Loved It / Loathed It Strengths Inventory
Use one real week to map the activities that strengthen or drain you
- Difficulty
- Starter
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 99%
Create two columns, Loved It and Loathed It, and carry the record through an ordinary week. Capture activities at the moment you notice their emotional pull: looking forward to something, losing track of time, learning unusually quickly, or feeling that the work clicked belong on the loved side; procrastination, dragging time, and finishing depleted belong on the loathed side. At week's end, translate the observations into precise activities rather than broad labels such as strategic thinking. The mechanism separates appetite from current ability. Repeated attraction creates practice, practice improves performance, and better performance encourages further practice. The result is a grounded map of strengths and weaknesses that can guide role design, project selection, and development without assuming that everything you do well strengthens you.
Origin
Marcus Buckingham developed the strengths definition through Gallup research and explains that the inventory has been used even with 10-, 11-, and 12-year-olds.
Core principles
- 01A strength is an activity that strengthens you, not merely one you perform well
- 02A weakness is an activity that weakens you, even when you perform it well
- 03Your daily life provides better evidence than abstract personality labels
- 04Specific activities reveal more than broad competencies
How to run it
- 1
Set up the record
Draw a line down a page and label the columns Loved It and Loathed It. Use paper or a phone, whichever will stay close at hand.
Pro tip Choose a regular week so the evidence reflects your actual life.
- 2
Capture strengthening moments
Record an activity immediately when you anticipate it, lose track of time doing it, learn it rapidly, or finish feeling that it clicked.
Pro tip Name the activity narrowly enough that you could seek it again.
Watch out Do not require yourself to be good at it yet.
- 3
Capture weakening moments
Record activities you delay, experience as dragging, or finish feeling depleted by.
Pro tip Include activities you perform well if they still drain you.
Watch out Do not confuse competence with strength.
- 4
Read the pattern
At the end of the week, review both columns for recurring situations, people, contexts, and types of activity.
Pro tip Look for the exact part of an activity that creates the energy shift.
- 5
Use the evidence
Favor roles and projects that contain more of the loved activities and consciously manage around the loathed ones.
Pro tip Treat the map as a basis for experiments, not a permanent job description.
Watch out Do not use the exercise to abandon unavoidable responsibilities.
In the wild
A salesperson may appear broadly strong at selling but discover that the energizing activity is specifically securing the close. Moving from medical-device sales, where signatures create that moment, to pharmaceutical sales, where the work is ongoing influence without a close, removes the strengthening activity even though the person can still perform the job.
→ The specific activity explains why an apparently logical career move becomes draining and points toward a better-fitting sales context.
Common mistakes
Equating strengths with high performance
An activity can earn excellent results while still boring or draining you. Record its energy effect rather than its grade or appraisal.
Using abstract labels
Terms such as executive presence hide the actionable detail. Write the actual moment, task, or context that drew you in or pushed you away.
Is it for you?
Best for
People choosing roles, projects, or career moves who need a practical map of what brings out their best.
Not ideal for
People seeking a one-time aptitude test or a reason to avoid every necessary but draining responsibility.
From the transcript
“weaknesses are any activity that weakens you even if you're good at it strength is any activity that strengthens you even if you're not good…”
“draw a line down the middle of the pad and put i loved it at the top of one column and loathed it at the…”
“just spend a week using the raw material of your life to show you where is the positive valence at the level of the activity…”
From the episode
Marcus Buckingham: Harness Your Strengths
Marcus Buckingham