Not your parents’ workplace: A global Strengths movement

You’ve seen the headlines. The Great Resignation describes a global awakening that what got us here won’t be around when we’re celebrating in the future. But this isn’t just about what attracts or retains top talent. Top talent doesn’t need your attraction. What if we stop trying to bar the doors, winning the game of keeping our best right where they are, and instead study them? I think you’ll find “they” aren’t a they at all. They’re you and me, and we want what human beings have always wanted. We want to be seen, be cared about, and be believed in—held accountable, challenged even, to becoming more of who we already are.

The global desire is alignment. You live a whole-hearted life of brilliance, ease, and joy when your capability, capacity, and contribution are all working together.

And you don’t have to look far to see evidence of this longing to find a better way. Almost 30 million people have completed the CliftonStrengths assessment, suggesting an open invitation for describing more than just what vocation or skill we should pursue. Conversations about deeper understanding, about what’s almost mystically right with us, are popping up in board rooms and open field retreats alike. The world wants a better way. And I bet you do too. Teams who receive strengths-based feedback report 10-14% greater productivity. Employees who strongly agree their manager focuses on their strengths stand less than a 1% chance of being actively disengaged at work. Individuals who focus on what they do best every day are three times more likely to have thriving overall wellbeing, and six times more likely to be engaged on the job.

None of this is new. What’s new is the invitation to activate our strengths on purpose.