Strengths Insight and Action-Planning Guide: Tudor Jarda
Strengths Insight and Action-Planning Guide: Tudor Jarda
DON CLIFTON
(Tudor Jarda) 1
© 2000, 2006-2012 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.
Tudor Jarda
SURVEY COMPLETION DATE: 04-07-2017
1. Achiever
2. Individualization
3. Activator
4. Focus
5. Strategic
A brief Shared Theme Description for each of your top five themes
Your Personalized Strengths Insights, which describe what makes you stand out from others with the
same theme in their top five
Examples of what each of your top five themes "sounds like" -- real quotes from people who also have
the theme in their top five
Steps for you to take to help you leverage your talents for achievement
Achiever
People exceptionally talented in the Achiever theme work hard and possess a great deal of stamina.
They take immense satisfaction in being busy and productive.
Because of your strengths, you strive to energize people. You are determined to generate a lot of
enthusiasm around various projects, events, or activities. Chances are good that you dive into
challenging situations because you trust yourself. You know you have the talent to deal with hazards
as you encounter them. Launching new ventures thrills you. Tackling impossible goals energizes you.
Stepping out of your comfort zone into unfamiliar territory stimulates you. It’s very likely that you are
apt to be the team member who delights in coordinating new projects, scheduling activities, and/or
gathering materials for others. You often play a key role in your team’s success. Instinctively, you
probably have a reputation for applying yourself to your work for many hours at a time. Your
teammates likely realize you are capable of working all day or through the night when you must
complete job-related tasks, household chores, or academic assignments. By nature, you are quite
clever about many things. You typically outmaneuver or outthink most individuals. Why? You probably
are a lot more persistent, unyielding, and energetic than they are.
QUESTIONS
1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out to you?
2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?
Depending on the order of your themes and how you responded to the assessment, some of your themes may share identical insight statements. If this occurs,
the lower ranked theme will not display insight statements to avoid duplication on your report.
People exceptionally talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of
each person. They have a gift for figuring out how different people can work together productively.
Driven by your talents, you sometimes discover the uniqueness of certain people. Perhaps you
observe their strengths, limitations, likes, dislikes, interests, hopes, or emotional triggers. Armed with
this information, you might be able to mix and match the various traits of individuals to form groups.
When they cooperate, they may reach their common goals more easily, efficiently, or quickly.
Instinctively, you occasionally choose to be a spectator. As you watch people engaging in various
activities, you might enjoy discovering the unique backgrounds, interests, or talents of each person.
Perhaps you find human beings utterly amazing. Maybe you appreciate who they are, what they can
contribute, or what they have accomplished. Sometimes these insights fill you with optimism about life
and hope for the future. By nature, you spend some of your time examining problems, malfunctions,
or glitches. If you experience a personal or professional loss, make a mistake, or suffer a defeat, you
might investigate. Perhaps you feel restless until you have answers to your basic questions: What?
How? When? Where? Who? Why? It’s very likely that you easily identify with what others are thinking
and feeling. You intuitively understand their hopes, fears, joys, and sorrows. This helps you consider
things from each individual’s perspective. Because of your strengths, you occasionally buy books or
check them out of the library because you enjoy reading. Your investigative mind may sometimes be
a bit restless until you have collected enough information to produce answers. Maybe you read about
topics of personal or professional interest. These might range from history to science, from politics to
mathematics, from entertainment to sports, or from art to law.
QUESTIONS
1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out to you?
2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?
Depending on the order of your themes and how you responded to the assessment, some of your themes may share identical insight statements. If this occurs,
the lower ranked theme will not display insight statements to avoid duplication on your report.
People exceptionally talented in the Activator theme can make things happen by turning thoughts into
action. They want to do things now, rather than simply talk about them.
Chances are good that you are likely to be the member of the team who launches projects, starts
meetings, or begins processes. You often reach a point where you tire of planning. This is apt to be
when you need to get busy and make something happen. By nature, you regularly energize people
with your ideas about what can be changed or done better. You frequently describe how individuals or
groups can benefit from your suggestions. Your optimistic approach is apt to inspire people to design
improvement plans. You probably rally individuals to support and execute those plans. Because of
your strengths, you derive much joy from starting new projects, jobs, or courses of study. Before
moving ahead, you automatically think about the things you need to upgrade, perfect, or do better. It’s
very likely that you sometimes reach conclusions by using reason. Sometimes you evaluate all the
facts to pinpoint what is and is not relevant. The mental rigor you demand of yourself might prepare
you to launch projects or initiate plans. Instinctively, you now and then like to make your own choices.
