Managing your Talent [28] - Activator

By Dries Lombaard

Director:  Strategic Engagement; The Strengths Institute

According to Gallup, the essence of the talent theme of Activator is the following:

“When can we start?” This is a recurring question in your life. You are impatient for action. You may concede that 

analysis has its uses or that debate and discussion can occasionally yield some valuable insights, but deep down you know that only action is real. Only action can make things happen. Only action leads to performance. Once a decision is made, you cannot not act. Others may worry that “there are still some things we don’t know,” but this doesn’t seem to slow you. If the decision has been made to go across town, you know that the fastest way to get there is to go stoplight to stoplight. You are not going to sit around waiting until all the lights have turned green. Besides, in your view, action and thinking are not opposites. In fact, guided by your Activator theme, you believe that action is the best device for learning. You make a decision, you take action, you look at the result, and you learn. This learning informs your next action and your next. How can you grow if you have nothing to react to? Well, you believe you can’t. You must put yourself out there. You must take the next step. It is the only way to keep your thinking fresh and informed. The bottom line is this: You know you will be judged not by what you say, not by what you think, but by what you get done. This does not frighten you. It pleases you."

But a talent like this on itself is quite meaningless unless you develop and manage it. That is why we believe that "a well managed talent becomes a strength, but a mismanaged talent becomes a detriment".

How do you manage the talent of Activator?

Activators are fast, impatient and energetic. They create an energy with people that results in activation, movement and urgency.
I just love the Activators in my space.  Maybe it is because I am high in Ideation, so where for me, the idea is the point, the Activators just cannot let a great idea go. They have this need to turn ideas into action.  But it is more than that....they are probably the best motivators around.  Very much like a Woo or Maximizer, they want to convince you that there is something better if you simply make the move.

Now this energy can just as easily become a detriment.  The urgency and impatience which comes with the Activator talent often cause them to "rush in", make fast and sometimes impulsive decisions and moves, and skip crucial deliberation, strategizing or planning before the move.  And, they take others with remember.  So this detriment of "over-activation" may be quite a frustration to people who, sometimes blindly, follow the Activators.  Thus, this urgency need management....

How?

The solution seems simply to everyone, except to the Activators.  It is simply to "pause".  I know, the mere word probably frustrates the Activators!  But I do not mean you should abandon, delay unnecessarily or give too much time.  I just mean you should have that intentional "pause button" in your behavior that not only give you time to be certain that the move is the right one, but it also respects the need of the deliberators, strategists and planners to "catch up" with you, or even potentially warn you against lurking problems ahead.  Activators should also realize that others may be much more engaged and resilient if they had some time to "buy in" to the idea or prepare for action.
Develop a "pause button". But, still celebrate your urgency and speed!

Ask any Activator, and many will confess that they have lots of start-ups they innitiated ...but not as many finishes. The "finishing energy" of Activators are pretty low. They get bored, and move on.
If this is part of your Activator legacy, you will also know that people around you are pretty frustrated by this tendency.  Maybe they even developed the behavior of not taking your initiatives seriously, as they expect you to let it go and move on pretty soon.
You need to realize that what you do is not wrong.  Starting things, and getting others moving, is what make you strong.  But, you will definitely have to manage this strength.

How?

The very best way for an Activator to overcome this challenge, is to surround yourself with strong finishers.  Not all Talent Themes has the same energy to finish things.  Strong finishing talents includes talents themes like Achiever, Discipline, Responsibility, Focus and Competition - among others.  Making sure that they are assisting you once you've started to drive towards the completion or finish line, is what you need.
Another way of getting some of your brilliant start-ups to end in a complete achievement, is to acquire definite finishing skills or assisting resources. There are unlimited resources available online or an mobile apps which really helps to consciously drive towards a successful finishing. 

Go Activate!! The world needs more of you.

• Visit our website at www.strengths.institute
• Follow us on Twitter at @talentstrengths
• Like us on Facebook (Strengths Institute)
• Follow us on Instagram (strengthsinstitute)
• Connect with us on LinkedIn (The Strengths Initiative)