Developer®: How to Feel More Energized at Work

Below are audio and video plus a transcript of the conversation, including time stamps.

Productive employees want energy, motivation and drive to characterize their work life. Managers want their teams to possess these in abundance. And organizations envision an entire engaged, thriving workforce that overflows with these qualities. How can individuals high in Developer^® bring energy and motivation to their workplaces? And how can managers high in Developer foster a work environment that is energized, motivated and thriving? Join Gallup's Jim Collison and Dr. Jaclynn Robinson and discover how, using your Developer theme, you can bring new energy and motivation to your role, your managing, your coaching.

Spend that time investing in your experienced colleagues within that particular role or skill set who can provide more guidance and support for you.

Jaclynn Robinson, 2:54

[Encourage] the team to ... share their own perspectives about their team performance and growth aspirations. What skills or specialized knowledge can support them in their role, as they consider the upcoming year?

Jaclynn Robinson, 13:04

Jim Collison 0:00
I am Jim Collison, and this is The CliftonStrengths^® Podcast, Season 3, recorded on January 12, 2024.

Jim Collison 0:06
In this CliftonStrengths Podcast series, we'll look at how to develop -- how to feel more energized and motivated at work one theme at a time, and today's theme is Developer. If you're listening live, love to have you join us in chat, or you can email us your questions: coaching@gallup.com. Dr. Jaclynn Robinson is our host today. She works as a Senior Learning and Development Consultant and joined me for Season 1 and 2 of The CliftonStrengths Podcast, where you looked -- where we looked at Wellbeing at Work and our CliftonStrengths role-based reports one theme at a time. And Jaclynn, always great to be with you. Welcome back!

Jaclynn Robinson 0:52
Thank you.

Developer: Questions for Individuals

Jim Collison 0:54
We're gonna dive in this season. We're talking about, we're talking about bringing energy to work with your themes. Today, we're talking about Developer. Let's talk about the individual first. In what ways can an individual with high Developer feel more energized by focusing on their basic needs?

Jaclynn Robinson 1:11
I think connecting with their manager to ensure they've got access to materials and resources. So do you have access to training programs or maybe workshops or resources, whether it's human -- an actual person, so to speak -- or physical, that align with your role and your career goals and the needs that you have for particular responsibilities. So that's what I would say is scheduling those one-on-ones to think about, What do I need, so I can continue to not only develop in my career development plan, but with the responsibilities I have, I can make sure that I'm thriving and set up for success here?

Jim Collison 1:53
Developer is one of those themes where it has this natural -- we've spent a lot of time over the last couple of years talking about the we versus me. In other words, this theme had -- here's how it relates to me. And then when, I often think, in the maturity cycle, it's most often sure when we're pointing that theme to someone else. Developer often is thought of first in, in how am, how can -- it's a talent that I can use to develop you. But when we think about it from an individual standpoint, How can we feel more energized by focusing on the individual's strength and development? Spend, you kind of alluded to that here, but spend a little more time talking about that in our own personal development, for those that have high Developer.

Jaclynn Robinson 2:35
For personal development, what I've seen, and I love seeing it with Developers, who could be that mentor for you? Or who's a subject-matter expert in a field that's of interest to you? Or maybe they're already in a role that you seek to be in at some point in life; it's a part of your career development plan. So spend that time investing in your experienced colleagues within that particular, you know, role or skill set who can provide more guidance and support for you.

Jim Collison 3:06
When, when you talk about a development plan for Developer, that sounds like it should just come. But in your experience working with folks, and as we think about, what have you seen folks do or what kind of recommendations might you have, as we think about -- what does that, what could that look like for an individual, taking that theme back on themselves?

Jaclynn Robinson 3:28
I see it as scheduling meet-and-greets. Sometimes, you know, you might have Developer high, but you might be unclear on where you want to develop or how you want to develop. And so just getting some feedback from others, I've noticed, has been really fruitful. So setting up those, you know, 10- to 30-minute meet-and-greets, so to speak, to learn more about somebody's role, to learn about their responsibilities. How much time are you spending in those responsibilities? What was the skill set or education required, or years in the, in a previous role required to then get into the role you're in now? So I think being able to do homework by connecting with other people can help create clarity on their own developmental path. And then you can take those questions back to your manager, even going back to basic needs, to say, now I have some clarity on where I want to go. Can you suggest workshops or trainings or partnerships or mentorships more formally that I can be involved in? So I'm not just doing my key responsibilities now, but we're also putting me on the road to X role that I see myself in in the future.