Once you have settled on a goal, maybe you are eager to reach it. By taking charge, you might notice
that particular parts of your life become a bit more interesting or satisfying.
QUESTIONS
1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out to you?
2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?
Depending on the order of your themes and how you responded to the assessment, some of your themes may share identical insight statements. If this occurs,
the lower ranked theme will not display insight statements to avoid duplication on your report.
People exceptionally talented in the Focus theme can take a direction, follow through and make the
corrections necessary to stay on track. They prioritize, then act.
Chances are good that you are comfortable conversing with individuals who know exactly what they
want to accomplish personally and/or professionally. You have an easy time bonding with people who
are open and honest about their goals. Perhaps you derive a bit of satisfaction from helping people
design specific performance objectives for themselves. Because of your strengths, you may devote
yourself to things that intrigue you. Sometimes your attention intensifies if you are encouraged to
immerse yourself in a specific activity or topic. By nature, you typically document your goals and
outline your action plan. By faithfully executing each step, you usually accomplish exactly what you
intended. Instinctively, you yearn to get ahead. You strive to acquire many of the status symbols and
special privileges that come with rank, title, or position. It’s very likely that you might prefer mapping
paths toward specific long-term goals. You occasionally create orderly or detailed tactics to secure
particular objectives. Once in a while, you are energized by what you can accomplish.
QUESTIONS
1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out to you?
2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?
Depending on the order of your themes and how you responded to the assessment, some of your themes may share identical insight statements. If this occurs,
the lower ranked theme will not display insight statements to avoid duplication on your report.
People exceptionally talented in the Strategic theme create alternative ways to proceed. Faced with
any given scenario, they can quickly spot the relevant patterns and issues.
Chances are good that you may be an innovative thinker who devises tactics or considers what will be
possible in the future. Once in a while, you listen to and are stimulated by the ideas of possibility
thinkers. Perhaps you admire their willingness to look beyond today’s accepted practices or standard
operating procedures. While these routines occupy the minds of many individuals, visionaries are
imagining how to do things differently in the coming months, years, or decades. By nature, you may
be viewed by some people as an innovative and original thinker. Perhaps your ability to generate
options causes others to see there is more than one way to attain an objective. Now and then, you
help certain individuals select the best alternative after having weighed the pros and cons in light of
prevailing circumstances or available resources. Instinctively, you can reconfigure factual information
or data in ways that reveal trends, raise issues, identify opportunities, or offer solutions. You bring an
added dimension to discussions. You make sense out of seemingly unrelated information. You are
likely to generate multiple action plans before you choose the best one. Driven by your talents, you
generate innovative ideas. You have a unique perspective on events, people and situations. You
probably inspire others to start projects and launch initiatives as a result of your perspective. You tend
to identify a goal, devise numerous ways of reaching it and choose the best alternative. This explains
why you see opportunities, trends and solutions before your teammates, classmates or peers do. It’s
very likely that you work diligently to invent alternative courses of action. You notice new as well as
unusual configurations in facts, evidence, or data. Others, however, can see only separate, unrelated
bits of information. You are fascinated by problems that puzzle, confound, or frustrate most people.
QUESTIONS
1. As you read your personalized strengths insights, what words, phrases, or lines stand out to you?
2. Out of all the talents in this insight, what would you like for others to see most in you?
Depending on the order of your themes and how you responded to the assessment, some of your themes may share identical insight statements. If this occurs,
the lower ranked theme will not display insight statements to avoid duplication on your report.
2. How can you use this understanding to add value to your role?
3. How can you apply this knowledge to add value to your team, workgroup, department, or division?
4. How will this understanding help you add value to your organization?
Achiever
Select jobs that allow you to have the leeway to work as hard as you want and in which you are
encouraged to measure your own productivity. You will feel challenged and alive in these
environments.
As an achiever, you relish the feeling of being busy, yet you also need to know when you are “done.”
Attach timelines and measurement to goals so that effort leads to defined progress and tangible
outcomes.
Remember to build celebration and recognition into your life. Achievers tend to move on to the next
challenge without acknowledging their successes. Counter this impulse by creating regular
opportunities to enjoy your progress and accomplishments.
Your drive for action might cause you to find meetings a bit boring. If that’s the case, appeal to your
Achiever talents by learning the objectives of each meeting ahead of time and by taking notes about
progress toward those objectives during the meeting. You can help ensure that meetings are
productive and efficient.
