When we know each other’s strengths, the magic just happens. Don Clifton, the Father of the Strengths movement, imagined a better world where 1 and 7 people would know and leverage their strengths.

Imagine walking into a loud, crowded room of more than 100 people. The reason for being there is to network to meet someone and to grow business. A friend and I were in that very situation recently. The group was well attended by members who knew each other well from many years of working together. The challenge we faced was how to network in this sea of people who were perfectly content to mingle with friends. We knew maybe five people.

We both knew our strengths. She has WOO and Relator. Woo loves to work a room and Win Others Over…usually as many as possible. Relator loves to form deeper bonds with a few. It’s easy to be one or the other, but both presents a problem when faced with a loud packed room.

My friend took one look, a deep breath and said, “I’ll go pay the bill while you deal with this.”

Overwhelmed, she made a hasty exit and left me there to find a way to make this situation
productive. I decided to leverage my Relator to find one person who was like me…who wanted to meet someone new. I took a deep breath and moved into the crowd.

Smiling and saying hello was easy, but we wanted a connection. I found a new friend more than willing to tell me about her new business. When my networking partner arrived she was relieved we had succeeded.

Reflecting, we must have looked inviting, because shortly another wandered up, and we began listening to her story about her new business.

She consulted with businesses from startup to first order. Soon, 1 of our 5 friends found us who was a perfect resource for our new consultant friend. We were able to connect them and we all exchanged cards….Success….We made a memorable connection in a sea of strangers.

Takeaway

By knowing strengths we leveraged them to make a valuable connection, We had a lot of fun reflecting how our strengths made it possible to have a successful networking experience.

Had we not known or leveraged our strengths, we might have both left after paying the bill
together.

Knowing and using strengths to overcome a challenge is fun and brings success!

Your Turn

Join Don Clifton in his dream to have a better world where 1 in 7 people know their strengths. Follow the link to Take the Clifton StrengthsFinder Assessment and schedule your coaching appointment.