At our recent weekly lecture at the Hansa Center for Optimum Health, Dr. Jennifer Allen spoke briefly about the advantages of personality profiles such as the DISC Test, Meyers-Briggs analysis, etc. These profiles are very commonly used by employers to screen job applicants and determine if they are well suited for the position available. Beyond that, they can also help us as individuals to get a better feel for “who we really are” and the characteristics and traits that we exhibit.
I’m going to share with you my experience with these tests and the professional and personal benefits I’ve gained from it.
After owning and operating a private practice for 7 years, I can tell you that there are many challenges to overcome. None more trying than staff development, specifically the hiring process. I went through this many times in attempts to find the perfect staff. I will say this, I had some really great people work for me, unfortunately, they weren’t always great employees.
You see, if I liked their personality in their interview and they were enthusiastic, they were hired. Sounds logical, right?
Well, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why they wouldn’t pan out. The problem was, I was hiring people that were just like me, when I should have been bringing in employees that were more adept and better suited to do tasks that I wasn’t cut out for. It wasn’t until a practice consultant suggested I use personality profiles during the hiring process that I was able to recognize what I had been doing wrong.
First thing I did was to get my own profile and see what it was that I was bringing to the table. Next, I screened my two employees, one of which happened to be my wife. Low and behold, all three of our profiles matched.
No wonder our business was at a standstill!!!
So we decided it was time for my wife to step aside and we would hire a new employee to take her place. I kept my other employee, because her profile actually matched her job description perfectly.
During the hiring process, I immediately eliminated applicants who matched my profile and looked for someone who had a profile that was high in the areas that I was low. Sure enough, when I found the right match, she immediately became a huge asset to our practice.
We got busier, things were more efficient around the office and everything flowed better. The best part, she willingly took on the tasks that the rest of us would dread.
Why?
Because she was hard-wired to handle those tasks. Her personality profile gave me a clear outline of what she would excel at and what she would struggle with. Thus, I filled her job with tasks she could handle without trouble and stayed away from tasks that she would struggle with and that would frustrate her. That led to a happy, productive employee.
Now, occasionally there would be tasks that she would have to do that didn’t fit her profile. I knew this going in, so if it wasn’t done perfectly, I didn’t get upset, because I knew it would be a struggle for her. This is great information for an employer to know. Don’t get upset with an employee for not getting something done that they’re not suited to handle.
This leads to the personal aspect of personality profiles.
Once I learned what my profile was, I realized WHY there were tasks in my personal and professional life that were difficult for me to accomplish. Other doctor friends of mine would do an event and meet 30 new people, I would only meet 1 or 2.
It got really frustrating.
Once I knew my profile, I finally stopped beating myself up for not being successful at these events. It also helped me focus my attention and efforts on events that better suited my ability. Again, things started to pick up and I no longer would get frustrated at not accomplishing what I had set out to do.
This opened up a whole new world of opportunities for me and my confidence soared!!
Apply this to relationships as well.
Knowing how your spouse, child or friend is “hard-wired” can make a world of difference. You no longer would have to wonder why people act a certain way and you’ll know exactly what kind of things motivate them and keep them going. Then you can decide if they are traits and characteristics you can deal with and act on them appropriately.
Many of these tests are available online and you can get results fairly quickly. They really help to shed new light on the way we think and act.
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Contributor's Note
If you want to know how we think and act affects our health, read more about it at our blogs listed on the lower left of the Hansa Center website.
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