I included this book in my book: The 100 Best Business Books of All Time. www.100bestbiz.com. ( )

Now Discover Your Strengths is a great book. My boss made me read it before I had my annual review. If you ask someone what they are good at, they will say something like "I am good at baseball, computers, writing, math, etc" What this book does, it helps people understand what traits they have that make them good at those skills/tasks. These talents are what makes a person successful at many of the things they excel at. It helps you think about yourself at a higher level. This book can help greatly when getting reviewed, promotions, or job interviews. ( )

this is a recent mailing list post i made about the strengthsfinder that i thought would make a good librarything review. it was in response to someone who was required to do it at their workplace and found it a waste of time because they didn't learn anything new about themselves in the process.

. . .

in 2003 the strengthsfinder inventory was the catalyst that changed my life. my manager's manager bought a copy of the book for his entire team because he found it useful, but didn't require us to take the inventory, we were free to do it, or not. i figured why not, so i did. i had no idea that anyone would think things like "input" and "intellection" are strengths, and while i recognized them as things i did a lot, i thought of them as weaknesses, because they make me a lazy daydreamer who surfs the internet all the time.

it hadn't occurred to me that i might be able to put what i considered my worst tendencies to good use, and that doing so would make me happy, and that maybe i was in the wrong career (i thought i just needed to keep trying and someday i would like my job). it was the kick in the butt i needed to seek out something other than software testing, it was a foundation for seeking a library science degree, and it kept me from staying at a job i hated and eventually driving my car into the median barrier on the highway. (yes, that's right. strengthsfinder saved my life.)

before i took the inventory i would have told you my top strength was communication. that one didn't even make my top five. if you are the rare person who is already well-aware of your personal talents, i can see how it might be a waste of time, and it's probably less enjoyable if you're required to do it, and it is written in a cheesy pop-business-book tone that some find annoying, but as they point out, most folks focus on their weaknesses and struggle to name their strengths, so it can make a person wake up to who they are and what they should be doing with their lives, and that can be really valuable. (holy run on sentence, batman.) that's what happened with me, anyway.

i recommend it to anyone who hates their job and doesn't know what they want to do with their life. it seriously pulled me out of a rut. ( )

The strong empirical methodology resulted in a valid and useful structure for assessing strengths. I believe their dimensions are distinct from anything else like this, although the 34 categories are possibly concentrated only in the strengths required for managerial success. For example, I'm not sure the strengths of a genius technical writer or mechanic are present. ( )

Focus on what you do best. Forget the rest. ( )