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StrengthsFinder 2.0

by Tom Rath (Goodreads Author)

3.86 of 5 stars 3.86 · rating details · 8,173 ratings · 720 reviews

Do You Do What You Do Best Every Day?

Chances are, you don t. From the cradle to the cubicle, we devote more time to fixing our shortcomings than to developing our strengths.

To help people uncover their talents, Gallup introduced StrengthsFinder in the 2001 management book Now, Discover Your Strengths. The book ignited a global conversation, while StrengthsFinder helped mil

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Hardcover, 174 pages

Published February 1st 2007 by Gallup Press (first published January 1st 2007)

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May 27, 2012 Tameca rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-more-than-once, to-read-again, because-of-friends

I read this book to show my former boss that I was willing to work with her in her efforts to find out how all of her "beans'" strengths could mesh (which could only happen after everyone knew what strengths they had to contribute and when each bean had shared his/her strengths with the rest of the team). By the way, I worked at Starbucks.

I like the organization of the book, the detailed information about strengths, and even the online test you take to find out what strengths you have. I believe...more

6 likes · like · see review

Mar 23, 2013 Jenny rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read2013, librarianship

Don't get this book from the library if you haven't taken the StrengthsFinder test, because each book only comes with one code. I had taken the test already and been provided with the supplementary material, so this doesn't have a lot to add except for advice on how to work with people with the strengths you don't have. I read the suggestions for my boss's strength, and I was like, "Preach!"

Other than that, I found StrengthsFinder to be far more useful and practical than older tests like the Mye...more

4 likes · like · see review

Oct 02, 2011 Jean Tessier rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: leisure

Starts with a cool idea: instead of spending time trying to get better at things you have no talent for, why not work at being great at things you have a natural affinity for? Each of us has things they tend to be good at (talents), and things they tend to not be good at (let's call them handicaps). Why should we spend time and energy overcoming our handicaps, at the expense of our talents? At most, we'll be average at them for a lot of effort. Instead, we should spend our efforts in line with o...more Starts with a cool idea: instead of spending time trying to get better at things you have no talent for, why not work at being great at things you have a natural affinity for? Each of us has things they tend to be good at (talents), and things they tend to not be good at (let's call them handicaps). Why should we spend time and energy overcoming our handicaps, at the expense of our talents? At most, we'll be average at them for a lot of effort. Instead, we should spend our efforts in line with our talents and become really great at them.

The book outlines 34 themes, or areas of strength that Gallup has identified after looking at millions of profiles. It also gives you access to an online assessment that will magically tell you your top five strengths. Each theme has a nice description that makes you warm and fuzzy inside. Each also has activities to help you develop it. It's kinda like astrology, really: the descriptions are so fuzzy and use such powerful words that no matter which one you happen to read, you'll find that it matches you at some level and will sound like something you'd want to get better at. Luckily, there's the online assessment to make sure you only bother with five of them so you don't get too confused.

Of course, you cannot take the assessment without first purchasing the book. The entire intro reads like a pressure sales pitch for a psychic hotline. I'm very suspicious of opaque claims supported by pseudo-science with made-up names that come complete with a dead founder with a ludicrous made-up title that must be repeated in full every single time: Father of Strengths Psychology, Dr. Donald O. Clifton.

I like the premise of pursuing your own strengths, but the execution feels more like a religious cult than an exercise in reason. I went along, just for the sake of entertainment. My top five strengths are: Input, Context, Individualization, Intellection, and Adaptability. A few of the others sounded good to me, like Futuristic, for example. But the magical assessment program did not pick it when it used a whole slew of weird questions to somehow plumb my subconscious and decide on what my top five strengths were.

The book is essentially a sales pitch for the website. It tells you precious little about anything. It's only real value is in the code to take the online assessment. The book is definitely not worth $20, and I would not pay $20 for a self-help test. To me, it's barely a step above the get-rich-quick scam where you make a video on how to get rich in which you tell people to make a video on how to get rich.
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Jul 29, 2010 Felina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 1own-dead-tree

Alright I had:

Maximizer - "Excellence, not average, is your measure. Taking something from below average to slightly above average takes a great deal of effort and in your opinion is not very rewarding. Transforming something strong into something superb takes just as much effort but is much more thrilling.' That is way me. I've always said that trying to be well rounded is a waste of time but being amazing at something should be the goal. I know what my flaws are and I simply don't care.