Jim Collison 4:39
I have Developer my Top 10, like I mentioned before. And, and for me, I've spent the last month -- December, so depending on where you, when you're listening to this -- but a lot of feet-up time; I was resting and recovering. And, and YouTube is awesome for -- and it's terrible and awesome, all at the same time. But allowed me, there were some moments where I would be getting maybe just a little bored. You know, I'd be like, OK, I've watched the whole internet. And I'd think, you know what? I'm gonna go deep on a subject, right? And I would, you could, it's funny, because I would go from feet up to sitting, paying attention, digging in, and then going down a rabbit hole, so to speak, of some, some personal development for me. And it was funny how that brought me energy -- like, not funny, but that's what it does, right? I get excited about things. And pretty soon, 4 hours would be gone. I'm like, holy moly, I got to, I should go brush my teeth or something. You know, I've been here a while.

Jaclynn Robinson 5:36
You went down the rabbit hole!

Jim Collison 5:38
Definitely, you know, definitely did. So there, for me, even, there's a great example of how that exercise. And I think, in some ways, yeah, that sounds a lot like Learner^®. Yeah, maybe in a little bit. But it's for me, I've consciously had this thought of like, what, how can I continue to develop myself while I'm sitting here, recovering, so to speak. So thinking about that. What are some ways an individual with a Developer can feel more energized by building partnerships and finding purpose in their role?

Jaclynn Robinson 6:09
I think, and we're kind of gonna flip it this time, but acting as a mentor. I think acting as a mentor themselves, for other people, is that feel-good feeling of, Ooh, I'm helping them. And maybe you're being the champion, and you're nudging them into more-challenging projects or tasks that have been offered up to them. And maybe they're just too fearful to jump. But those stretch assignments can accelerate the learning and development of that individual. So maybe you're the person that says, Oh, I know you've got this! I know you can! Think about how this is going to support your learning and growth. So friend to friend, so to speak, colleague to colleague, you can be that wonderful mentor or champion for somebody.

Developer: Questions for Managers

Jim Collison 6:53
When you said, "friend to friend," just then, I thought you were gonna dump some, like, wisdom on me. Like, I thought you were, "Hey, Jim, just friend to friend -- everything you've said is not true." Let's, let's spend some time talking about the manager, because I think this is, I think high Developer in managerial roles, not required, but it's super powerful in that role, just like any of these things. How can a manager with Developer support others with their basic needs?

Jaclynn Robinson 7:19
Encouraging them to take ownership of their work and then make those decisions that align with meeting their expectations. So essentially, providing them the autonomy while offering guidance as needed. It might be very easy, I would imagine, at times, to want to overdevelop somebody. But that overinvolvement might, you know, kind of reduce their ability to feel like they're empowered to try things out. Not always, I would say, but I think giving them that empowerment to say, "Hey, here's the freedom. Come to me; I'm here to, to be a guidance and support system for you," could build trust and establish deeper rapport and help them just try and fail until they get things right.

Jim Collison 8:04
Yeah. And creating a safe space to do that, right. I think the environment that a Developer creates around the individual is just as important as the tasks, or whatever -- the competencies or whatever, whatever that is, the environment is just as important as those items that need to be done. I think sometimes we think, No, if I just say it, it'll get done. But I think sometimes we got to set that up, right? We got to set it up in a way that works for them. How can a manager with high Developer help others feel seen, heard and valued as an individual?

Jaclynn Robinson 8:39
They could -- so this, this -- well, I'll just say it. So they could celebrate learning moments or experiences where team members have gained new insights or skills. And then in that regard, they're, they're highlighting the value of continuous learning, and they're celebrating those moments that they've kind of learned together. The caveat I was gonna say was, I know that might sound like Learner, but you had even mentioned it earlier -- it can be very developmental to say, How have we learned and grown in an experience? And to use that as a way to celebrate. Even if you failed for a moment, you got back up on your feet, and you made it as a team. So let's celebrate that together. And that continues to create freedom for people to try things out and just see what works and what doesn't and make changes along the way.

