Dealing With Different Personalities in the Workplace

“I really don’t like jewelry with plastic beads,” I admitted to my teen daughter last year while thrifting. She smiled wisely and said, “Well, that’s because you’re a Taurus.”

Just like that, she typed me. “You only like 100% cotton fabric too,” she added, “… that’s so Taurus.”

People and their distinct temperaments have been a topic of conversation for hundreds of years. And although horoscopes clearly aren’t scientifically valid, they hint at our desire to better understand ourselves and each other and make sense of (and possibly predict) the quirks and patterns in behavior … and preferences.

 

Personality testing and understanding the people around us

Most of us have heard of Myers-Briggs, DiSC, or maybe the Rorschach Inkblot Test, but what about True Colours, Enneagrams, or the Keirsey Temperament Sorter? Personality testing and assessments continue to skyrocket and there’s value in them.

When we understand that we are all innately different, we can stop trying to “fix” the people around us, and instead see that all personalities are “normal,” suggests Louis Menand for The New Yorker, and set our sights instead, on simply learning to interact better with anyone we encounter.

How much time have you spent trying to predict how someone will react? Often we adjust our own behavior or change our approach based on that assessment. Another name for this ability is emotional intelligence.

You know your work colleague doesn’t like surprises, so the night before you pop into her office for a chat, you email her some details you just discovered about the new project you’re working on together. You know your fun-loving employee can seem scattered and overworked at times and won’t remember that you off-handedly tossed her a new assignment, so you make a chart to “help keep you both on track.” There’s nothing “wrong” with any of these people. Their behavior, reactions, and communication styles are simply different from yours.

 

Find out more about personalities and emotional intelligence in this live, virtual seminar.

 

Looking for personality patterns

The patterns in how people think, feel and behave make up our personalities. And even though each person is unique, we see overarching commonalities that help us better understand motivations and habits.

Consider the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator…. It assesses four different scales: extraversion/introversion; sensing/intuition; thinking/feeling; and judging/perceiving, resulting in 16 different personality types, each with distinct strengths and limitations with no type being inherently better or worse than any other.

Let’s say your team took this test and discovered you are an ENFP (The Champion) and your colleague is an ISTJ (The Inspector). Knowing this could guide your interactions. You’re energetic and creative — good with people — but, you dislike repetitive tasks and structure.  Your colleague, on the other hand, is practical, quiet, and likes a solid plan well in advance.  

There’s room for both styles in the business world. In fact, the diversity of minds can be a powerful business component. But, when you work together, you must accept and adjust to one another’s tendencies. While you’re highly adaptable, your colleague might see you as flighty. You’ll need to embrace your colleague’s need for order and focus. Make an effort to provide details when you communicate. In turn, he or she should acknowledge the power of your ability to win people over and flex when needed.

Personality styles are unique and interesting … and affect how we communicate as well as how we perceive the messages communicated to us.

Taking time to understand your own personality (whether you use a formal personality test or not) as well as the personalities of those around you can help build more appreciation for those differences. This can guide your communication, make you a stronger leader, help you build a better team or even improve productivity.