Relator...more Alright I had:

Maximizer - "Excellence, not average, is your measure. Taking something from below average to slightly above average takes a great deal of effort and in your opinion is not very rewarding. Transforming something strong into something superb takes just as much effort but is much more thrilling.' That is way me. I've always said that trying to be well rounded is a waste of time but being amazing at something should be the goal. I know what my flaws are and I simply don't care.

Relator - Relator describes your attitude toward your relationships. In simple terms, the Relator theme pulls you toward people you already know. You do not necessarily shy away from meeting new people but you do derive a great deal of pleasure and strength from being around your close friends. You are comfortable with intimacy. Once the initial connection has been made, you deliberately encourage a deepening of the relationship. Wow, I'm freaked out. I am totally this. I have very little interest in having a lot of friends. I am only interested in having a very small group of extremely close friends. And with those close friends I am very open.

Input - You are inquisitive. You collect things. You might collect information - words, facts, books and quotations - or you might collect tangible objects. Whatever you collect, you collect it because it interests you. And yours is the kind of mind that finds so many things interesting. Yeah I collect books. This makes perfect sense. However, the description goes on to make this sound like a hoarder and I am not a hoarder. I throw everything away except written information. I have all my old text books.

Ideation - You are fascinated by ideas. What is an idea? And idea is a concept, the best explanation of the most events. You are delighted when you discover beneath the complex surface an elegantly simple concept to explain why things are the way they are. An idea is a connection. Yours is the kind of mind that is always looking for connections, and so you are intrigues when seemingly disparate phenomena can be linked by an obscure connection.
Yep. That me.

Adaptability - You live in the moment. You don't see the future as a fixed destination. Instead, you see it as a place that you create out of the choices that you make right now. And so you discover your future one choice at a time. We share this one. I don't think the description sounds flighty and wishy-washy. But this is also me and from my 'Maximizer' side I don't see this strength as having any kind of downside. :)

I actually think this applies more to me now than it did in college.(less)

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Aug 08, 2008 Emma rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone, seriously

Shelves: biz-marketing-money, personal-growth

Total awesomeness!

This book and the included test (be sure to buy a new copy) inspired me for months. Finding out my top 5 strengths made who I am make so much more sense. I love their approach of focusing on what you are "designed" to do, rather than trying to shore up your weaknesses. They have specific suggestions for each strength which includes which kinds of folks you should pair up with and how others will react to your strength. For instance my top one is "Ideation" - a love for and faci...more

12 likes · like · see review

Apr 15, 2013 Micah Lugg rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: personal-development, life-plan, leadership

As the name of the book suggests, I turned to this book to help me get a picture of my personal strengths. It consists of 30 pages of introductory matter before it takes you to the website to take the test. The results of the test are five top strength themes specific to you. All 34 strength themes are explained in the remainder of the book.

Each strength theme lists:

* an explanation of the theme
* examples of people describing the theme in their life
* a list of ideas for acting out of that streng...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Farnoosh Brock rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: business-spirit

More like a reference & you must take the test for it to be useful!

After reading the first book in this topic, "Now, Discover Your Strengths", I was rejuvenated. I learned the 5 areas of my greatest potential strengths. I felt them to be quite accurate. Tom Rath wrote the sequel, "StrengthFinder 2.0" soon after the publication of Buckingham and Clifton's book and I wanted to read this book for two reasons:

First I wanted a free pass to Strengthfinder 2.0 assessment to check my results against...more

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Mar 29, 2013 Tayyaba Iqbal rated it 3 of 5 stars

Interesting and insightful book. It is quite business oriented however, which is a downside. However, to understand ones personality more it is interesting and can offer a different viewpoint on certain aspects of life. I quite enjoyed the personality test that the book provides one with, as this can be engaging and interesting, especially to those who are trying to understand themselves better. However, books such as this, which could be under the category of 'self-help' can become addicting an...more

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Mar 28, 2013 Jacob Campbell added it

Book cover of Tom Rath's Strength's Finder 2.0

Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0 Book Cover. You can readDeveloping Strengths, Tim Roth's Strengths Finder 2.0 Review

This image is © Jacob Campbell. The image is titled Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0 Book Cover

...more

Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0 Book Cover. You can read Developing Strengths, Tim Roth's Strengths Finder 2.0 Review

This image is © Jacob Campbell. The image is titled Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0 Book Cover

I'm currently helping out at my agency, Nueva Esperanza Community Counseling Services, with a working group redesigning out treatment plan that we use with our client. It's been a good process and I think something important to consider. In participating in this process, I have been thinking about how we develop strengths. I decided that since I was thinking about strengths perspective, I should put up some information in my resources section.

