Why We Use Personality Assessments
Personality assessments give powerful insight.
We all come across a wide variety of personalities in our daily lives – in our families and friends and the people we work with. The truth is, everyone has their own style, strengths, and weaknesses, and they affect things like how we interact with others and the kind of work we do. Personality assessments give us powerful insight into all these areas. They help us understand and appreciate ourselves and others better, improve our teamwork, manage conflict, and even provide great support for career path planning.
To illustrate, I will touch on 3 aspects of personality in which people can differ. These are differences in interests, behavioural style, and in the behaviour we prefer, or expect, from others.
First, lets talk about INTERESTS
Some people love the numbers and analyzing data. Others love persuading and motivating others. Some people are all about creativity while others love getting things organized. What we need to understand about interests is, they affect our view of what are the most important things to be done. The numbers guys might say, “We need to make a budget!” The promoter might say, “We need take our message to the world.” Whatever your dominant interests are, they will influence the actions you think will be the secret to your team’s success.
The second aspect is BEHAVIOURAL DIFFERENCES
Let me give you some examples. Some people are extroverted and engaging, while others are introverted and selective about their interactions. Some are very task-oriented while others invest in relationships. Some are very structured while others are very flexible. Personalities can certainly clash, and I’m sure you can imagine, one style will be more appropriate than another for certain situations.
Third, the DIFFERENCES in the way we prefer, or expect people to behave
When people behave the way we expect, we affirm that behaviour and think, that is a good person. When people behave the opposite of what we prefer, we see them as counterproductive, and might even find them difficult to trust. What we may not realize is how often we make judgements about someone’s character or intentions based merely on our own preference for one behavioural style over another. Destructive conflict can arise from these perceptions and can prevent people from having positive, productive relationships.
We use personality assessments to help our clients understand how their own behaviour and perspectives come to bear on the family and business dynamics. They give us insight into things like, what roles or careers individuals are most likely to thrive in, and awareness of their own natural leadership style and its implications. And as a bonus, reviewing personality assessments together can be a fun, teambuilding experience – something many business families can benefit from.
If you are a business-owning family and you are having challenges with behaviour and perspective, or you want to support others in being their best, please give me a call at 604.546.1100. I know that we can help.
