"Most Americans do not know what their strengths are. When you ask them, they look at you with a blank stare, or they respond in terms of subject knowledge, which is the wrong answer."
--Peter Drucker

Unfortunately, most of us have little sense of our talents and strengths, much less the ability to build our lives around them. Instead, guided by our parents, by our teachers, by our managers and by psychology's fascination with pathology, we become experts in our weaknesses and spend our lives trying to repair these flaws, while our strengths lie dormant and neglected.

Marcus Buckingham, co-author of the national bestseller, First, Break All the Rules, and Donald O. Clifton, Chair of the Gallup International Research & Education Center, have created a revolutionary program to help readers identify their talents, build them into strengths, and enjoy consistent, near-perfect performance. At the heart of the book is the Internet-based Clifton StrengthsFinder Profile, the product of a 25-year, multimillion-dollar effort to identify the most prevalent human strengths. The program introduces 34 dominant "themes" with thousands of possible combinations, and reveals how they can best be translated into personal and career success. In developing this program, Gallup has conducted psychological profiles with over two million individuals to help readers learn how to focus and perfect these themes.

So how does it work? This book contains a unique identification number that allows you access to the Clifton StrengthsFinder Profile on the Internet. This Web-based interview analyzes your instinctive reactions and immediately presents you with your five most powerful signature themes. Once you know which of the 34 themes -- such as Achiever, Activator, Empathy, Futuristic, or Strategic -- you lead with, the book will show you how to leverage them for powerful results at three levels: for your own development, for your success as a manager, and for the success of your organization.

Additional Insights

The Best Way to Influence Others

The Talent to Manage Your Time

The Talent to Communicate

The Talent to Deal With Conflict

How to Handle Change

Book Excerpts

Perhaps It's Your True Self You Fear

Are You Haunted by a Fear of Failure?

Are You Afraid of Your Weaknesses?

"Fidel," Sam Mendes, and Phil Jackson

The Traces of Talent

Warren Buffett and You

The Strengths Revolution

Clifton StrengthsFinder Center

Visit the Clifton StrengthsFinder Center to learn more about how to maximize your strengths through insights, action items, and answers to frequently asked questions.

About the Authors

Marcus Buckingham is coauthor of Gallup's book on great managers, First, Break All the Rules (Simon and Schuster, May 1999) and Now, Discover Your Strengths (Free Press, January 2001).

Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. (1924-2003), a past chairman of Gallup, was the chief designer of the Clifton StrengthsFinder Profile. In 2002, he was was cited as the "Father of Strengths-Based Psychology" in an American Psychological Association Presidential Commendation.

Reviews

"This is powerful! Who will not want to discover their own strengths and then manage their work and relationships based on those insights? Education, business, government, and the church have much to learn from this book."

Robert C. Andringa, Ph.D.
President
Council for Christian Colleges & Universities

"This inspiring book serves as far more than a guide to management or professional success. It sets forth an approach -- documented by hundreds of thousands of case studies and careful analysis -- toward matters of personal responsibility, professional development, and personal happiness that is both simple and profound."

David Eisenhower
Associate Professor of Communications, University of Pennsylvania
Fellow of the American Society of Historians

"Strength-building employees are much more likely to strongly agree that they have the opportunity to do their best every day. Buttressed by evidence that is clear and concise, the book is interesting, understandable, and persuasive."

Bernard M. Bass, Ph.D.
Distinguished Professor of Management, Center for Leadership Studies
State University of New York

"Measurement guru, corporate visionary, and social reformer-with-a-heart Don Clifton guides us from understanding to finding to managing strengths -- for ourselves and those we manage."

Graham Spanier
President
The Pennsylvania State University

"In a society where we are obsessed with what's wrong with our figures, relationships, and careers, the authors challenge us to learn what's right with each of us. Their ideas for leadership development are doable and inspirational."

Bruce J. Avolio
Co-Director, Center for Leadership Studies
SUNY Binghamton

"Managers often must identify the diverse strengths needed to create a team with a competitive advantage. This book provides tools to do it better."

Philip Stone
Professor of Psychology
Harvard University

"At a time when organizations around the world desperately need to motivate, energize, and inspire people, Clifton and Buckingham are opening doors for us to apply a new philosophy of life and work. A positive philosophy that focuses on strengths rather than weaknesses! A remarkable book with a depth and breadth of research that provide a perfect blend of wisdom, compassion, and vision for strengthening organizations. Their book is stimulating and thought-provoking!"

Larraine Matusak
Senior Scholar, James MacGregor Burns Academy of Leadership
University of Maryland

" Now, Discover Your Strengths provides a roadmap to building a truly great and admired team, organization, or company. Attracting talented employees by identified strengths and providing a method for managing and multiplying those strengths to build the business could be the single most important new breakthrough in managing employees in the new millennium."

Garrett R. Mullins
Vice President, Customer Service Operations
COVAD Communications, Inc.