I also recently finished reading a copy of Tom Roth's Strengths Finder 2.0 (make sure to check out all of my other book reviews). I'd recommend the book, but I will acknowledge that it takes some homework time to really gain any significance from it.

To really get the most out of Strengths Finder 2.0, you must purchase a new copy of the book (or a book that has an unused access code for their website). The book really is only supplemental, and I felt like it was almost like a sales pitch for their web program to examine individuals strengths. The majority of the learning I accomplished seemed to come from using their Clifton Strengths Finder. This is basically an assessment that attempts to help you discover what strengths and assets you have have though choosing answers on a web based form.

I did find the results to be valuable, and informative. I also really appreciated hearing about a strengths perspective from a different source (i.e. not just about mental health, but seeing the value in the business / personal life). It's been an interesting couple of months reading (don't worry, it didn't take me a couple of months to finish this book, as it's quite small). I've also been reading Plato's The Republic. While I haven't finished, I hope to within the next couple of weeks, so you can look forward to a review of that book too. But to give you a small look forward, I've been amazed how many theories and modern ideas are espoused in Plato's work, including strengths perspective.

Read more of the review at my blog, Developing Strengths, Tim Roth's Strengths Finder 2.0 Review or other review's that I have written.

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Feb 23, 2013 Duncan Hendrick rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: learning

I love the theory behind this book and the descriptions really help you pinpoint your strengths. I do feel its lacking a bit in actual implementation, but I guess that isn't necessarily the point of this book (as it's called "Strengths FINDER," now "Using Your Strengths").

The other issue I have with this book is the online content. The test is great in showing you your top 5 strengths, but the content they show you for each strength comes straight out of the book . It's essentially just a reorg...more

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Feb 01, 2013 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars

I’d say the good news is that taking the assessment and reading the book only took about 2 hours. I find those assessments generally disappointing though. For me, it’s comparable to lucid dreaming. Just before I wake up in the mornings, I seem to be able to steer my dreams and control my choices when that veil between sleeping and waking is most thinly divided. As I take assessments like these, it’s usually obvious how each result is going to lead to a certain description and it’s tempting to an...more

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Dec 29, 2012 Ainsley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2012

I believe this book's philosophy makes for a happier and more productive life--that it's more rewarding to spend time honing my strengths than trying to improve my weaknesses. This book and its philosophy help me not to feel like a square peg in a round hole, that I "should" be more like this or that. Instead, I came away from this book and the related test feeling like I was pretty well "pegged" and that I had a toolbox of strengths which I can build upon and explore more, both professionally a...more

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Dec 28, 2012 Erika RS rated it 3 of 5 stars

I read this books as part of a reading group at work. It is a mediocre book with highly valuable information if you are willing to dig through the business speak and find it. As such, reading it in a group worked well. At our meetings, we were able to weed out the valuable information.

The theme of this book is that people do best when they focus on their strengths. This flies in the face of much popular wisdom which says that you should work to improve in your weakest areas. Instead, the authors...more I read this books as part of a reading group at work. It is a mediocre book with highly valuable information if you are willing to dig through the business speak and find it. As such, reading it in a group worked well. At our meetings, we were able to weed out the valuable information.

The theme of this book is that people do best when they focus on their strengths. This flies in the face of much popular wisdom which says that you should work to improve in your weakest areas. Instead, the authors of this book are of the opinion that focusing on your weaknesses will, at best, bring you up to mediocre. Focusing on those areas where you have natural talent and passion will bring success. They say that successful teams are balanced, but successful individuals invest in developing their unique talents.

Strengths Finder 2.0 has the word "strength" in the title, but it is actually about talent themes. A strength is what you get when you combine a talent theme with certain skills and knowledge. Strengths change over the years but talent themes tend to be fairly stable. The book has a brief introductory section followed by a catalog of talent themes. The catalog describes the talent themes.

To help you determine your talent themes, this book comes with a one time use code (i.e., never buy these books used) which gives you access to an online quiz which determines your strengths. Unlike some personality tests, this one is based off of years worth of research by Gallup. The result of the quiz is your type five talent themes. If you want to know how the other 29 talent themes rank, you have to pay Gallup a whole lot of money. Annoying.