Continue your education by attaining certifications in your area or specialty in addition to attending
conferences and other programs. This will give you even more goals to achieve and will push your
existing boundaries of accomplishment.
You do not require much motivation from others. Take advantage of your self-motivation by setting
challenging goals. Set a more demanding goal every time you finish a project.
Partner with other hard workers. Share your goals with them so they can help you to get more done.
Count personal achievements in your scoring “system.” This will help you direct your Achiever talents
toward family and friends as well as toward work.
More work excites you. The prospect of what lies ahead is infinitely more motivating than what has
been completed. Launch initiatives and new projects. Your seemingly endless reserve of energy will
create enthusiasm and momentum.
Make sure that in your eagerness to do more at work, you do not skimp on quality. Create measurable
outcome standards to guarantee that increased productivity is matched by enhanced quality.
QUESTIONS
2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you will take in
Individualization
Select a vocation in which your Individualization talents can be both used and appreciated, such as
counseling, supervising, teaching, writing human interest articles, or selling. Your ability to see people
as unique individuals is a special talent.
Become an expert in describing your own strengths and style. For example, answer questions such
as: What is the best praise you ever received? How often do you like to check in with your manager?
What is your best method for building relationships? How do you learn best? Then ask your
colleagues and friends these same questions. Help them plan their future by starting with their
strengths, then designing a future based on what they do best.
Help others understand that true diversity can be found in the subtle differences between each
individual — regardless of race, sex, or nationality.
Explain that it is appropriate, just, and effective to treat each person differently. Those without strong
Individualization talents might not see the differences among individuals and might insist that
individualization is unequal and therefore unfair. You will need to describe your perspective in detail to
be persuasive.
Figure out what every person on your team does best. Then help them capitalize on their talents,
skills, and knowledge. You may need to explain your rationale and your philosophy so people
understand that you have their best interests in mind.
You have an awareness and appreciation of others’ likes and dislikes and an ability to personalize.
This puts you in a unique position. Use your Individualization talents to help identify areas where one
size does not fit all.
Make your colleagues and friends aware of each person’s unique needs. Soon people will look to you
to explain other people’s motivations and actions.
Your presentations and speaking opportunities will be most engaging when you relate your topic to
the experiences of individuals in the audience. Use your Individualization talents to gather and share
real-life stories that will make your points much better than would generic information or theories.
You move comfortably among a broad range of styles and cultures, and you intuitively personalize
Your Individualization talents can help you take a different approach to interpreting data. While others
are looking for similarities, make a point of identifying distinctiveness. Your interpretations will add a
valuable perspective.
QUESTIONS
1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are most likely to take.
2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you will take in
Activator
Seek work in which you can make your own decisions and act on them. In particular, look for start-up
or turnaround situations.
At work, make sure that your manager judges you on measurable outcomes rather than your process.
Your process is not always pretty.
You can transform innovative ideas into immediate action. Look for creative and original thinkers, and
help them move their ideas from conceptual theory to concrete practice.
Look for areas that are bogged down by discussion or blocked by barriers. End the stalemate by
creating a plan to get things moving and spur others into action.
You learn more from real experience than from theoretical discussions. To grow, consciously expose
yourself to challenging experiences that will test your talents, skills, and knowledge.
Remember that although your tenacity is powerful, it may intimidate some. Your Activator talents will
be most effective when you have first earned others’ trust and loyalty.
Identify the most influential decision makers in your organization. Make it a point to have lunch with
each of them at least once a quarter to share your ideas. They can support you in your activation and
provide critical resources to make your ideas happen.
You can easily energize the plans and ideas of others. Consider partnering with focused, futuristic,
Give the reasons why your requests for action must be granted. Otherwise, others might dismiss you
as impatient and label you a ‘ready, fire, aim’ person.
You possess an ability to create motion and momentum in others. Be strategic and wise in the use of
your Activator talents. When is the best time, where is the best place, and who are the best people
with whom to leverage your valuable influence?
QUESTIONS
1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are most likely to take.
2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you will take in
Focus
When you set goals, discipline yourself to include timelines and measurements. These will provide
regular proof that you are indeed making progress.
Seek roles in which you can function independently. With your dominant Focus talents, you will be
able to stay on track with little supervision.