Jim Collison 9:31
Q -- question 04 in our Q^12® engagement survey, "I have received praise or recognition in the last 7 days" -- and then this phrase at the end, "for doing good work." Like, and I think this is at a, for high Developer, of recognizing that good work. As we're developing, not all work is good. Right?

Jaclynn Robinson 9:54
Yeah. You're iterating sometimes, and you just got to get in there and try.

Jim Collison 9:56
Going back to that safe space. You have to have safe space to fail in, but there are moments when it is great work. And it needs to be, there's nothing more, you know, I've, way in the past, I've gotten some awards for some things, and you were like, "You just made this up." Like it, it, yeah, the, the award looks fancy, but it doesn't mean anything, you know. And so it's important that I think that recognition is done for good work. How can a manager with -- I'm sorry, anything you want to, else you want to add?

Jaclynn Robinson 10:26
No, just, yeah, icing on the cake. That was great.

Jim Collison 10:29
Yeah, no, for sure. How can a manager with, with high Developer build trust, inspire and deepen team collaboration and community, then?

Jaclynn Robinson 10:37
Initiating skill-building initiatives with the team -- that could be a knowledge-sharing session, that could be skill-development workshops. But encouraging the cross-training among team members is a good way for them to inspire one another or deepen collaboration, in a way that feels very communal. So how can we learn and grow together, based on, you know, the mission or purpose that we have in mind? Which could be just, Hey, our mission is to learn something new, or it could be related to a specific team goal.

Jim Collison 11:09
Yeah, that phrase, learn something new. I think we, sometimes we're always chasing the newness when it could just be learned something old that we're not doing very well.

Jaclynn Robinson 11:21
Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Jim Collison 11:23
There's some, there's some truths in things from time to time, like, and, and there may be some things that we can, Hey, this works. It still works; we could just do more or better or continue, right. Doesn't always have to be new. I think sometimes, going back to the Learner -- not that we're trying to trash the Learner on this one here, but -- you know, that's, might be consumption of new things, right? The Developer may look for what's working today or what could work in that situation, target it towards the team, and then deploy it in a way that helps build that collaboration. Everybody, like success covers a multitude of sins, right, on a team. And so a great opportunity for them to grow. I don't know, anything else you would add to that?

Jaclynn Robinson 12:10
No, I'm glad that you, you brought that part in, too, because, to your point, sometimes you can study what's already working. What more can we learn about it? It's a feeling of newness for something that is tried and true. So I like that you were able to kind of piece that out, so we could define new, and what that can look like. Because new doesn't have to be something new and shiny; it could be, Let's take what we've already done and maximize on it. How can we continue to cultivate those skills?

Jim Collison 12:39
Look in the self-help realm and all the books that come out and all the new thoughts that -- and listen, there's, I'm sure there's truth in some of those. But sometimes the truth is, is something we just need to do again. Like, no, I didn't get it right. I still need to, I still need to get it right and do it again. Last question for you: How can a manager with Developer support the growth of each of the team members?

Jaclynn Robinson 13:02
I did this more from a team perspective. So encouraging the team to engage in self-reflection and share their own perspectives about their team performance and growth aspirations. What skills or specialized knowledge can support them in their role, as they consider the upcoming year -- given we're in 2024 -- and the goals that they have? And then as a team, and as a manager, you can start to organize workshops or training sessions that focus on those specific skills or competencies that are really relevant to the team's objectives. So it's providing opportunities for hands-on learning; it's hearing the voice of the team. And, you know, I think that's a way that we can support their growth through the year is just creating some of those more interactive, I'll call it, workshops or discussion sessions.

