The definition that, I have if I kind of pull it all together and try to
summarize it in a short definition, here's how I would put it.
Input is an awareness of, an awareness
and an acquisition of resources
that have utility that can lead to
productive resourcefulness. I think people who have Input
really see the value in stuff. And stuff can be all over the place
in terms of what it is. It's obviously about information
for many people. How people kind of consume that information
can vary I think from
person to person. I think traditionally
maybe a number of years ago people with Input would
have been primarily about
books. But I think that has expanded with
the access to information that we have in the Internet. So it's websites,
it's apps. I think it can also be about
tools. I have a brother-in-law has Input. I think he may have every
crafts tool created by Craftsman in his
in his job. He's resourceful in that way. He kind of likes gadgets too.
He's kind of a gadget guy. I think there's a
little bit of MacGyver in Input as well possibly.
I think you can also be about tools and curriculum.
I think part of the reason, you know, a lot of people come to programs that I
lead, I think a lot of people have Input and they are kind of intrigued and
and interested and want to kind of
acquire the StrengthsFinder as a tool.
They really see it's value as a tool and I think that has a lot to do with Input.
Obviously it's a Strategic Thinking theme and I think
these resources
that people with Input acquire, I think have the potential to help them
think about the world and about themselves in different ways and
in productive ways. I think the metaphor that I often use with
this theme is the the metaphor of a sponge. And
just like a sponge is absorbent, I think people with Input absorb
stuff. And they can be kind of selective or sometimes
they're not very selective, depending on
other themes that they have. But they
they absorb it and I tell people the purpose of a sponge is never to be a
permanent container.
In fact when a sponge holds on to stuff
a little bit too long it starts to smell a bit.
But really a sponge is really a dispenser, a transporter if you will
from one place to another. And I think that's at the core,
the core value, I think of people
with Input is their resourcefulness. They are
full of resources. And I think the best resources
are the ones that...
I mean the people who have really maximized their Input are people who have
really been able to get the resources that have the most utility,
that help them, that help other people. And I've obviously seen this in
Mr. Shields here. I think some nouns that go, and I think we could have
better nouns
some these nouns don't capture the essence. These nouns and adjectives, I
think we could have better ones.
I'm just going to be honest here:
archivist, librarian, collector,
absorber, curator, resourcer,
circulator, are all kind of words, nouns that could be used.
Adjectives could be resourceful, collecting,
inquisitive, utility aware,
generous, well-read, investigative.
Those would be kind of some words that I would use.
In terms of the frequency
of this particular theme. Actually in our database which is really kind
of surprising to me, this is number six on the list
in our database. 20 percent of
our database of 11 million people have Input in their top five. And again I think
part of the reason is
they are probably attracted to the StrengthsFinder as a tool.
They see the utility in this thing and so they they want to acquire it. They
want to have it as a
resource that they use for themselves and others. I mean that's just my
non-scientific explanation of that. The theme that is most likely paired with
Input is
Intellection. There's kind of, almost a forty-five
percent odds that if you have
Input you also have Intellection high in your profile. And that makes some sense
to me. They both are
kind of Strategic Thinking themes. I think, to some degree I think
Input is a bit more kind of practical. It has a
kind of an application side to it. And maybe that's what it adds to
Intellection. The theme that's most [least] likely paired
with Self-assurance [Input] was a bit
surprising to me but as I thought about
it I think I can see
why that might be. The theme that is least
likely paired with Input is Self-Assurance.
Now that's, part of that, it's a statistical artifact because
there's not much Self-Assurance in the profiles
so there's just not that many. But to some degree I think
people who have Self-Assurance are primarily confident in themselves.
And I think to some degree, the person with Input also has some confidence
in the resources that they've
gathered, that they distribute. So that would just be
one way to kind of explain that.
In terms of other themes that could help to
have an impact on impact on [Input], themes that might
moderate or intensify Input. Obviously I think
Learner is a theme that kind of intensifies Input. Both of them are
kind of curious and inquisitive and
so if you take this kind of burning curiosity and this
inquisitiveness and Input and put those together I think they really
kind of feed...
It's kind of like if you've got Learner and Input
it's like one plus one equals three.
I think to some degree Intellection,
that theme that most likely goes with it. It's some of the most valuable
resources will come
from the powerful and productive reflection.
I think that's part of maybe how people with Input sort through their themes.
How they come to understand
the value of them. Some themes that really could maybe
moderate or manage Input a little bit might be Discipline.
Resources that aren't organized
and accessible are worthless. If I can't find it,
I can't share it. This theme will bring order to your acquisitions.
I'll be interested to talk to Stephen about his
kind of ordering of his acquisitions.
Focus, this theme could help clarify goals and prioritize
priorities and that could help you decide what to keep and what to get rid
of in terms of the
the resources you have. So both of
those. Discipline brings kind of order to the
resources. I think Focus helps to kind of
maybe help decide which resources to kind of
acquire and which ones to get rid of.