As anyone working in business will know, your personality type has a big impact on how you perform in the workplace. While one personality type may find communication and diplomacy a doddle, another might be a natural born leader. On the other hand, some people may find their personality makes it difficult for them to take charge and impacts on their chances of rising to the top in their chosen field.
Understanding the type of personality you have, and how it may impact on your career, can help you to take charge and approach situations in the way that suits you best. As Mind Tools says, “When our personality doesn’t fit our role, everyone loses. We’ll likely be unhappy because we feel that we don’t “fit in.” Although you may not be able to change your personality, understanding your strengths and weaknesses is the first step to taking control of your career.
The big 5
According to the experts, there are five main personality traits. These are openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and stability. Each of these types has its own specific sub-traits and it’s these sub-traits that often have the biggest impact on how we perform in the workplace.
Openness
People who have openness as their dominant personality trait are capable of being imaginative, original and daring. They generally have broad interests, prefer variety over fixed routine and are always interested in trying something new. This can make people with an open personality very suitable for sales and marketing as their natural creativity will help them to bring something a little different to their projects.
Conscientiousness
If a personality test points to someone having conscientiousness as a dominant trait, the person is likely to be hardworking, ambitious, energetic, and organised. Conscientiousness is actually one of the strongest predictors of leadership and people with this trait often find it easy to rise to the top.
Extroversion
Another strong predictor of leadership, extroverts are sociable, fun-loving, friendly and talkative. As they don’t mind putting themselves out there, they are often noticed by management and so find it relatively easy to rise through the ranks of an organisation.
Agreeableness
Being agreeable is one of the few personality traits that can actually point to lower leadership potential. This is because people who are agreeable don’t want to rock the boat or upset their colleagues by forcing their way to the top. Conversely, people who get a low agreeable score in the test, and who could therefore be classed as ‘disagreeable’, are likely to succeed as they don’t have any qualms about treading on toes on their way to the top.
Stability
Resilient and responsive, stability is always a positive attribute in the workplace. People who score highly in this element of the personality test are likely to cope well in stressful situations and stay calm in emergencies.
Understanding your personality type can help you to be a better communicator and excel in the workplace. Find out more about effective communication techniques for all personality types by taking a look around our site today.