Strengths Finder

Class Assignnients.

Strengths!-‘inder Assignment v

l‘his .1SSlgliltlt.‘l1l will enable you to get a better sense ofyour strengths, reflect on how your
strengths play out in your life, as well as consider how your strengths may be leveraged for
future career success.

1) Log onto the Sll‘oIlgll’1Sl“lllLlE?l‘ website using the code at the back ofyour book and take

the St’rengthsFinder assessment. A few important things to note:

‘.1. The code can only be used once so you must have a new book and you may
not retake the assessment. Do NOT buy a used book, as the unique code won’t
work.

h. The assessment only gives you a short time to answer each question so it will
require your full concentration. Therefore, find a place where you will be
undisturbed for 30 minutes.

c. Once you answer a question, you cannot go back and change a response. lfthis
should happen don’t worry about it; the survey is designed with several items
that capture that same dimension so one item will not impact the results.

d. Once you have completed the survey, print out the page that displays your five
signature themes and include it at the end ofyour paper.

2)lRead the sections in the text that correspond to your five signature themes and select
5. ;- four that you feel best describe you. The structure ofyour paper should be as follows:
V it
H l. First, comment on how these strengths do or don’t begin to describe how you
tend to be strong in these areas. Note that while most ofthese may represent a
pretty good idea ofyour strengths, one or two might not be so accurate, due to
limitations in the survey or simply the way you happened to answer a few
questions. lfthere is a mismatch, describe how.
ll. Then write in more depth about three of your favorite strengths. Be specific-

Mention how they have been rewarding to you so far in your life and how YOU

‘-‘”loy the activities that exemplify them. Feel free to brag a bit about how you
have been recognized by friends, bosses, parents, or others for how you are

strong in these areas. For example, “Coaches have praised me for my

competitive, spirit” (Competitive) or “Teachers have said I was good at putting
concepts together” (ldeation) or “My friends have pointed out that I’m usually’

the one to mediate a conflict between them” (Harmony).

U1. Reflect on the three Strengths T g
T g 61- How may these translate into genuine assets in your career and your life?
l’- 0“ the Other hand, what could be the “dark side” of these strengths if tht‘-’Y led T
W“ *0 Pl‘oduce negative results, rather than positive? For example, a

Command strength could lead to being pushy or abusive with others, or
Harmony could prevent someone from ever taking a stand personally.
c. How would you like to improve two or three of your strengths in the next
year or so? What specifically do you want to undertake to make it happen?
d. What concrete steps can you take in the course of this semester to improve
these strengths? This might entail making use of your activities with your
project team or others in the class or your mentor or close friends or
relatives.
The best papers will relate the concepts embodied in the StrengthsFinder results to specific
situations, such as “One time my roommate and I were fighting over. . or “My boss likes it
that she can count on me to do . . Finally, use good writing techniques, such as an
introductory paragraph stating what you will cover and a concluding Péfragraph
summarizing what the paper says. Be sure there are no grammatical mlstakes 0*”
typographical errors. Make use of the writing tutors if necessary.
For those who have taken BUSI 2160, there will be an alternate assignment detailed later in
the syllabus