Not Your Type? – I can relate to Angela Martin on the NBC television series, The Office. Angela Kinsey plays the role of Angela Martin on the hit TV series. Angela is the tightly wound head of Accounting with relatively conservative values. What is to not like about Angela? I am not exactly sure why some viewers see some comic elements in her character’s quirks. I think that other than Jim, Angela is about the only character with both oars in the water.
I have a confession. I am a stereotypical Type-A, choleric-melancholy personality. I have managed various organizations for the past twenty years and I consistently surrounded myself with people who think like I do. Frankly it worked out real well.
About five years ago, I went to work for Intuit. Part of Intuit’s training was to test each employee’s personality and teach them about the strengths and weaknesses of their personality type as well as the strengths and weaknesses of other personality types. The folks at Intuit would assign a color for each dominant personality type; Blue = people that value creativity, Yellow = people that tended to value “people,” Green = people that valued process, and Red = people that value results or action. According to the personality testing at Intuit, most folks have two dominant “colors” (although one is generally stronger than the other). I tested as “Red-Green” (Results-Action/Process) with the emphasis on Red (Results/Action). That turns out to be pretty accurate. I want results. And if I can’t see the results, I sure the heck better be able to see the plan and a lot of action. Sure, I don’t want anyone to get hurt in the process. But results are more important than ruffling a few feathers. – Right?
Well about a year ago, I went to work for an organization that produces films. As you might imagine it is chock full of Blue (Creative) and Yellow (People-focused) individuals. As well it should be. Frankly, if I was responsible for the creative elements of the films (which I am not), the films would suck (which they do not). But now that my personality type is in the minority, I have all whole new appreciation for the Blue and Yellow personality types that used to suffer through working for me. For a choleric-melancholy personality, working in a Blue/Yellow organization is akin to herding cats. I send out requests for Project Leaders to update their project statuses, and those requests go largely ignored. We may never finish a project on time or on budget, but we never miss celebrating an employee’s (and even some contractors’) birthday. Receipts for Expense Reports? Those are optional, right? My Blue/Yellow (Innovation/People) counterparts tend to forecast the best possible outcomes for every project. When I suggest we should consider important details, I am deemed to be one of those glass-half-empty guys.
It is pretty humbling to be in the minority; to have the values that have made you successful for twenty years to be only lightly valued. I feel a little like Micaiah. Maybe you have never heard of Micaiah. He was a prophet for a fellow named Ahab. Ahab didn’t like Micaiah much because Micaiah didn’t just tell Ahab whatever he wanted to hear. I guess Ahab thought that Micaiah was one of those glass-half-empty guys too. Ahab’s disregard for Micaiah’s advice finally caught up with him though. Ahab wanted to go to war with Ramoth-Gilead. Ahab’s 400 “yes-men” said, “Heck, yeah! Go for it Ahab!” (My translation) But Micaiah warned Ahab not to attempt it. If you know the story of Ahab, then you know that Ahab disregarded Micaiah’s advice and was killed. Angela and I probably would have told Ahab the same thing. Darn us, glass-half-empty guys….
The moral of the story is not that choleric-melancholy personalities are right more than other personalities. As much as I would like that to be true, it is not. Perhaps the most important thing I learned at Intuit and have become painfully aware of in my role at my current organization is that regardless of our personality type, we have inherent strengths and weaknesses associated with our personalities. It is perhaps more important to be aware of the weaknesses of our respective personality type than it is to know our strengths. If we know our blind spots we can rely on those with other personality types to protect us from those blind spots. As you pursue your passions, be aware of the blind spots prone to your personality type. Seek out those with different personality types to help you make the best possible decisions.
What are you passionate about? What are you doing about it?
I have a confession. I am a stereotypical Type-A, choleric-melancholy personality. I have managed various organizations for the past twenty years and I consistently surrounded myself with people who think like I do. Frankly it worked out real well.
About five years ago, I went to work for Intuit. Part of Intuit’s training was to test each employee’s personality and teach them about the strengths and weaknesses of their personality type as well as the strengths and weaknesses of other personality types. The folks at Intuit would assign a color for each dominant personality type; Blue = people that value creativity, Yellow = people that tended to value “people,” Green = people that valued process, and Red = people that value results or action. According to the personality testing at Intuit, most folks have two dominant “colors” (although one is generally stronger than the other). I tested as “Red-Green” (Results-Action/Process) with the emphasis on Red (Results/Action). That turns out to be pretty accurate. I want results. And if I can’t see the results, I sure the heck better be able to see the plan and a lot of action. Sure, I don’t want anyone to get hurt in the process. But results are more important than ruffling a few feathers. – Right?
Well about a year ago, I went to work for an organization that produces films. As you might imagine it is chock full of Blue (Creative) and Yellow (People-focused) individuals. As well it should be. Frankly, if I was responsible for the creative elements of the films (which I am not), the films would suck (which they do not). But now that my personality type is in the minority, I have all whole new appreciation for the Blue and Yellow personality types that used to suffer through working for me. For a choleric-melancholy personality, working in a Blue/Yellow organization is akin to herding cats. I send out requests for Project Leaders to update their project statuses, and those requests go largely ignored. We may never finish a project on time or on budget, but we never miss celebrating an employee’s (and even some contractors’) birthday. Receipts for Expense Reports? Those are optional, right? My Blue/Yellow (Innovation/People) counterparts tend to forecast the best possible outcomes for every project. When I suggest we should consider important details, I am deemed to be one of those glass-half-empty guys.
It is pretty humbling to be in the minority; to have the values that have made you successful for twenty years to be only lightly valued. I feel a little like Micaiah. Maybe you have never heard of Micaiah. He was a prophet for a fellow named Ahab. Ahab didn’t like Micaiah much because Micaiah didn’t just tell Ahab whatever he wanted to hear. I guess Ahab thought that Micaiah was one of those glass-half-empty guys too. Ahab’s disregard for Micaiah’s advice finally caught up with him though. Ahab wanted to go to war with Ramoth-Gilead. Ahab’s 400 “yes-men” said, “Heck, yeah! Go for it Ahab!” (My translation) But Micaiah warned Ahab not to attempt it. If you know the story of Ahab, then you know that Ahab disregarded Micaiah’s advice and was killed. Angela and I probably would have told Ahab the same thing. Darn us, glass-half-empty guys….
The moral of the story is not that choleric-melancholy personalities are right more than other personalities. As much as I would like that to be true, it is not. Perhaps the most important thing I learned at Intuit and have become painfully aware of in my role at my current organization is that regardless of our personality type, we have inherent strengths and weaknesses associated with our personalities. It is perhaps more important to be aware of the weaknesses of our respective personality type than it is to know our strengths. If we know our blind spots we can rely on those with other personality types to protect us from those blind spots. As you pursue your passions, be aware of the blind spots prone to your personality type. Seek out those with different personality types to help you make the best possible decisions.
What are you passionate about? What are you doing about it?
1 comments:
I need to take that test. I am a creative nerd... wonder where I would show up? We are made different for a reason and we need each other. I love to direct, I hate to produce. I love to shoot, I hate to edit. I love to eat, I hate to...not eat. We can only grow when others expose the areas that we need to grow in.
ash =o)
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