Each talent theme is highly specific and actionable. This list of the short descriptions gives some idea of their specificity, but the descriptions in the book have more information that make it clear that some talent themes fit you well and others are terrible (even though you might want to have it). My top five talent themes are, in order, Input, Intellection, Learner, Harmony, and Responsibility.

Like any program, the real value is proportional to the amount of time you are willing to put into it. The answers the books give you are just a start. I found my talent themes to be valuable starting points in figuring out how I could really apply my strengths to my job.(less)

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Dec 25, 2012 Guntar Akhmad rated it 5 of 5 stars

Ini buku yg pertama kalinya pembuka kesadaran saya ttg bakat :-)

Buku ini intinya tiga: mengungkap pentingnya pengoptimalan bakat, memberikan penjelasan terkait 34 bakat, dan memberi Anda akses untuk melakukan assessment diri hingga ditemukan 5 bakat terbesar Anda.

Buku ini memberikan kode yang bisa Anda gunakan untuk melakukan self assessment di web strength finder. Satu buku hanya satu kode. Satu kode hanya bisa digunakan satu kali oleh satu orang.

Karena saya membaca buku ini melalui pinjam, m...more

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Oct 24, 2012 Gabriela rated it 5 of 5 stars

In StrengthsFinder 2.0, Tom Rath of Gallup seeks to show how we can identify our strengths and capitalize on them instead of focusing too much on our weaknesses. Using highly researched assessments, the book provides hundreds of techniques of that we can use to maximize our strengths and capabilities.

I was particularly pleased by how this book was organized; making it easy to identify your top strengthens. I find that the tests were thoroughly accurate and the revelations about my strengths have...more

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Oct 20, 2012 Ian Lekus rated it 4 of 5 stars

I read this book, recommended by several friends & colleagues, as part of the self-assessment work I'm doing as I redesign my professional life. The premise of StrengthsFinder 2.0 is that many of us focus so heavily on fixing our weaknesses that we don't actively identify, cultivate, and promote our strengths. While I think that overcoming our weaknesses does carry some significant value, the author's reframing is convincing, especially after taking the exam that is included with the purchas...more I read this book, recommended by several friends & colleagues, as part of the self-assessment work I'm doing as I redesign my professional life. The premise of StrengthsFinder 2.0 is that many of us focus so heavily on fixing our weaknesses that we don't actively identify, cultivate, and promote our strengths. While I think that overcoming our weaknesses does carry some significant value, the author's reframing is convincing, especially after taking the exam that is included with the purchase of the book.

The deal with StrengthsFinder 2.0 is that when you buy the print or digital version, you receive the key for an online test with somewhere around 130 questions that you answer in no more than 20 seconds per question. The exam then scores you for each of 34 strengths or talents, and provides you with the list of your top five rankings, including examples of how those strengths play out in work and life, as well as suggestions for types of work best suited to your talents and for the types of other strengths you'll likely complement well. Your scores for rankings #6-34 can be purchased as part of a much more expensive consulting package -- or you can do what I did (this also holds for anyone buying a used copy or borrowing it from the library) and read the detailed descriptions for all 34 strengths, and see which qualities match your temperament and experience.

The very most useful thing I learned from my scores was not just my top two rankings, but to think on my own about how those strengths would combine and allow me to pitch myself as I hunt for jobs & develop a consulting practice. I'm also pretty sure that after reading the entire book, there's a few other strengths that must round out the rest of my own top ten.

Some of the findings are pretty easy to predict and may or may not reveal anything profound - e.g., finding out that my #3 overall ranking was that I'm a learner wasn't much of a shock. Some deeper meaning can be gleamed from reading through all the strengths and seeing what doesn't -- such as the "harmonious" category (as it turns out, while I don't rush into conflict, I like conflict resolution much more than the conflict avoidance - my judgmental language, I concede - that is part of that particular trait).

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book for anyone trying to make sense of how they move through the world, especially in professional or civic settings. (less)

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Oct 13, 2012 J. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Excellent Book but after reading I now use it as a reference. My workplace a few years back got fully into the Gallup Strength Finder process. I was among the most virulent skeptics and critics when I heard about the process when we heard about it. After well over 30 years as a leader in many different environments I just didn't think it would deliver. I also didn't like the associated surveys.

