The Enchanting Tale of the 40-Minute Assessment

Gallup Press put out a book in 2007 titled Strengths Finder 2.0. The book contains an access code for a 177-question assessment online, which takes about 40 minutes to complete. In many ways, it's like a scaled-back Myers-Briggs Type Indicator personality test. The StrengthsFinder predictably only reveals 5 themes (strengths) and gives you a bit of background. We were lucky enough to get this as a part of our training at ThoughtWorks University, but if you're interested you can pick it up for about $12 on Amazon:

Assessment

The assessment is pretty easy to go through for the most part. One answers the questions by comparing the two options at opposite ends of a 5-point likert-esque scale and selecting the position he or she thinks best describes him. The options aren't always conflicting. Hypothetical example in glorious ASCII art:

   Strongly                                    Strongly

    Agree                Neutral                Agree

      |----------|----------|----------|----------|

I am a strong leader                    I like to listen

Results

The results are ready with a very nice customized report instantly.

My top 5 themes (with StrengthsFinder's descriptions!)

1. Ideation
   

   People strong in the Ideation theme are fascinated by ideas. They are able to find connections between seemingly disparate phenomena.

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. Command
   

   People who are especially talented in the Command theme have presence. They can take control of a situation and make decisions.

5. Futuristic
   

   People who are especially talented in the Futuristic theme are inspired by the future and what could be. They inspire others with their visions of the future.

In all, there are 34 StrengthsFinder Themes. Other information in the report includes quotes from people with your top themes and ways to apply your talents.

Note I've wanted to try out these affiliate links for ages now, but never really had an opportunity. In the interest of full disclosure, , if someone happens to buy this book through the link I'll try to not spend my $0.48 referral fee in one place.

Note Yes, I consider graphs works of art