Strengths By Domain: Relationship Building
Written By: Melissa Ortiz
Activate Human Capital Group continues to be passionate about the fact that every person has Strengths or talents that can be utilized in all aspects of life. There are numerous ways to develop these Strengths, especially when working on teams. One way to classify Strengths and to build both employees and teams, is to understand the four domains that act as classifying buckets for the 34 themes of talent.
According to Gallup, “These domains describe how people and teams use their talents to work with information, make things happen, influence others, and build relationships.” At Activate, our goal is to sharpen individual talents and balance the domains on teams. Understanding each domain, and the Strengths they possess, is necessary to that goal.
Relationship Building talents offer the aptitude to build meaningful personal connections that form the fiber of our organizations, the strength of client relationships, and produce highly-effective connections with suppliers. There are nine talents in Relationship Building domain:
Adaptability- Adaptability can flex and adjust to any situation they find themselves in. They may not have a plan, preferring to live moment to moment, but the job is still completed.
Developer- Developers see potential, primarily in people. They see what a person could be, how they can get there, and how to motivate them to take the first steps. Their inspiration comes from seeing growth in others.
Connectedness- This talent intrinsically sees the different ways people, ideas, and events are related to one another and how they influence one another. If our world is a tangled web, those with Connectedness see the individual threads within the web that link aspects of the world together.
Empathy- “I see how you feel”. The Empathy talent immediately picks up on the emotions of others. This talent can perceive, relate, and explain emotions of those around them with ease.
Harmony- Harmony is concerned with creating connections and common ground between parties, especially when opposition is in place. This talent works to diffuse tension and invests in finding ways to cooperate.
Includer- Includer strives to bring everyone into the fold, often drawing outsiders in and ensuring that everyone knows what happening.
Individualization- While Empathy sees how you feel, Individualization sees who you ARE. These people bring a keen awareness of the unique needs and abilities of others and brings those talents to the forefront.
Positivity- Positivity is known for enthusiasm, joy, and ability to discover the positive in situations and people. They offer infectious smiles, fun, and a cheerful outlook on life.
Relator- Relators value and strive for depth of relationships and authenticity of interactions. They are skilled at not just making others feel at ease, but at developing close, trusting bonds between themselves and others.
The talents within the Relationship Building domain are necessary for any team or organization to function. Even a business run by a single person has interactions with clients, vendors, and the community. These talents are not only concerned with being friendly or welcoming, but also how individuals and teams relate to and motivate one another.
The Relationship Building domain provides many skills for a team wishing to excel. For example:
When talents from the other domains have difficulty communicating or have conflict arising from unspoken expectations, those with the Harmony talent can intervene to find the common ground necessary to continue working towards shared goals.
When a group heavy in Strategic Thinking themes runs into an issue, those with the Adaptability talent happily steps in to provide support while a new plan is created.
An employee with Connectedness can be a vital player in strategic planning conversations because they intuitively see the paths and relationships between people and ideas.
This domain provides a stickiness for the organization – improving employee retention through strong interpersonal relationships. After all, it’s much more difficult to leave an organization when coming to work every day means spending time with good friends. When things are tough or changes create chaos, strong relationships offer a place of safety.
Relationship Building draws on the other domains to provide what they lack. Once members of a team feel connected, heard, and valued, they need the direction and motivation from those within the Influencer domain. In order to avoid getting bogged down in the feelings and emotions that come within the Relationship Building domain, a team may draw on the Executing themes to jump into tasks and working hard to achieve goals together. Additionally, Strategic Thinking talents can develop plans, find efficiencies, and consider what’s next for the team or organization.
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