Success Strategies
By Rajesh Jyotishi
Have you ever wondered about the differences between people who are good at what they do and those who are great at them? What is it that the great teachers do that the good ones don’t? What is it that Warren Buffet and Tiger Woods do that makes them stand out?
Well, the Gallup organization also asked the same questions. In fact, they did a major study of over 10 million people over 10 years to find out what makes these people not only very good at what they do, but also happier and more productive.
What the study found out was that people who follow their strengths are usually the most productive and happier at work than those who don’t. It kind of makes sense if you think about it. Many of us have been brought up to think you need to find your shortcomings and work on improving upon them. It is true you can’t just totally neglect your weak areas. If you get a report card that shows you are poor in math, it doesn’t mean you stop doing math. But it does make sense to find the areas you are really good in and work on improving them even further.
How Well Do You Really Know Yourself?
Do you really know your strengths? If you are unhappy in your work and are always struggling to keep your job, it could be that you may be doing something that you weren’t cut out for. What if you could do what you love all day and everyday? Would you be happier and more productive? Chances are that you probably could make more money too. If you are a business owner or a manager, you may want to take a step back and look at your team and see if they are really doing jobs that they are most suited for. Maybe you have a sales person whose strengths are in accounting and an accountant who may be better suited in sales?
Take the Test!
If you want to discover your top strengths, check out the book Strengths Finder 2.0 by Tom Rath. It’s an easy read that will give you the basic research that went into this ideology and give you an opportunity to discover your strengths. Inside the book, you will find a code that will allow you to take a 20-30-minute online test and narrow down your top five strengths from 34 possible themes.
All of us at Khabar took the tests couple of years ago. For some of us, the results that came out made for a major a-ha moment! The top five themes that were revealed allowed us to make sure that everyone was doing what they were most suited for and gave us direction on the strengths we should be focusing upon. “Yes, that describes me perfectly,” was my reaction when I saw my top five themes. Now that I know my top themes, I can actively seek out opportunities that allow me to accentuate my abilities.
The book and the test is also a great thing to share with your kids, who may be pondering career decisions as well as for people who are between jobs and are looking for a new direction. There are also other books on the same line that may also interest you, including Strengths Based Leadership and Go Put Your Strengths to Work.
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