I still remember the moment at a friend’s wedding back in 2005 when a mentor of mine first mentioned a new tool he had been exposed to: Strengthsfinder. To be honest, I had taken just about every personality and gifting assessment out there and I was a little “tested out,” if you know what I mean.

A few years later I found myself crafting a college course for student leader development and I wandered back to the tool about “strengths.” The premise seemed simplistic, but as I dove into the context of this assessment, where it had come from, how it could work for individuals, teams and organizations, a whole new way of understanding myself and others emerged.

The concept of “strengths” seems relatively straightforward, but to grasp the concept of your uniqueness, your limitations and your need for others is a revelation that keeps on revealing…

The assessment report provides the top five strengths themes out of 34 potential themes, ranked in priority order. Gallup, developer of Strengthsfinder, claims the odds of someone having the same top five themes in the same order as you is one in 33.4 million. The odds of someone having the same 34 strengths in the same order as you, basically, doesn’t exist. It is impossible to measure that likelihood! On one hand that claim seems crazy to me and on the other hand it sings to me the message that we’ve all been uniquely created in the image of our Creator. We bear a unique mark and with it, a unique calling in this world. I challenge you to still yourself, to allow that truth to sink in. Contemplate your uniqueness.

Receiving only our top 5 strengths themes helps us to focus. It causes us to grapple with and understand what’s most important about ourselves in a way that is manageable and focused. As humans we easily lose focus on what’s most important. We lose our appreciation for our unique design and long for the gifts that God has given to others. “I wish I were a developer, an includer, a maximizer…”

Personally, I am acutely aware there are areas in my life that could be developed and grown, but this tool has helped me to stay aligned and focused in leveraging my areas of unique strength. Some might fear that this kind of focus on strengths could cause neglect of the broader needs of the organization, the team, etc., but I don’t believe that’s the case. The most extraordinary revelation encountered on this strengths journey over the past ten years is this one: My limitations don’t expose my weakness, but they remind me of my need for others.

In a way, Strengthsfinder provides a lens to see a beautiful picture of the Body of Christ acting as it was intended…each part living out its calling and recognizing its need for everyone else to live out theirs.

  • What if, instead of me trying to be all things to all people, I understood my strengths, talents and limitations?
  • What if I had a tool to help me see, hear and appreciate the strengths and calling in those around me and then leveraged them to bring what I do not.
  • What if I did everything I could to empower others to live out their unique strengths?

I want that! In some strange way this tool has given me permission to really concentrate on those things that I do best and pursue them wholeheartedly. I can’t be everything. I’m not supposed to be. God never intended it to be that way.

I never would have thought ten years ago a simple online assessment could truly transform how I understand myself, and others, but it has. As a part of the NL Moore & Associates team, I’m overjoyed this is the premise and foundation for how we see those we have the opportunity to work with and for.

May you take the time to grasp your uniqueness, rest in your limitations, and feel empowered to need others!