Your greatest worth as a team member might be helping others set goals. At the end of meetings,
take responsibility for summarizing what was decided, for defining when these decisions will be acted
on, and for setting a date when the group will reconvene.
Others will think, act, and talk less efficiently than you do. Pay attention. Sometimes their “detours” will
lead to discoveries and delights.
Stretch your goal setting beyond work. If you find yourself becoming too focused on work goals, set
goals for your personal life. They will give weight to your personal priorities and thereby help create
balance in your life.
Hours can disappear when you are intent on a task; you lose track of time. Make sure that all of your
You function best when you can concentrate on a few well-defined initiatives and demands. Give
yourself permission to reject projects or tasks that do not align with your overall mission. This will help
you concentrate your efforts on your most important priorities — and will help others appreciate your
need for focus.
Take the time to write down your aspirations, and refer to them often. You will feel more in control of
your life.
At work, be sure to tell your manager your mid-term and short-term goals. This might well give your
manager the confidence to give you the room you need.
Make sure that the focus points you set for yourself take into consideration both quantity and quality.
The integrity of your objectives will ensure that the application of your Focus talents leads to solid and
long-lasting success.
QUESTIONS
1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are most likely to take.
2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you will take in
Strategic
Take the time to fully reflect or muse about a goal that you want to achieve until the related patterns
and issues emerge for you. Remember that this musing time is essential to strategic thinking.
You can see repercussions more clearly than others can. Take advantage of this ability by planning
your range of responses in detail. There is little point in knowing where events will lead if you are not
ready when you get there.
Find a group that you think does important work, and contribute your strategic thinking. You can be a
leader with your ideas.
Your strategic thinking will be necessary to keep a vivid vision from deteriorating into an ordinary pipe
Make yourself known as a resource for consultation with those who are stumped by a particular
problem or hindered by a particular obstacle or barrier. By naturally seeing a way when others are
convinced there is no way, you will lead them to success.
You are likely to anticipate potential issues more easily than others. Though your awareness of
possible danger might be viewed as negativity by some, you must share your insights if you are going
to avoid these pitfalls. To prevent misperception of your intent, point out not only the future obstacle,
but also a way to prevent or overcome it. Trust your insights, and use them to ensure the success of
your efforts.
Help others understand that your strategic thinking is not an attempt to belittle their ideas, but is
instead a natural propensity to consider all the facets of a plan objectively. Rather than being a
naysayer, you are actually trying to examine ways to ensure that the goal is accomplished, come what
may. Your talents will allow you to consider others’ perspectives while keeping your end goal in sight.
Trust your intuitive insights as often as possible. Even though you might not be able to explain them
rationally, your intuitions are created by a brain that instinctively anticipates and projects. Have
confidence in these perceptions.
Partner with someone with strong Activator talents. With this person’s need for action and your need
for anticipation, you can forge a powerful partnership.
Make sure that you are involved in the front end of new initiatives or enterprises. Your innovative yet
procedural approach will be critical to the genesis of a new venture because it will keep its creators
from developing deadly tunnel vision.
QUESTIONS
1. Which of these action items speak to you? Highlight the actions that you are most likely to take.
2. How will you commit to taking action? Write your own personalized action item that you will take in
Melanie K., ER nurse: “I have to rack up points every day to feel successful. Today I’ve been here
only half an hour, but I’ve probably racked up thirty points already. I ordered equipment for the ER, I
had equipment repaired, I had a meeting with my charge nurse, and I brainstormed with my secretary
about improving our computerized logbook. So on my list of ninety things, I have thirty done already.
I’m feeling pretty good about myself right now.”
Ted S., salesperson: “Last year I was salesperson of the year out of my company’s three hundred
salespeople. It felt good for a day, but sure enough, later that week, it was as if it never happened. I
was back at zero again. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t an achiever because it can lead me away from a
balanced life and toward obsession. I used to think I could change myself, but now I know I am just
wired this way. This theme is truly a double-edged sword. It helps me achieve my goals, but on the
other hand, I wish I could just turn it off and on at will. But, hey, I can’t. I can manage it and avoid work
obsession by focusing on achieving in all parts of my life, not just work.”
Sara L., writer: “This theme is a weird one. First, it’s good because you live in pursuit of the perpetual
challenge. But in the second place, you never feel as though you’ve reached your goal. It can keep
you running uphill at seventy miles an hour for your whole life. You never rest because there’s always
more to do. But, on balance, I think I would rather have it than not. I call it my ‘divine restlessness,’
and if it makes me feel as if I owe the present everything I have, then so be it. I can live with that.”
