this may not be the most efficient course of action.
Instead, you and the business may be better off focussing on building partnerships and teams around employee Strengths, filling skills gaps with individuals who naturally excel in areas that others don’t. This method creates a strong team that works well together, complementing each other’s top Strengths and supporting each other’s development areas.
Gallup themselves champion the Powerful Partnership, bringing two people together whose top Strengths complement each other for maximum effect. But we’ve found that taking it one step further produces a seriously powerful effect. The Power of Three. These are Strengths that combine in a trio to become mega superpowers.
Power of Three CliftonStrengths
Woo + Communication + Positivity
Woo stands for winning others over. Think of the charming socialite, the one who enjoys connecting with lots of people. This strength brings energy and has the power to turbo-boost other people and their strengths. They can impact the many and not the few.
Communication is a verbally expressive strength, the strength of storytellers and in-person conversationalists.
Positivity is the most optimistic strength. Those with Positivity in their top 10 don’t just see the glass as half full; they’re grateful there is water there at all.
Can you imagine this Power of Three in action? If they’re present in one person’s top 10, you have someone who impacts many people through communication. And they explain everything in a really hopeful, optimistic way. If they come together in the top Strengths of a team, you have a powerhouse that can work together for the same effect.
This combo creates a superpower for leading people, especially through difficult change-management situations. But be careful- if this person has an off day, they will have a huge impact on others.
Power of Three CliftonStrengths
Strategic + Ideation + Futuristic
This combo is the C-Level Trifecta; 3 strategic Strengths that need to be present in a C-Level team. They can be present within just one person. However, it’s more likely they’ll sit with individuals who should definitely be encouraged to collaborate.
Ideation is the ideas and innovation strength. Think Elon Musk, with all those crazy ideas. Some may work, and some probably won’t, but the ideation strength just keeps them coming.
Someone with the Futuristic Strength is someone who consistently thinks about the future. They think six months ahead or even much further, constantly working towards aspirations or definite goals. They are the epitome of ‘strategic thinkers’.
The Strategic Strength is the ‘what if’ strength. This person thinks ahead, planning for every eventuality to ensure they take the best route. Their thought process involves a lot of “if this happens, we’ll do this. If this works, we’ll do this next…”
If you can bring all these Strengths together in a C-level team, you have an idea machine, a futuristic thinker who will sift out which of those ideas would work and bring value in the future, and then a strategic superpower who will find the best route to making those ideas a reality.
If someone has all 3 of these, you may need to be mindful that they have already completed the process above in their head. This means they may be more fixed in their thoughts, and prying their minds to other options may be tough. One way to help steer them in another direction can be to present an idea as brand new (not in competition) and get them to follow their thought process. If they see your way is better, that will help them to unravel their thoughts.
Power of Three CliftonStrengths
Developer + Maximiser + Individualisation
This is a great combo for a manager or leader of an established team.
A Developer likes to do just that, develop everyone around them. They’re highly motivated to facilitate growth through opportunities or mentoring.
Maximisers focus on quality and seeking excellence- they want things done as perfectly as possible.
A people manager with Individualisation is a great thing. This strength gives you a ‘feeling’ about other people; what their strengths are, what limitations they may face and what their potential may be. These people have a gut feeling about those around them and are not afraid to roll with it.
When these three 3 Strengths come together, you have a great delegator. If a piece of work carries a higher business risk, then this manager knows exactly who to give it to for the best outcome. If a piece of work has lower business risk, this manager knows exactly who to give it to with the aim of helping them learn, develop and grow. If a piece of work carries medium risk, they know exactly who to partner up so that those still developing will be supported by the best person to guide them towards a great result.
Power of Three CliftonStrengths
Achiever + Discipline + Responsibility
Wow, this is the workhorse trio!
Achievers are motivated by getting things done and ticking items off their to-do lists. They are powerhouses, truly motivated by the completion of tasks and by moving on to the next.
Those with the Responsibility Strength are often the core individuals in our team who we trust to get things done when they say they will get things done. If they say so, it will happen- come hell or high water.
The Discipline Strength is the perfect supporting strength for the other two. This is the planner. They see the end goal and map how to get there in a very structured, methodical way. The plan will mean delivery and provides a structure for all stakeholders.
When these Strengths come together in a person or a team, you have someone who will think about when delivery could be and is very keen to ensure that happens. You then have someone who will plan out exactly how to make that happen and someone who is highly motivated to tick everything off the list until it’s done.
The danger with this Power of Three is burnout. You may not know they’ve hit their wall until it’s too late, so regular check-ins are paramount (as is resisting the urge to pile too much on their plate).
Power of Three CliftonStrengths
Adaptability + Arranger + Positivity
Two change Strengths in combination with an optimism Strength. Another amazing combo!
In the face of adversity, the Positivity Strength finds the positive to focus on. Remember, these are not just ‘glass-half-full’ individuals; these are ‘thankful there is water in the glass’ optimists. Their impact on others is amazing, and whilst they focus and draw out the diamond in the rough, they can help others do the same.
Partner this with the two change Strengths, Adaptability and Arranger, and you have a Power of Three perfect for a changing, dynamic workplace- especially if they’re a manager or leader.
When change happens, Adaptability checks that everyone on the new journey is happy, that they understand the situation and are ready to move forward. The execution of change Strength, Arranger, figures out what we need to rearrange to actually deliver the change.
Can you imagine a manager who finds the positive in the change, focuses the team, gets them on board and also understands how to deliver it? Wow!
Final Thoughts
We hope this gives you an idea of the power of self-awareness and team-awareness when it comes to tackling key projects or designing your perfect team.
MadeYou is lucky enough to have among us the only CliftonStrengths accredited coaches in Malta. There’s a reason we’ve invested so much in training our team in this fantastic coaching method, team building and personality exploration.
We would love to help you refocus on your strengths so you can achieve confidence, growth and career progression. Completing the online assessment through one of our CliftonStrengths Solutions means we can guide and coach you through discovering your top talents and development areas.
The lack of self-awareness can lead to a dip in motivation and a growing need for a feeling of purpose. There is no better feeling than deepening your understanding of yourself and leveraging that to fantastic effect. Fill in the form below to start your journey to discover what makes you great at what you do!
