1. Analytical

2. Today’s Goals You should be able to:
Articulate what being Analytical means to you
Identify two ways you can develop your Analytical strength.
Reflect on ways you can use your Strengths to contribute to your community now and in the future.
Facilitator Notes
Welcome
Introductions (name, title, department, fun fact)
If there are 10 or less participants in the session who are not familiar with one another, ask them to introduce themselves.
Share that this session is a part of the Be Initiative. The Be Better initiative is aimed at establishing the University of Iowa as the university that creates leaders who leverage their strengths, leadership knowledge, and leadership skills to contribute to their communities now and in the future.
Learning Goals
Share the takeaways
Ask students if they have additional things they’d like to learn about the Analytical strength
Engagement
Ask students to silence and put away electronic devices
Make sure everyone has something to write with.
Ask who is and who is not an Analytical. If applicable, ask students to sit next to someone who doesn’t share the Analytical strength.

3. I’ve been thinking…
People who are exceptionally talented in the Analytical theme search for reasons and causes. They have the ability to think about all the factors that might affect a situation.
Facilitator Notes
Analytical comes from the strategic thinking domain, which describes how we absorb and analyze information and situations in an effort to make better decisions. Some folks follow their heart. Those strong in Analytical follow their head, and they have a 'prove it' mentality.
Your Analytical theme challenges other people: "Prove it. Show me why what you are claiming is true." In the face of this kind of questioning some will find that their brilliant theories wither and die. For you, this is precisely the point. You do not necessarily want to destroy other people's ideas, but you do insist that their theories be sound. You see yourself as objective and dispassionate. You like data because they are value free. They have no agenda. Armed with these data, you search for patterns and connections. You want to understand how certain patterns affect one another. How do they combine? What is their outcome? Does this outcome fit with the theory being offered or the situation being confronted? These are your questions. You peel the layers back until, gradually, the root cause or causes are revealed. Others see you as logical and rigorous. Over time they will come to you in order to expose someone's "wishful thinking" or "clumsy thinking" to your refining mind. It is hoped that your analysis is never delivered too harshly. Otherwise, others may avoid you when that "wishful thinking" is their own.
Group Discussion:
What are some ways you’ve seen your Analytical strength show up in your life and interactions with others? Either inside or outside of the classroom. Provide an example to get the conversation started.

4. Facilitator Notes
Time: 7 minutes
Clip from Sherlock Holmes (2009) Time 3:18 Robert Downey, Jr. plays Sherlock and exhibits the Analytical theme.
Group Discussion
What aspects of the Analytical theme did you see in this clip? Give specific examples.

5. What’s Your Perspective
Balcony
Thinks things through
Logical
Thorough
Comfortable with numbers, figures, and charts
Smart
Basement
Over-thinks
Short
Judgmental
Never satisfied
Asks too many questions
Facilitator Notes Time : 7 minutes
A barrier label describes when a talent is mistakenly devalued and dismissed as a weakness.
Remember: Nobody is perfect. Nobody can always be in the balcony. Everyone finds themselves in the basement from time to time.
Group Discussion:
Do you agree with the balcony and basement/barrier labels associated with Analytical?
Now that you are aware of the basement or barrier labels. What are some things you can do to manage and/or avoid them?
If you do not have Analytical as a strength, how would you work with someone knowing this information.

6. Sherlock
A businessman had just turned off the lights in the store when a man appeared and demanded money. The owner opened the cash register. The contents of the cash register were scooped up, and the man sped away. A member of the police force was notified promptly.
Facilitator Notes Time : 15 minutes
Distribute the following story. Have participants read the story three times and then turn the story face down.
A businessman had just turned off the lights in the store when a man appeared and demanded money. The owner opened the cash register. The contents of the cash register were scooped up, and the man sped away. A member of the police force was notified promptly.
Hand out the attached list of questions titled “Statements About The Story”. Ask each person to respond to the questions individually.
After everyone is finished, gather participants into small groups of four to five people.
As a small group, read the story one more time and then turn it face down.
As a small group, participants must come to consensus on the answers to the questions. Remind them to mark their answers as a team in a way that will distinguish it from their individual answers.
After everyone is done, read the correct answers.
Unknown – It was a businessman; he may not be the owner.
Unknown – Someone demanded money; may not be robber.
False.
Unknown – It could have been a woman.
Unknown – Don’t know who scooped up the money – it could have been owner or businessman.
True.
Unknown – Don’t know that it was the same man. Unknown – Cash register could have coupons, credit vouchers, etc.
Unknown – Don’t know that it was a robber and don’t know if he demanded money of owner or businessman.
Unknown – Businessman could be owner.
Unknown – Don’t know if man dashed out of store.
Ask participants to count the number of correct answers as an
individual, then as a team.
The attached group score sheet will assist in recording individual and team scores. Most of the time, the team score will be higher then individual scores.
Each group is then asked to record their group score and the highest individual score. See the Sherlock tally sheet. This will enable the total group to see how each small group scored.
Group Discussion
What did you learn in doing the exercise?
Was it easy to develop consensus?
Did you compromise? Did you compromise too much?
Was there a group leader?
How well did people listen to one another?
Did personality type play a factor? What factor did it play?
Were there diverse opinions in the group?
When you answered the questions as an individual, did you feel you had the correct answers?
Were you surprised by the different points of view?
Did you feel more confident in completing your task working as a team or as an
individual?
How can you apply what you learned in the exercise to your own situations?
Comment: This story is poorly written and ambiguous. It leaves a lot of room for self-perceptions and judgments. Yet, how many situations are we in where there is ambiguity? Based on our own experiences and view of the world, we each make our own interpretations of the situation. Together, working as a team, we can be more accurate and complete in achieving our task
Reference: Sustaining Action, Appendix N.

7. Next Steps for Analytical
Volunteer to serve on campus committees charged with proposing recommendations to key decision-making bodies
Apply for research opportunities
Read assignments before class
Facilitator Notes Time : 15 minutes
Select professors with reputations for presenting lessons in a logical, sequential manner. Avoid institutors who present a confusing jumble of unrelated ideas, facts, theories, illustrations, or philosophies.
Dismiss erroneous statements, flawed theories, and illogical conclusions, as well as prejudiced opinions.
Gravitate to organizations known for their commitment to the use of logic and reason.
Intensify Strength
(handout –Supplemental Activity 2.K: Intensify Strength p. 38 of StrengthsQuest Activity workbook)
Ask the students to develop talent based actions to respond to each touchpoint on the worksheet.
Debrief this activity by asking students to share their responses with a small group. As with so many others, the positive effect of this activity can be enhanced by having students discuss their work in small groups and/or report to the entire group.