Monday, May 13, 2019

Experiencing a personality profile

They labelled me a “Directing Motivator” - Apparently that means I’m Results focused, decisive and assertive; combined with drive, enthusiasm and positive thinking.

We had about forty of us (Executive Leadership Team, regional directors, their reports and some “heads of” from business central operations) go through the Insights Discovery process. It’s probably the most accurate personality profiling tool I’ve yet experienced: almost uncannily accurate, not just for me but most of the others.

  • Mike is a good people manager because he has the ability to see what may lie ahead and then communicate his vision to others.
  • His natural intuition, fed by a drive to discover, brings with it the readiness to work long and hard in the pursuit of an ongoing dream. 
  • Mike is seen by others as pragmatic, dependable and able to get things done. 
  • He exhibits an infectious enthusiasm for living. 
  • Curious and alert, Mike prefers to understand rather than judge. 
  • He is alert to changing situations and will act quickly to get results, giving direction or instructions to others as he thinks is necessary.
The whole report comes to some 22 pages and it includes some great insights into my weaknesses (Becomes impatient with routine and repetition...Sometimes lacks attention to detail...Mike may feel pressured to make decisions too quickly...) as well as a portrait of the “opposite” personality types. I’ve already found a number of occasions when having that detailed revelation has helped me to communicate better with quite different colleagues.

As I hire and engage with new colleagues I’m thinking that I want to make the Insights Discovery profile part of the standard offer. I don’t think it should be mandatory in the environments in which I work, but I strongly commend it to colleagues for the value it brings and the way it offers opportunities for growth and personal development.