Jim Collison 13:53
You know what really feeds my Developer is when I get a note, either, like, a YouTube comment, or I get an email. Someone says, "Hey, I listened to a podcast from 8 years ago. Thank you for saying this!" And it's, Jaclynn, it's crazy for us to think -- you just mentioned 2024 -- in 2030, there will be people listening to this, and we'll be developing them. We're developing them in the future. Isn't that a crazy, that's a, I think this is a development exercise that we do here. This is why I love to do it. You're the expert, certainly. So we bring you on to get your, you know, to get your thoughts on this. But it feeds my Developer, knowing that we are going, this is gonna be valuable tomorrow, at the end of the year, at the end of 2030, hopefully, you know, as we think about that. And so, thank you for engaging in that Developer exercise with me in doing this. Final thoughts as we wrap up this, this time together?

Jaclynn Robinson 14:53
Yeah, Developer is just one of those themes that I really appreciate, because there's a sense of calm, I think, oftentimes with this theme, in giving people space to learn and discover, allow them to lead with curiosity. Whether you're a team member or whether you're a manager, there's comfort that you provide for people to be able to just communicate, Hey, this is what I'm thinking about. Or, This is where I think I might want to, you know, the space I want to play in and discover something fresh or discover something tried and true again and just reignite it. I heard a colleague the other day, just say, you know, I've, I've been doing X amount of courses, but I really want to go back and really go through notes, go through more of, of how to lead, so I can just recall, maybe, some new pointers and tips or tricks that I can pull into my facilitation or classroom. That's what I think of with Developer. They kind of encourage that. You hear it in them, and you go, Oh, no, that's neat. So you simply role-model it just by being you. But I love that you also create space for people to communicate their own, maybe, wishes or curiosities or dreams. So keep it up, because we certainly cherish it, if this is a theme that you have.

Jim Collison 16:14
I think as Developer is looking forward to building in people with positive intent, I think it's, I think it's beautiful. I think it's a beautiful theme.

Jaclynn Robinson 16:23
It is.

Jim Collison 16:24
And on its own, is, is inspiring. As I see great developers, I get jealous. We've got some managers at Gallup who have, who do it better than anybody. And I'm like, Oh, I could be more like them.

Jaclynn Robinson 16:38
It's good.

Jim Collison 16:38
Yeah, it's good. It's really good.

Jaclynn Robinson 16:40
They turn every caterpillar into a butterfly -- or try.

Jim Collison 16:45
That -- he's been on the show, but that Mike McDonald, who's been on the program before, is just one of the best at it. He's just indeed one of the best. Well, with that, we'll remind everyone to take full advantages of all the resources we do have available in Gallup Access. Head out to my.gallup.com. Sign in. Actually, there's probably some new resources in there for you now, as you're listening to this, this is the 12th of January. But next Friday, we're releasing the brand new Top 5 report that is out there. Chances are, by the time you hear this, it's already out. So if you haven't seen it yet, head out to my.gallup.com. Sign in, and the new Top 5 report -- 16 pages --

Jaclynn Robinson 17:22
It's fancy!

Jim Collison 17:22
Speaking of Developer, like that's a whole new Developer thing that's out there.

Jaclynn Robinson 17:28
Feast your eyes and enjoy it!

Jim Collison 17:29
Pretty awesome. Get out there and get that done right now. For coaching -- well, I mean, let me get through these things. For coaching, master coaching or to become a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, you can send us an email: coaching@gallup.com. Join us for the 2024 Gallup at Work Summit -- or whatever year it is that you're listening to this in; I bet we're doing something. Head out to gallupatwork.com and join us live. We've got, we, actually, we got some events going on around the world, too, now. So not just in Omaha. Check it out today: gallupatwork.com. Stay up to date on all the future webcasts by joining our Facebook and LinkedIn groups. Find us on any social platform by searching "CliftonStrengths." If you've enjoyed it, hit those Like or smash those Like and Subscribe -- that's what the kids say -- smash those Like and Subscribe buttons. And we almost have 50,000 subscribers on the YouTube channel on the CliftonStrengths on YouTube. So smash those buttons. Thanks for listening today. If you're listening, listening live, stay around for a little bit of postshow. With that, we'll say, Goodbye, everybody.

Jaclynn Robinson's Top 5 CliftonStrengths are Achiever, Strategic, Maximizer, Positivity and Relator.

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