Comments on: Personality at Work: Sometimes Asking a Question Is the Solution

By: laurence haughton

laurence haughton — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 13:25:17 +0000

Any manager who wants to become more psychologically aware about people and teams should start by reading Dr. Harry Levinson of the Harvard Medical School.
He has authored numerous books and articles (including “The Great Jackass Fallacy”) that are clear, easy to understand and incredibly insightful. Rob, he’ll make you smarter I promise.

By: Bob

Bob — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:54:46 +0000

David,

Excellent observations. BTW, I got pretty good at manipulating the DISC assesment.

Not to worry though, perhaps DNA testing is on the horizon. ;>)

By: David

David — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 03:10:27 +0000

Thank you for starting a very interesting thread. Your comments are well taken. You write about personality as if it were a single concept. Gordon Allport has identified some 65 definitions of personality at last count. I say this to butress your points, not to undermine them.

Even if we could agree on 20 or 30 or 40 definitions, it’s absurd to think that a business executive knows enough about personality to use it effectively.

Personality thus becomes a tool of the consultants. While I wouldn’t deny them a livelihood, sometimes it seems as if they prefer to be practitioners of a mystical art, obscured from the rest of us. This increases the fear and dread around psychometric testing.

The most pernicious effect of personality is that it tends to divide or stereotype people, rather than to unite them. Type sorters are among the most problematic.

Personality is such a squishy concept, it’s hard to believe that it has been accorded such power in the world of business. Yet, everyone wants a silver bullet. Eveyrone wants to know whom to hire or promote. Make it simple. A number of companies have gotten rid of these tests because managers, seeking the straightest line between two points, misuse them.

It’s my impression that there is such rampant misuse of personality assessments that the world of work would be better if most of them just went away. It’ll never happen, but if it did, one wonders if there would be more honesty in the workplace.

By: Bob

Bob — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 23:18:36 +0000

Oh my. Personalities, behavior, emotion, preferences…complex stuff, indeed. Just call it people. Some you like, some you don’t.

But how us people can get so, well, complicated about things, eh? And then, sometimes a quick summary will do.

Went on one job interview. All of the people I interviewed with told me their Meyer Briggs 4 letter indicator.
As if I had them all memorized.

Another interview with who would be my boss summed it up rather nicely.

” There are some people here that I don’t get along with all that well but you wont find any assholes here.”

By: Steve Wilson

Steve Wilson — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 16:51:24 +0000

Interesting post. I agree that personality traits are not absolutes, but I still think there is value in understanding personalities. Yes, any of us would do anything given the right circumstances, but we don’t work and live in extreme circumstances most of the time. Our primary personlaty trait suggests how I am “most likely” to behave or how I “prefer” to behave. And knowing your preferred style allows me to communicate and relate to you more effectively.

Enjoyed your comments. Very thought-provoking.