Well after I got my profile which was solicited telephonically by a computer - giving you just second...more

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Aug 18, 2012 Fiona ODMC rated it 4 of 5 stars

The StrengthsFinder is an assessment test that can help you find and build on your strengths. The book teaches you how to discover and develop the combination of strengths that make you unique, rather than our traditional approach of trying to identify and correct weaknesses. The SF is the first assessment test I took that I felt positively about, they position your characteristics as strengths rather than pointing out your flaws or where you could do better.

The book is not quite as valuable as...more

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Jul 13, 2012 Dana Arcuri rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was extremely beneficial in determining my career path by zooming into my strengths. The concept is awesome! I believe more businesses and colleges need to help our younger generation discover their specific strengths BEFORE choosing a career. Think about how much time and energy would be spared on avoiding dead end jobs, not to mention the unbelievable amount of college tuition.

Whether you are young or old, there is nothing better than to boost your self-esteem by tapping into your t...more

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Jul 06, 2012 Melissa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: the-self-improvement-crazytrain

So, the managers at my store are reading this.

And I was like, haha!, I will read this too and see what you are up to.

Yeah, this isn't that kind of book.

I've taken Myers-Briggs Personality-type tests before (I'm an ISTJ) so the evaluation tool you take at the Gallup site is pretty similar. And worth the purchase of the book because that gives you the code to take the test to find your top five strengths (check in the back of the book to make sure no one's stolen the code before you buy it). The...more

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Jul 03, 2012 Alison Law rated it 2 of 5 stars

I agree with the premise of this book 100%. Rath hypothesizes that instead of spending most of our time trying to improve our areas of weakness (as most of us in the U.S. public school systems learn to do), we should instead focus our energies on cultivating our areas of strength. The formula that the author uses is Talent x Investment = Strength. This is the gist of the first 28 pages.

Here comes the rub. At Page 29 you read "Parting Thoughts." This is basically where the book ends and you're po...more

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Apr 27, 2012 Thomas rated it 2 of 5 stars

I've taken the previous quiz before and was curious what this update would get me six month later, so I deliberately bought both books: result so far is that 75% of what you read in the book (or a mere 25 of the 34) might truly describe every person on earth by character statements of the book, the rest is just a repetition---e.g. where is the difference between being strategic, self-assured and deliberative? You have to deliberately think scenarios to be self-assured in order to act, any sepera...more I've taken the previous quiz before and was curious what this update would get me six month later, so I deliberately bought both books: result so far is that 75% of what you read in the book (or a mere 25 of the 34) might truly describe every person on earth by character statements of the book, the rest is just a repetition---e.g. where is the difference between being strategic, self-assured and deliberative? You have to deliberately think scenarios to be self-assured in order to act, any seperation results in desaster. If my objection does not convince you, then you're going trust the Strengthsfinder on this one: both tests state I have great insight in exactly these three matters. I think this is just another way of saying same things we already know since Ancient Greek. There, Aristotle demanded only four virtues to be universally true. Later, someone came up with eight, ten, today a myriad of character and success ethics ask for recognition, from seven habits to eight habits ... a diverse set of success factors, from socializing to brain power, from making friends to having myelin around those corners of the brain that make friends---or in the statement of the Strengthsfinder: having a talent for wooing. So the book does what it promises to do: tell you what you already know in a new way, in a particular system of language with some confidence that these terms actually can describe people. This test suffers the same illnesses of knowledge and inquiry as the psychological statistics manual (the DSM) or the other psychological test system (MBTI) or any other medical test, like the HIV test ... given a positive result in a (HIV) test, how likely is it that it's wrong (having no HIV) after all? After having tested myself after six month again, having the "improved" version of the test, I'm sure that I'm not so sure about the statements.

What did not changed was the follow-up offer to spent an additional 500+ USD on a conversatoin to assess the remaining 29 other items listed in the book. The biz model is a great thing for everybody in marketing: you have to sell to people psychology on what is "right with you", instead of making them feel sick about themselves. That's not only the premise of this book, but the premise of a whole new variety of psycho-tests pouring out of American universities in the last ten years, all labelled after Seligman's Positive Psychology. This particular book is nothing less than a ticket with an overbloated, but very interesting to read pitch to a varieté show called the Strengthsfinder psychology test.

Oh btw, only one in five items survived in my second test after six month. Thus, a great entertaining performance you get from the book and the quiz. It's worth the money, for some other tickets to entertainment would cost you more and tell you less about yourself than this one. I give this book 3/5 for it was fun to read and have the drama of having another test. In the end, I take the test results very seriously---deliberative, strategic and self-assured.(less)

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Mar 27, 2012 GoldGato rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: business, non-fiction, year-round

You cannot be anything you want to be - but you can be a whole lot more of who you already are.

