I recently had to take the CliftonStrengths Assessment, which tells you what your strengths are after taking a 25 to 30 minute test. I made sure to find a time when I knew I wouldn’t be disturbed to take the test since there is a time limit to each question. The questions asked me to choose which statement best describes me, and it was pretty simple until I got to questions where both statements were completely unrelated but both describe me.
The results were not quite what I expected. Here were my top 5 themes out of the 34 themes:
- Learner – People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.
- Analytical – People who are especially talented in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes. They have the ability to think about all the factors that might affect a situation.
- Deliberative – People who are especially talented in the Deliberative theme are best described by the serious care they take in making decisions or choices. They anticipate the obstacles.
- Discipline – People who are especially talented in the Discipline theme enjoy routine and structure. Their world is best described by the order they create.
- Responsibility – People who are especially 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.
I would have never guessed Learner as my top theme. While I do think I have grown to be more of a Learner over the years, it was very surprising to see it as my top theme. The other unexpected one is having Responsibility as the last of my top 5. That is the first word that people would use to describe me for the longest time, so it was odd to see it being at the bottom of the list.
My top 5 themes fall into two of the four domains:
- Strategic Thinking (Analytical, Learner) – People with dominate Strategic Thinking themes absorb and analyze information that informs better decisions.
- Executing (Deliberative, Discipline, Responsibility) – People with dominate Executing themes make things happen.
The remaining domains are Relationship Building and Influencing. I could definitely see how Strategic Thinking and Executing are my stronger domains.
I would be curious how my results would change if I got to retake this test 5-10 years from now! What do you think of the results?