Who do you think of when I say the word “Command”?
What do you imagine when you think of the word Command?
Does it conjure up images like this:
One of Gallup’s CliftonStrengths is COMMAND. People with COMMAND, command your attention.
Gallup defines people with the COMMAND talent as:
Unsurprisingly, it resides within the INFLUENCING domain.
Those with COMMAND have great charisma. You expect that people will follow you. Napoleon Bonaparte is one of history’s most noted Generals, and there was no doubt he had Command in his top strengths! He had a magnetic personality. In his campaign to take back France, he was stopped by the troops of Louis VIII near Grenoble. He stood in front of them, tore open his coat and shouted, “If any of you will shoot his Emperor, here I am.” His supreme confidence won them over, and they joined his campaign.
COMMAND enables you to be direct, decisive and to stand firm when challenged. Challenges and conflicts are your life’s blood, and you are not afraid of polarisation. You love to charge in on your white horse and save situations from disaster. You are most happy being the captain of the ship. These are the pinnacles of behaviour for your COMMAND talent but beware.
People with COMMAND must be vigilant against slipping to the very bottom of their behaviour where they become domineering, abrupt, strong-willed, inflexible and stubborn. These are the situations where they become blind to the impact they are having on others and focus on achieving what they have set their heart and mind upon at all costs.
Napoleon’s eventual downfall can be attributed to his once iron will evolving into plain pig-headedness. He became obsessed with acquiring more and more territory through warfare. He pushed France’s resources to the brink in his lust for power. Over-utilising his COMMAND, I daresay he suppressed his other strengths that could have moderated it. He could have avoided this scenario by bringing some of his other top 5 strengths into the mix and by harnessing the strengths of others around him including his advisors.
To observe someone who possesses the COMMAND talent and has turned it into a finely honed strength and is using it in balance with their other strengths is a truly wondrous thing. They are world-changers. Are you someone with COMMAND? Do you follow a leader with COMMAND? Do you love someone with COMMAND? Celebrate them today. Thank them for what they bring to the world and remind them how it might be without them!