People love to find out who they are and what they're best at doing. For the world of business, it can be very helpful to have a fix on your strengths, rather than your weakness. The basic theory that has been taught in corporations since the mid 1990s has been a fixation on strengthening an employee's weakness...which simply makes no sense. After all, we are who we are. It's like marrying someone and...more

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Mar 16, 2012 Lisa rated it 1 of 5 stars

While I spent comparatively little for this copy, I'm angry now that I spent anything on it at all. I feel as if I've been suckered into a scam.

I bought this book hoping it would be useful in helping my teenagers determine their personal strengths, so they might use that knowledge when making decisions about both their future education and careers. What a waste of time and money. I made the mistake of judging by the total overall Amazon rating, rather than looking at individual reviews. Had I do...more

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Mar 16, 2012 Pat rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: no-one

Recommended to Pat by: amazon

Whilst the ideas in the book may be great - brilliant even, I think the whole book is a scam!
It had come up as a recommendation on Amazon and the initial blurb interested me as I do believe we tend to live up to whatever label we are given. So I read some of the inside pages - and added the book to my order. No where was I given the impression that for the book to of any use at all I would have to register with a website to take a test.

the book arrived and I started reading First a short chapt...more

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Jan 20, 2012 Cheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars

I had to read this book for a professional development class at work. My top five strengths are deliberative, restorative, relator, harmony, and intellection. Being deliberative means I take a really long time to make a decision because I am so careful and cautious. Having harmony means I like for there to be peace and when there is conflict I tend to run, which only creates more conflict because I do not want to resolve the issue. Relator, it is a people thing, and I tend to have a small circle...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Kassel rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

Buying the book allows you to obtain an access code (good for only one user) that lets you take the Strengths Finder 2.0 test. There is no other way to obtain an access code apart from purchasing the book. That means if you already own the book and your spouse wants to take the test, he needs to purchase the book as well. It's a great ploy for selling books. But if Gallup allowed people to purchase an access code without buying the book, I'm sure they would have made quite a bit more money and r...more

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Oct 30, 2011 Angelica rated it 2 of 5 stars

This books was ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT in theory but FAILED follow up on the promise. You get the gist of the book in 10 minutes, you get the you evaluation and, voilá, book over. To some extent this feels like a scam to me.

First you pay for the book containing ONE code for ONE test only (if you're lucky and nobody stole the code). Then you read the book which contains nothing of use if not combined with the test. Then you take the test and if you want the full evaluation (including more than the t...more

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Sep 09, 2011 Faith Gudal rated it 5 of 5 stars

I love the new approach on personal development this book took. Instead of trying to constantly be better at something you are naturally not good at, the author suggests focusing on your strengths and making them amazing. I still think balance is important but it changed the way I look at how to be successful. The way it works is that you buy the book, get the secret code in the back and take the quiz online. It will take about 20 minutes. Then it highlights what it thinks are your top 5 strengt...more

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Sep 01, 2011 Linda rated it 2 of 5 stars

Disclaimer: My view of this book may have been skewed by the initial anger and frustration of buying it at a Borders clearance sale only to discover when I got home that the envelope with the unique code necessary to log on to the website and take the test was open and the code was gone. Without having the results of the test the book pretty much means nothing as it gives a description and action plans for each of the 34 different "strengths," so you need to know what you really score highest on...more

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About Tom Rath

Tom Rath is one of the most influential authors of the last decade. He studies the role of human behavior in health, business, and economics. Tom writes and speaks on a range of topics, from wellbeing to organizational leadership.

Tom is currently working full-time on a new book titled EAT MOVE SLEEP: Why Small Choices Make a Big Difference for Fall 2013. To learn more about Tom's next book and par...more

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Books by Tom Rath

How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life

Vital Friends: The People You Can't Afford to Live Without

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Quotes from StrengthsFinder 2.0

“When we're able to put most of our energy into developing our natural talents, extraordinary room for growth exists. So, a revision to the "You-can-be-anything-you-want-to-be" maxim might be more accurate: You cannot be anything you want to be—but you can be a lot more of who you already are.” — 4 people liked it

“Talent (a natural way of thinking, feeling, or behaving) × Investment (time spent practicing, developing your skills, and building your knowledge base) = Strength (the ability to consistently provide near-perfect performance)” — 4 people liked it

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