Creative Agency Secrets

Using the Strengthsfinder Index 2.0 I have tested myself and these are my key traits:

1 - Activator

2 - Learner

3 - Relator

4 - Strategic

5 - Input 

And this is what each means.  When you work with me, I can bring these strengths to bear on your project.

Activator

People who are especially talented in the Activator theme can make things happen by turning thoughts into action. They are often impatient.

Chances are good that you periodically determine for yourself or others what should be done. After you have made up your mind, perhaps you waste little time moving forward with projects or assignments. Because of your strengths, you urge people to attain their goals by pressing ahead without stopping.  Instinctively, you easily stir people's enthusiasm with your cheerful exuberance for life. You have a gift for sharing your complete joy with others. By nature, you sometimes reach conclusions by using reason. Sometimes you evaluate all the facts to pinpoint what is and is not relevant. The mental rigor you demand of yourself might prepare you to launch projects or initiate plans. You possess an ability to create motion and momentum in others.

• Seek work in which you can make your own decisions and act on them. In particular, look for start-up or turnaround situations.
• You can transform innovative ideas into immediate action. Look for creative and original thinkers, and help them move their ideas from conceptual theory to concrete practice.
• You learn more from real experience than from theoretical discussions. To grow,consciously expose yourself to challenging experiences that will test your talents, skills, and knowledge.
• You can easily energize the plans and ideas of others. Consider partnering with focused,futuristic, strategic, or analytical people who will lend their direction and planning to your activation, thereby creating an opportunity to build consensus and get others behind the plan. By doing this, you complement each other.

Learner

People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.

By nature, you occasionally dedicate yourself to acquiring certain kinds of knowledge or skills. You might devote many hours to mental labor. Occasionally you describe this experience as pleasurable. Because of your strengths, you sometimes dedicate yourself to acquiring specific types of knowledge or using particular skills. Maybe you are self-taught. Maybe you work with an instructor, trainer, coach, or mentor. You might embrace opportunities to expose your mind to new ideas. You might welcome the chance to practice new ways of plying — that is, diligently practicing — a trade or a craft. 

• Be a catalyst for change. Others might be intimidated by new rules, new skills, or new circumstances. Your willingness to soak up this newness can calm their fears and spur them to action. Take this responsibility seriously.
• Seek roles that require some form of technical competence. You will enjoy the process of acquiring and maintaining this expertise.
• As far as possible, shift your career toward a field with constantly changing technologies or regulations. You will be energized by the challenge of keeping up.
  Because you are not threatened by unfamiliar information, you might excel in a consulting role (either internal or external) in which you are paid to go into new situations and pick up new competencies quickly.
   

Relator

People who are especially talented in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal. 

Instinctively, you might identify the most basic and important parts of elaborate ideas, processes, or technologies. Maybe you avoid confusing people because you do not want to overwhelm them with too many details. By nature, you are occasionally willing to be vulnerable. Your openness may help some people know you better as a person. Your straightforward style may convince others you are honest, dependable, and reliable. Driven by your talents, you might be known for reducing elaborate or intertwined ideas, processes, legal documents, or action plans to their basic elements. As a result, some people might turn to you for plainspoken and easy-to-understand explanations.

• Deliberately learn as much as you can about the people you meet. You like knowing about people, and other people like being known. By doing this, you will act as a catalyst for trusting relationships.
• Let it be known that you are more interested in the character and personality of others than in their status or job title. This is one of your greatest talents and can serve as a model for others.
• No matter how busy you are, stay in contact with your friends. They are your fuel.
• You probably prefer to be seen as a person, an equal, or a friend, rather than as a function, a superior, or a title.

Strategic

People who are especially talented in the Strategic theme create alternative ways to proceed. Faced with any given scenario, they can quickly spot the relevant patterns and issues.

