How Your Strengths Set You Apart

"You are one of a kind."

This is a phrase you've heard at least once before, but CliftonStrengths shines a light on that cliché with a stat that's hard to ignore.

The CliftonStrengths assessment reveals your "talent DNA," or the innate themes of natural abilities that set you apart from everyone else.

In fact, the combinations of talents are so unique that the chance that two people share the same top five CliftonStrengths themes in the same order is an astonishing one in 33 million.

Here's how the math works: There are 34 CliftonStrengths themes -- any of them could be your No. 1 theme. That leaves 33 CliftonStrengths themes that are possible for your second theme, 32 themes for your third, and so on. A basic probability equation shows us that 34 x 33 x 32 x 31 x 30 = 33,390,720 -- meaning there is a one in 33,390,720 likelihood of having a CliftonStrengths "identical twin."

Readers with Analytical as a top theme may have noticed that this math tacitly assumes a random set of strengths themes. However, some themes are more common than others -- and in some cases, themes tend to go hand-in-hand with other themes. For some people, the odds of having a top five CliftonStrengths "twin" are much higher or lower than 1 in 33 million.

Whatever the odds, there is tremendous diversity in CliftonStrengths profiles and in how people express their strengths. Even if two people have identical top five CliftonStrengths, how they apply those strengths will vary depending on many factors, including their skills, knowledge, culture, experiences and full CliftonStrengths 34 profile.

In fact, nearly 27 million people have taken the CliftonStrengths assessment, and multiple possible top five profiles have yet to be observed.

And this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the astonishing diversity of people's natural strengths.

Here's an example: Imagine that two people share the following top five CliftonStrengths:

• Learner
• Harmony
• Individualization
• Achiever
• Responsibility

Suppose that the first person with this top five also leads with more Relationship Building themes in their top 10 CliftonStrengths. They tend to apply their Learner best when collaborating with others, for instance, through mentorship and shared learning experiences.

The second person may have more Strategic Thinking themes like Analytical and Context in their top 10 CliftonStrengths. For this person, optimal learning is typically an internal, reflective, deliberative exercise.

Much like human identical twins have distinct preferences and abilities (despite their genomic similarities) CliftonStrengths top five "twins" will apply the same themes in one-of-a-kind ways.

The Proven Validity of CliftonStrengths

Gallup created the science of strengths. The 34 CliftonStrengths themes, which sort into four domains, are the byproducts of decades of research. That same research proves that people who apply their CliftonStrengths:

• are more energetic, well-rested and happy
• are more likely to achieve their goals
• have higher confidence and self-awareness
• are more engaged and productive at work
• are less likely to experience negative emotions like worry, sadness and stress

Gallup's CliftonStrengths meta-analyses (statistical integrations of data from multiple studies) also show that strengths benefits team and organizational outcomes. Strengths-based development leads to:

• 7%-23% higher employee engagement
• 10%-19% increased sales
• 8%-18% increased performance
• 14%-29% increased profit

The bottom line is that people who use their strengths every day are happier and healthier. In fact, they are six times as likely to be engaged in their job and three times as likely to report having an excellent quality of life.

Every Human Being Is Unique

CliftonStrengths is about discovering, developing and celebrating everyone's authentic self -- including differences in how people apply the same CliftonStrengths themes. All people possess unique combinations of talent with varying levels of intensity -- and they're influenced by the order of their 34 themes.

This is why people who use their CliftonStrengths 34 Report (which shows all 34 strengths in rank order) can better grow their strengths. Perspective is power: When people discover everything that makes them unique -- including how their greater and lesser strengths emerge and interact -- they gain awareness that helps them thrive.

For instance, many people find that their top 10 themes emerge frequently in their day-to-day life and that their bottom themes influence how they express and use their top five. Understanding your lesser strengths leads to transformative "aha!" moments -- such as insights about how to overcome barriers and harness what makes you uniquely powerful.

For teams, a comprehensive perspective of everyone's strengths promotes acceptance and gives people a shared language to discuss how they naturally think, feel and behave. CliftonStrengths can help team members describe their preferences and motivations in ways that promote mutual understanding and stronger relationships.

Perhaps one team member (who leads with Context) likes to start projects with research, reflection and time to assess the full picture. However, this person's teammate prefers to activate immediately and ask questions later: In fact, Context is their 34^th theme.

By recognizing and discussing this difference, these two individuals can understand themselves and one another better -- and take steps to accommodate one another's workstyles. Just as importantly, they can form a complementary partnership that strengthens the entire team.

Teammates with the full picture of one another's strengths see each other in new ways -- improving communication, collaboration and performance.

A Lifetime of Development

Discovering your CliftonStrengths is only the start of your journey: People accomplish their loftiest goals through applying and cultivating their strengths. And we're truly unstoppable when we use CliftonStrengths as a foundation for not only personal growth, but also exceptional partnerships.

We need one another -- and our differences make us stronger. When people tap into what they naturally do best and encourage others to do the same, they create complementary partnerships and deep, lasting relationships.

In other words, people thrive when they celebrate and develop one another's strengths -- whether their top five are identical or millions of miles apart.