StrengthsFinder is a powerful tool brought to the professional world by Gallup. The concept for the tool is simple: Users take a timed personality test after which they are shown their top 5 strengths based on a list of 34 most common strengths. If a user would like to see their top 10 strengths, those are available at an additional cost. Once the user has received their strengths, they are given a breakdown of how each of those strengths manifest as well as how they work in tandem with each other.
The goal of this personality test is to help the user operate from a place of strength, rather than focusing solely on improving their weaknesses. This is a unique assessment in that it shifts your mindset and helps you learn to leverage the strengths that you already have.
For many users, 2 or 3 of the top 5 strengths will be a no brainer; chances are, you will have already recognized them in yourself, but the other strengths may come as a surprise. That’s because of the unique timing of this test. Each question has a countdown timer attached in an effort to elicit the gut reaction from the user rather than allow for overthinking and manipulating. Let’s face it – in a culture of personality tests, most of us can create the profile we would like to see based on the questions. However, with StrengthsFinder, this is very difficult to do since it’s based on instinct.
StrengthsFinder gives you a clear insight into who you are as a person, and, as a presenter, it’s vital that you leverage those strengths during your presentations. At Ethos3, we believe in personality assessments, which is why we created our own proprietary assessment specifically for presenters called Badge. We know that the more you understand about who you are as a presenter, the more effective and successful you will become.
While Badge is a one-of-a-kind tool specifically for understanding your presentation persona, we also want to give you some unique insight into how your overall personality affects your presentation ability, and StrengthsFinder is a great way to do that. These assessments work nicely together to give you a full picture of your strengths and skill sets.
In order to understand how your strengths affect your presentation style, you must first understand the 4 primary domains that each of the 34 strengths fall into. These domains are:
Executing, Influencing, Relationship Building, Strategic Thinking
You can think of these as overarching themes for the different specific strengths.
Those with predominantly Executing strengths are the most hardworking of the bunch. They are the ones who will not rest until a task is completed and thrive by checking items off their to do lists. The Executing strengths are:
Achiever, Arranger, Belief, Consistency, Deliberative, Discipline, Focus, Responsibility, Restorative
Those with predominantly Influencing strengths enable groups to sell big and exciting ideas. They are often the visionary of a team and thrive as leaders. They have strengths needed to take charge and inspire others to follow, like:
Activator, Command, Communication, Competition, Maximizer, Self-Assurance, Significance, Woo
Those with predominantly Relationship Building strengths thrive on connection with people. They make great coaches as they can see the unique strengths of each person in a group and place them in the perfect spot to leverage those strengths. These strengths include:
Adaptability, Developer, Connectedness, Empath, Harmon, Includer, Individualization, Positivity, Relator
And finally, those with Strategic Thinking strengths are the go-to people when a plan needs to be made or a new idea needs to be rolled out. They can see the whole picture from start to finish and are vital in helping the process play out. Strategic Thinking strengths include:
Analytical, Context, Futuristic, Ideation, Input, Intellection, Learner, Strategic
While all of these play into your presentation abilities, at Ethos3, we have found there are a few things you should take into account in order to operate from your strengths and overpower your weaknesses based on your predominate domain.
Executing
If you find yourself with predominantly Executing strengths, chances are presentations can be an overwhelming process. With so many to dos to complete, the idea of slowing down and telling others about the work you’ve done may seem daunting and like a waste of time. If you feel this way, it is important to fight the urge to avoid and begin to press in to your presentation abilities.
For those with Executing strengths, you have most likely accomplished some pretty amazing things. Your ability to execute and see a project through to completion has allowed you to stay laser focused on the task at hand and execute every task with precision.
When presenting, allow that laser focus and precision to shine through. Share the data of what you have done and the impact it has had. One hang up you may find as a primarily Executing presenter is an extremely analytical and data-heavy presentation. In order to overcome this stumbling block, be sure to visualize your date in your slides and use stories to bring that data to life.
While it may feel overwhelming, tackle your next presentation one to-do item at a time, because the world needs to hear from you!
Influencing
If you are a person with predominantly Influencing strengths, then chances are you find yourself presenting a lot. You are a master influencer, and your ability to guide a group to your desired outcome is unmatched.
As an influencer, be sure to maximize on this uncanny ability to sell. Use it to drive your audience to action and empower them to take next steps. Be sure to have a clear call to action as well as a solid system in place to handle the influx of your audience responding to your call to action.
One trip up that those with influencing strengths may experience is the oversell. Your audience loves you, and they enjoy listening to you; however, overselling may shift the focus off the content and leave them feeling uneasy, almost as if they have just spent the afternoon with a cunning sales person. Be sure to let your personality shine through and let your passion lead the way. Allow your audience to see vulnerability in you as this vulnerability will help to soften the edges of the high-level influence.
Relationship Building
Strengths in the Relationship Building domain make for phenomenal storytellers. These are the type of presenters that can look at an audience and remember every person they have met, including their names and backgrounds. They are connected to their audiences and feel personally invested in each person they interact with.
If you find yourself in this domain, embrace it. Your ability to see people as individuals and inspire them to greatness will carry you each time you step in front of an audience. We recommend people with primarily Relationship Building strengths meet as many people as possible both before and after your presentation. By meeting people beforehand, you will feel more connected to your audience as you present, and, in the same way, your audience will feel connected to you and want to meet after. These types of presenters are often referred to as old friends when the presentation is discussed later, because it felt more like a conversation around the dinner table than a presentation.
It is important to consider as a primarily Relationship Building presenter the value of a strong outline. These types of presenters can run the risk of jumping around and feeling scattered as they feed off the emotional connection of the room. By creating and sticking to an outline, you ensure that your presentation is clear and concise while still allowing room to connect relationally.
Strategic Thinking
Much like the executors, strategic thinkers may find a presentation overwhelming and daunting. With analytical minds, these presenters find it more important to lay out the strategy and create the plan than waste time sharing with others. But it does not matter how great your plan is if no one knows about it, and that is where the strategic thinkers must press in to the presentation space.
As presenters, strategic thinkers have the ability to take the audience on a journey. Their ability to see a process from start to finish plays out masterfully in their presentation outline and slide design. They can see what the audience will feel and experience long before the presentation day arrives. Use this ability to lay out your presentation clearly and efficiently.
However, this strategic ability can also be the worst enemy of a strategic thinker as they create a rigid process for their presentation that does not allow room for the ebb and flow of the presentation space. When creating your outline, consider writing in moments of participation or question and answer opportunities for your audience. This will allow your audience to break in to your structure and help shape it to their own desire.
StrengthsFinder is a powerful tool that will help you understand who you are as a person and as a presenter. By understanding the unique domain that you predominantly fall into, you give yourself a leg up on creating a custom presentation that will wow your audience and leave them ready for more.
If you are looking to understand your personality more as well as how your strengths impact your specific presentation style go online and take the Badge assessment now. Then contact us to find out how our Badge coaches can help you craft a powerful presentation!