Chances are good that you sometimes acknowledge you have an ability to identify specific types of obstacles, difficulties, or dilemmas. You might respond to questions others refuse to consider. Perhaps you recognize answers or solutions as they evolve naturally. Because of your strengths, you characteristically find the right words to express whatever you are thinking. You offer explanations, discuss ideas, give examples, or share stories. You effectively use the spoken word. Driven by your talents, you select the right combination of words to convey your ideas or feelings. In the middle of discussions, your vocabulary provides you with precise phrases and terminology. You probably express yourself with ease and grace. By nature, you may see solutions before other people know there is a problem. You might start formulating answers before your teammates, coworkers, or classmates understand the question. Sometimes you generate numerous ideas before sorting to the one that makes the most sense in a particular sution. It’s very likely that you easily enter into dialogue with others. When you have an idea, the right words, stories, or examples quickly come to mind. The animated give-and-take of debates stimulates your thinking.

• Take the time to fully reflect or muse about a goal that you want to achieve until the related patterns and issues emerge for you. Remember that this musing time is essential to strategic thinking.
• You can see repercussions more clearly than others can. Take advantage of this ability by planning your range of responses in detail. There is little point in knowing where events will lead if you are not ready when you get there.
• Find a group that you think does important work, and contribute your strategic thinking. You can be a leader with your ideas.
• Your strategic thinking will be necessary to keep a vivid vision from deteriorating into an ordinary pipe dream. Fully consider all possible paths toward making the vision a reality. Wise forethought can remove obstacles before they appear.
• Make yourself known as a resource for consultation with those who are stumped by a particular problem or hindered by a particular obstacle or barrier. By naturally seeing a way when others are convinced there is no way, you will lead them to success.
• You are likely to anticipate potential issues more easily than others. Though your awareness of possible danger might be viewed as negativity by some, you must share your insights if you are going to avoid these pitfalls. To prevent misperception of your intent, point out not only the future obstacle, but also a way to prevent or overcome it. Trust your insights, and use them to ensure the success of your efforts.
• Help others understand that your strategic thinking is not an attempt to belittle their ideas, but is instead a natural propensity to consider all the facets of a plan objectively. Rather than being a naysayer, you are actually trying to examine ways to ensure that the goal is accomplished, come what may. Your talents will allow you to consider others' perspectives while keeping your end goal in sight.
• Trust your intuitive insights as often as possible. Even though you might not be able to explain them rationally, your intuitions are created by a brain that instinctively anticipates and projects. Have confidence in these perceptions.
• Partner with someone with strong Activator talents. With this person's need for action and your need for anticipation, you can forge a powerful partnership.
• Make sure that you are involved in the front end of new initiatives or enterprises. Your innovative yet procedural approach will be critical to the genesis of a new venture because it will keep its creators from developing deadly tunnel vision.

Input

People who are especially talented in the Input theme have a craving to know more. Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.

It’s very likely that you typically read books, journals, memos, or Internet sites because you enjoy collecting new information and insights. Frequently you draw upon what you had read weeks, months, or even years ago. Instinctively, you probably acquired a fascination for reading as a child. Besides keeping the peace and being absorbed into the group, you commonly collected information about fictional characters, human nature, geography, historic events, other cultures, or science. By nature, you derive much personal pleasure from reading. Because you continually fill your mind with fresh ideas, you probably can enliven formal discussions or season casual conversations with many interesting facts or stories. Driven by your talents, you sometimes ask people questions so you can collect background information. Maybe the insights you gather make it a bit easier to pinpoint what makes this person totally different from everyone else.  Because no two people are the same, you try to decipher who works well with whom. Because of your strengths, you read to stimulate your mind, to broaden your perspective, and to explore familiar as well as unfamiliar subjects.

•  Devise a system to store and easily locate information. This can be as simple as a file for all the articles you have clipped or as sophisticated as a computer database.
• Partner with someone with dominant Focus or Discipline talents. This person will help you stay on track when your inquisitiveness leads you down intriguing but distracting avenues. Your mind is open and absorbent. You naturally soak up information in the same way that a sponge soaks up water. But just as the primary purpose of the sponge is not to permanently contain what it absorbs, neither should your mind simply store information. Input without output can lead to stagnation. As you gather and absorb information, be aware of the individuals and groups that can most benefit from your knowledge, and be intentional about sharing with them.
• You might naturally be an exceptional repository of facts, data, and ideas. If that's the case, don't be afraid to position yourself as an expert. By simply following your Input talents, you could become known as the authority in your field.
• Identify your areas of specialization, and actively seek more information about them.
• Schedule time to read books and articles that stimulate you.