The CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context talent theme is one of 34 unique talent themes in the Gallup StrengthsFinder Assessment.
A guide to understanding the CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context talent theme
Gallup’s StrengthsFinder identifies the innate strengths of individuals. These variables are then improved upon to help them reach their highest potential.
You may have the talent theme of Context or know someone with the Context talent theme. Understanding more about talent themes can help you strengthen your existing skill sets and improve interpersonal relations in both your personal and professional life.
The Power Of The CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context Talent Theme
Individuals with the talent theme of Context enjoy thinking about the past. Like a driver checking their rearview mirror, they make sense of the present by taking a look back at history and studying it. They often have this need to understand the history of an event and the surrounding dynamics of decisions to be able to apply them to their lives today. They also want to understand how people got to where they are by studying the past. They use the patterns that emerge from studying what happened before to make sense of their current world.
What the CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context Theme Loves
People with the CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context talent theme love looking to the past as they believe past patterns gives them great wisdom for understanding the present. It also forms a basis for making informed decisions and plans for both their present and future.
They also love to collect memories through photos or written materials as it is motivational for them. learn with great understanding of the things they put their heart to and receiving results in forms of high achievement.
What The CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context Theme Dislikes
Individuals with the talent theme of Context dislike not being able to have a past to learn from. While they love looking to historical events to study behaviour and motivational patterns, they hate not being able to draw useful conclusions that gives them that confidence in the decisions they make in their lives today.
It is also likely that they may not like new changes. Their research into the past has proven to them that past methods have been tried and tested to work and there is no need for things to change.
Context’s Basement Behaviours
When the Context talent theme is pushed too hard, others may find it hard to understand or work with them for various reasons.
Here are 3 negative behaviours of Context:
1) Close-minded – Individuals with the CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context talent theme are wise about the future they see ahead of them as they saw its seeds being sown in the past. However, they may have the tendency to be close-minded as they can only see from the proven method’s point of view. It may be hard for them to come to terms with newer solutions that could possibly change things for the better as they may believe that proven methods work best.
2) Slow to move and react to change – People with the talent theme of Context have an incredible ability to cast their minds back to the earlier time of the situation when things were in the planning stages. The blueprints of the plans helps people with Context see the underlying structure, the initial intentions of the plans. It gives them the sense of stability in the present as they gain the confidence and understanding of the plans. That said, they may be slow to move and react to change as they believe that these plans were drawn up for a reason. They may find it hard to adapt to proposed changes that are different from what they have observed by studying the past.
3) Lives in the past – Those who have the Context talent theme are very fond of turning the pages of a history book to see how they can solve today’s problems with solutions from repeated instances of the past. However, this could be a returning style of habit and a textbook method for them to conduct historical research to solve their problems. As such, some may claim that people with Context end up spending a bulk of their time living in the past.
Context Talent Theme’s Best Contributions
Individuals with the CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder) Context talent theme have a robust collection of historical references at their disposal. From studying the past to understand the present and future, they are most likely to have gained a vast amount of knowledge about the history of things. In comparison to others, they may know more about how and why things had gone wrong in the past. As such, they could have a clearer mind of lessons learnt from historical events.
Having people with the talent theme of Context could be especially useful in group scenarios as they know how things came to be. They are most likely to have answers for questions on what they need to do next. They will be able to bring in a leverage for the team by being able to identify patterns stemming from prior events.
StrengthsAsia has helped many individual and corporate clients all throughout the region in identifying and maximizing their talents, in driving engagement and increasing motivation in their work and life.
If you want to learn more about the 34 talent themes or discover how you can apply your talent themes in the areas of your work and your life, feel free to reach out to us here.
Reshma is StrengthsAsia’s content writer and research contributor. She enjoys spending her time writing anything from poems to screenplays, and everything in between. She also finds joy in reading novels, baking and catching movies with her family. Participating in creative activities helps her find inspiration and new ideas for her work.