Les T., hospitality manager: “Carl is one of our best performers, but he still has to see me every week.
He just wants a little encouragement and to check in, and he gets fired up a little bit after that meeting.
Greg doesn’t like to meet very often, so there’s no need for me to bother him. And when we do meet,
it’s really for me, not for him.”
Marsha D., publishing executive: “Sometimes I would walk out of my office and — you know how
cartoon characters have those balloons over their head? I would see these little balloons over
everyone’s head telling me what was in their minds. It sounds weird, doesn’t it? But it happens all the
time.”
Andrea H., interior designer: “When you ask people what their style is, they find it hard to describe, so
Jane C., Benedictine nun: “When I was prioress in the 1970s, we were hit by the energy shortage,
and costs skyrocketed. We had a hundred and forty acres, and I walked the acreage every day
pondering what we should do about this energy shortage. Suddenly I decided that if we had that much
land, we should be drilling our own gas well, and so we did. We spent one hundred thousand dollars
to drill a gas well. If you have never drilled a gas well, you probably don’t realize what I didn’t realize:
namely, that you have to spend seventy thousand dollars just to drill to see if you have any gas on
your property at all. So they dug down with some kind of vibratory camera thing, and they told me that
I had a gas pool. But they didn’t know how large the pool was, and they didn’t know if there was
enough pressure to bring it up. ‘If you pay another thirty thousand dollars, we will try to release the
well,’ they said. ‘If you don’t want us to, we’ll just cap the well, take your seventy thousand, and go
home.’ So I gave them the final thirty thousand and, fortunately, up it came. That was twenty years
ago, and it is still pumping.”
Jim L., entrepreneur: “Some people see my impatience as not wanting to listen to the traps, the
potential roadblocks. What I keep repeating is, ‘I want to know when I am going to hit the wall, and I
need you to tell me how much it is going to hurt. But if I choose to bump into the wall anyway, then
don’t worry — you’ve done your job. I just had to experience it for myself.’”
Nick H., computer executive: “It is very important to me to be efficient. I’m the sort of guy who plays a
round of golf in two and a half hours. When I was at Electronic Data Systems, I worked out a set list of
questions so that I could conduct a review of each division in 15 minutes. The founder, Ross Perot,
called me ‘The Dentist’ because I would schedule a whole day of these in-and-out, fifteen-minute
meetings.”
Brad F., sales executive: “I am always sorting priorities, trying to figure out the most efficient route
toward the goal so that there is very little dead time, very little wasted motion. For example, I will get
multiple calls from customers who need me to call the service department for them, and rather than
taking each one of these calls as they come and interrupting the priorities of the day, I group them
together into one call at the end of the day and get it done.”
Mike L., administrator: “People are amazed how I put things into perspective and stay on track. When
people around the district are stuck on issues and caught on contrived barriers, I am able to pole-vault
over them, reestablish the focus, and keep things moving.”
Liam C., manufacturing plant manager: “It seems as if I can always see the consequences before
anyone else can. I have to say to people, ‘Lift up your eyes; look down the road a ways. Let’s talk
about where we are going to be next year so that when we get to this time next year, we don’t have
the same problems.’ It seems obvious to me, but some people are just too focused on this month’s
numbers, and everything is driven by that.”
Vivian T., television producer: “I used to love logic problems when I was a kid — you know, the ones
where ‘if A implies B, and B equals C, does A equal C?’ Still today, I am always playing out
repercussions, seeing where things lead. I think it makes me a great interviewer. I know that nothing
is an accident; every sign, every word, every tone of voice has significance. So I watch for these clues
and play them out in my head, see where they lead, and then plan my questions to take advantage of
what I have seen in my head.”
Simon T., human resources executive: “We really needed to take the union on at some stage, and I
saw an opportunity — a very good issue to take them on. I could see that they were going in a
direction that would lead them into all kinds of trouble if they continued following it. Lo and behold,
they did continue following it, and when they arrived, there I was, ready and waiting. I suppose it just
comes naturally to me to predict what someone else is going to do. And then when that person reacts,
I can respond immediately because I have sat down and said, ‘Okay, if they do this, we’ll do this. If
they do that, then we’ll do this other thing.’ It’s like when you tack in a sailboat. You head in one
direction, but you jinx one way, then another, planning and reacting, planning and reacting.”
1. Talk to friends or coworkers to hear how they have used their talents to achieve.