Book SummaryStrengths Based Leadership, by Gallup, Tom Rath, and Barry Conchie

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of Strengths Based Leadership

In Strengths Based Leadership, Tom Rath and Barry Conchie dispel the myth that leaders should strive to be well-rounded and instead argue that the best leaders focus on their personal strengths while building a supportive team that fills in for their weaknesses. The authors compile data on effective leaders and their teams from across the globe to argue that maximizing strengths is the optimal approach for improving your team’s productivity and satisfaction.

Rath is a workplace researcher who spent more than a decade in charge of leadership consulting at Gallup, a business research and consulting company. He’s also the author of multiple New York Times best sellers, including StrengthsFinder 2.0 and How Full Is Your Bucket?. Conchie is a business consultant who previously worked as Senior Scientist for Gallup’s executive...

Strengths Based Leadership Summary Gain Respect by Demonstrating Leadership Qualities

Before you can lead anyone successfully, your team must respect you, and that starts with having certain universal qualities. Conchie and Rath explain that if your team respects you, they’ll be willing to follow your lead. So, before you analyze and capitalize on your strengths and those of your team, you must first be a person who’s worthy of respect.

(Shortform note: Not only is it important to garner respect from your team, but you should respect your team as well. Research shows that leading with respect can increase your team’s knowledge sharing, which is associated with increased creativity, better decision-making, and overall improved performance. What does it mean to respect your team? One expert defines respect as dignifying and valuing the individuals on your team. The four leadership qualities that Conchie and Rath discuss in this section seem to align with this definition of respect.)

In this section, we’ll explore the four qualities of a leader that command respect: being caring, honest, steady, and optimistic.

Good Leaders Are Caring

Gallup research shows that** people who feel their...

Strengths Based Leadership Summary Maximize Your Team’s Strengths

Now that you know which qualities all leaders should have, we’ll discuss how you can optimize your team by maximizing your strengths and encouraging the strengths of your team members.

In the previous section, we explained that you should strive to fulfill all of the qualities of a good leader. However, the authors emphasize that you shouldn’t aim for excellence in all of the strength categories we’ll discuss in this section. If you try to be strong in every area, you won’t be very proficient at any of them. Instead, you should capitalize on your innate talents and build a well-balanced team to fill in the gaps around you.

Objections to Gallup’s Leadership Philosophy

Some experts argue that Gallup’s strengths-based approach to leadership is potentially flawed for several reasons:

Lack of Research Transparency

Some experts point out that Gallup’s research on strengths isn’t peer-reviewed by unbiased scientists. Additionally, [aspects...

Shortform Exercise: Invest in Your Strengths

Conchie and Rath emphasize the importance of investing in your strengths rather than attempting to become well-rounded. Apply this philosophy to maximize your strengths.

What strengths and weaknesses do you have in your professional life? Do you recognize yourself in any of the four strengths Conchie and Rath discuss (executing, influencing, relationship-building, strategic thinking)? Which ones?