Living Your Strengths - Hardcover

Clifton, Don; Winseman, Albert L.; Liesveld, Curt

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1595620028 ISBN 13: 9781595620026

Publisher: Gallup Press, 2004

Synopsis

Personal stories and actionable advice for the spiritually committed, all rooted in decades of research.
 

Even in a country as religious as the U.S., many people feel disengaged from their faith communities. More than half report that they really don't get the opportunity in their congregation to do what they do best. People just feel disconnected.

Maybe it's because those faith communities make unwitting missteps: Pastors ask shy people to be greeters or recruit innately disorganized people to coordinate church events.

The problem is simply this: Too many people's talents are going unappreciated. But it doesn't have to be this way. Living Your Strengths shows readers how to use their innate gifts to enrich their faith communities. The book — written by former pastors Albert Winseman and Curt Liesveld and Don Clifton, coauthor of the national bestseller Now, Discover Your Strengths — shows people how to identify and affirm their talents and how to use them for growth and service. Most importantly, Living Your Strengths helps people discover their true calling.

The book includes an access code to take the CliftonStrengths assessment (formerly called Clifton StrengthsFinder) that reveals a reader’s top five talent themes. Spiritual enrichment begins with turning talents into strengths. Living Your Strengths is an indispensable guide to help readers to just that.

About this title

About the Author

Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D. (1924-2003) was past chairman of Gallup and coauthor of the national bestseller Now, Discover Your Strengths and other books. He was named the Father of Strengths-Based Psychology by the American Psychological Association.

Albert L. Winseman, D.Min., is a Senior Learning and Development Consultant at Gallup. Since joining Gallup in 2000 to develop Gallup’s faith-based practice area, he has led research into the characteristics of effective congregations. Prior to joining Gallup, Winseman served as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for 15 years.

Curt Liesveld, M.Div., M.A. (1951-2015) served as a Learning and Development Senior Consultant at Gallup. After joining the company in 1999, he led leadership and management seminars for many of Gallup’s clients in the corporate, education, church and government sectors. Prior to joining Gallup, he was a church leader and pastor in the Reformed Church in America for 23 years.

Reviews

This is the religious spinoff of Clifton's first coauthored bestseller, Now, Discover Your Strengths, which was aimed more squarely at the business world. The principles in both books are the same: individuals will be happier and more successful if they build on their strengths, rather than focusing on overcoming their weaknesses. The authors call for a "strengths revolution" in churches that will allow more congregants to feel they contribute by doing what they do best. If congregational leaders can identify members' strengths and assign tasks in harmony with those traits, they will enjoy a greater sense of connection to and satisfaction with their religious communities—something the authors suggest is in short supply. It is a simple message fleshed out by an inventory of 34 possible "signature themes." Readers can determine their own top five signature themes by using an ID code (unique to each book copy) to take an online personality test developed by the Gallup Organization. The authors' "theology of strengths" refers to Paul's sermon on "the body of Christ" (1 Corinthians) and Christ's parable of the talents, among other biblical passages. This is an action-oriented book, and taking the test will give readers a personal hook. It should appeal to religious book groups as well as individuals and church leaders.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Edition details

• Publisher: Gallup Press
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1595620028
• ISBN 13: 9781595620026
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 272