The Revolution
“What are the two assumptions on which great organizations must be built?” 5
Two Million Interviews
“Whom did Gallup interview to learn about human strengths?" 11
I. The Anatomy of a Strength
Chapter 1. Strong Lives
The Investor, the Director, the Skin Doctor, and the Editor
“What does a strong life look like?” 19
Tiger Woods, Bill Gates, and Cole Porter
“What is a strength ? ” 25
Three Revolutionary Tools
“What do you need to build your life around your strengths?” 28
Is He Always This Good?
“What can we learn about strengths from Colin Powell?” 39
Knowledge and Skills
“Which aspects of you can you change?" 41
Talent
“Which aspects of you arc enduring?" 48
II. Discover the Source of Your Strengths
Chapter 3. StrengthsFinder
The Traces of Talent
“How can you identify your own talents?" 67
The StrengthsFinder Profile
“How does it work, and how do I complete it?" 76
Chapter 4. The Thirty
Achiever 83
Activator 84
Adaptability 85
Analytical 86
Arranger 87
Belief 88
Command 89
Communication 90
Competition 91
Connectedness 92
Context 93
Deliberative 94
Developer 95
■four Themes of StrengthsFinder
Discipline 96
Empathy 97
Fairness 98
Focus 99
Futuristic 100
Harmony 101
Ideation 102
Inclusiveness 103
Individualization 104
Input 105
Intellection 106
Learner 107
Maximizer 108
Self-assurance 113
Positivity 109
Relator 110
Significance 114
Strategic 115
Woo 116
Responsibility 111
Restorative 112
III. Put Strengths to Work
Chapter 5. The Questions You’re Asking
Are there any obstacles to building my strengths? 121
Why should I focus on my signature themes? 131
is there any significance to the order of my signature themes? 134
Not all of the phrases in the theme description apply to me. Why'? 136
Why am I different from other people with whom I share some of the same themes? 137 Are any of the themes "opposites"? 139
Can I develop new themes if I don't like the ones I have? 141
Will I become too narrow if! focus on my signature themes? 144
How can I manage around my weaknesses? 148
Can my themes reveal whether I am in the right career? 160
Chapter 6. Managing Strengths
“Fidel,” Sam Mendes, and Phil Jackson
"'What is the secret of their success?" 171
One By One
"How can you manage each of the thirty-four themes of Strengths Finder'.'" 176
Chapter 7. Building a Strengths-based Organization
The Full Story
“Who is leading the strengths revolution at work?" 213
The Practical Guide
“How can you build a strengths-based organization?’’ 218
Appendix
A Technical Report on StrengthsFinder
"What research underpins the StrengthsFinder Profile, and what research is planned to refine the instrument9" 247

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, coauthor 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 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 more than 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 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.
With accessible and profound insights on how to turn talents into strengths, and with the immediate on-line feedback of StrengthsFinder at its core, Now, Discover Your Strengths is one of the most groundbreaking and useful business books ever written.