Leading with the Maximizer StrengthsFinder Talent
From potential to amazing
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Does average drive your crazy? Or do you cringe when you hear someone say, “I guess that’s good enough?”
You know it could be better, and you don’t feel satisfied until you level it up. You look at others and wonder, “don’t you want more?”
If this resonates with you, you likely have the strengthsfinder maximizer talent.
As a leader, you can develop your maximizer strength, helping people, teams, and ideas level up to their full potential.
Maximizer StrengthsFinder TL;DR.
The maximizer StrengthsFinder talent means you see what is possible, the potential, and you’re driven to make it a reality.
You take focus on quality, creating new standards of excellence and success.
Unlike the restorative strength, you don’t want to fix what’s broken. You want to take what’s already working and make it extraordinary.
Leaders with maximizer strengths are naturally driven to bring out the best in others.
You’re inspired by stories of greatness and hope to write one of your own. Your life is better described by leverage rather than balance, as you focus on the areas with the most potential.
If you’re already familiar with StrengthsFinder, you can skip over the next section.
What is StrengthsFinder?
SterengthsFinder, now CliftonStrengths, is an assessment based on strengths psychology. The fundamental premise is you will get farther by maxing out your strengths rather than trying to improve your weaknesses.
I’ve seen numerous leaders grow as they identified their talents and turned them into well-developed strengths. But you don’t have to be a leader to benefit from StrengthsFinder, and you can apply it to more than just work.
Understanding your strengths and weaknesses helps you better understand and live out your unique design.
Maximizer is just one of the 34 different strengths measured by StengthsFinder. When you take the assessment, you will get back your top 5 strengths. You can pay for an ordered list of all 34, but I wouldn’t recommend that the first time you take the assessment.
Focus is critical to developing your strengths. Keeping just your top 5 in view helps you make meaningful growth in the areas of your life with the highest leverage and impact.
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How do you lead well with maximizer in your StrengthsFinder top 5?
So you’ve taken the StrengthsFinder assessment, received your results and found maximizer in the list. Now you’re wondering how to grow or leverage this strength in your leadership.
I love leveling up or seeing others level up. It’s what motivated me to begin coaching. I've helped many leaders gather the tools and guidance they need to maximize their growth.
These are four strategies I’ve seen leaders with the maximizer strength use to make potential a reality.
- Consider becoming a coach.
- Develop mastery in your strengths.
- Set goals to measure your progress.
- Get a coach.
Learn to recognize behaviors when you're over-leveraging your strengths to the point that they become liabilities. And discover the path back to health.
Consider becoming a coach.
Coaching is an invaluable tool to help leaders grow, and you can use your maximizer strength by becoming a coach yourself.
Leaders with maximizer strengths are naturally driven to bring out the best in others. As a coach, you can do just that and watch individuals, teams and organizations reach their full potential.
You don’t feel satisfied until you level it up
I know I might be a little biased here, but I do think coaching makes a great career choice.
Develop mastery in your strengths.
When you take the Strengthsfinder, now Clifton Strengths assessment, your results only include your top 5 talents.
The idea is that you will focus on maximizing those into full strengths rather than look at the bottom of your list and try to improve your weaknesses.
You take focus on quality, creating new standards of excellence and success.
The key to getting the most out of this strength is to develop a deep understanding of how it works and practice refining its use. You can do this by studying books, attending conferences or workshops, and seeking mentors who have developed their own maximizer strengths.
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Set goals to measure your progress.
Maximizers often have a tendency to be perfectionists, so it’s essential to set reasonable expectations for yourself. This can help you stay on track and avoid becoming overwhelmed or discouraged.
Effective goal setting provides you with both a plan and a scoreboard.
You want to take what’s already working and make it extraordinary.
Set challenging but achievable goals, then break them down into small enough steps that they feel doable. Set milestones along the way so you can celebrate and take stock of your progress.
Get a coach.
Leaders with the maximizer strength tend to be self-starters. They don’t need a lot of guidance or direction, but they benefit from having someone alongside them on their path to success.
Don’t go it alone.
Even if you are developing mastery in your Maximizer strengths, having an experienced coach who understands the process can be immensely helpful.
Coaches will ask tough questions that may challenge your assumptions, help you gain clarity on difficult decisions and provide the accountability needed to stay on track.
This feedback is vital if you’re leading a team or organization. Coaching gives you access to resources and insights to help you reach your potential faster.
Leaders with the maximizer strength tend to be self-starters.
When deciding on a coach, look for someone who understands your strengths-based philosophy and has experience helping people grow in their areas of talent. That way, they can provide personalized feedback.
If you want to take a coaching test drive, sign up for one of my free 30-minute coaching sessions. I offer a few of them each month.
As you learn to lead using your maximizer strength, you can move people, ideas and organizations from having potential to being amazing.
With the proper guidance, you’ll be able to use your maximizer strength to become a leader who helps others reach their fullest potential. So get out there and start making a difference – the world needs more great leaders like you!
Action Plan
Leaders with the maximizer strength can struggle with an antipattern of perfectionism. Learning the strengths antipatterns will allow you to continue growing as a healthy, intentional leader.
You are on an extraordinary journey to living and leading from your strengths. You can explore the list below to learn about the rest of your top 5 strengths.
Frequently Asked Questions
StrengthsFinder
So do I totally ignore my weaknesses and just focus on my strengths?
Strengths-based growth doesn’t encourage you to ignore your weaknesses but not to spend too much time trying to turn them into strengths. Instead, you may need to find team members or systems to fill in your gaps.
Learn more about how StrengthsFind influences your leadership.
There are strengths I think I have; why didn’t they didn’t show up in my top 5?
For some people, their strengths ranked 5, 6 or 7 are almost even. You could also be misattributing a skill or behavior to a specific strength.
Learn more about how StrengthsFind influences your leadership.
Should I pay to see all 34 strengths?
Seeing your other 29 strengths can help give you a fuller picture. But initially, someone should focus on further developing those top 5 strengths rather than trying to give attention across the list. Once you have a good grasp on what it looks like to lead from your top 5, it can be helpful to explore the rest of the list.
Learn more about how StrengthsFind influences your leadership.
What’s the difference between a talent and a strength?
A talent is your natural way of thinking or behaving. A strength is a talent developed over time through knowledge, skills and practice.
Learn more about how StrengthsFinder influences your leadership.
