By Natasha Josefowitz, Ph.D.
LA JOLLA, California — What is your personality style?
Find out; it influences the way you feel, think and behave on an unconscious level. It is only when you have identified the unconscious forces that move you that you can consciously decide to try some different behaviors if the ones you usually use do not work well for you. Here are eight personality types one most often encounters in the workplace as well as in the home.
1. The Restless Type: Restless people like change for change’s sake. They don’t settle on anything for long; they balk at routine and take risks that are not well thought ou–often to the detriment of their organizations.
At home, they are not satisfied with routine and look for new things to do–the perennial travelers fit into this category.
2. The Aggressive Type: Aggressive people are often competitive and want to be top dog. They want power and try to dominate others. They have high control needs but may not always be in good control themselves.
At home, these people often have troubled marriages as well as conflicts with their adolescent and grown children.
3. The Workaholic: These people are often perfectionists. They want order in their lives and pay attention to detail. They withhold the show of emotions and are susceptible to many stress-related health risks. The workaholic makes others feel inadequate as they stay at work later than anyone else and go to the office on weekends.
Workaholics are unavailable parents and spouses, choosing to spend their evenings and weekends at work.
4. The Mercurial Type: People in the arts often belong to this category. They are very effusive, spontaneous, and uninhibited and like being the center of attention. Their impulsiveness, however, can create problems for them at work when they don’t think through the consequences of their behaviors.
Mercurial people are also often solipsistic, thinking the world revolves around them. They may be fun to be with, but their lack of responsible behavior eventually spells trouble on the home front.
5. The Worrier: These are fearful people who predict negative outcomes to most undertakings and thus will avoid risk. They are guarded in their relationships. Their anxiety and lack of self-confidence make them cling to known routines and prevent them from making necessary changes.
At home, worriers are over-protective of their children and may become paranoid in their relationships.
6. The Leisurely Type: These people are sometimes accused of being too laid back, because they put their personal priorities ahead of work–they prefer to relax and enjoy themselves. These individuals don’t like to feel pushed and may have a tendency to procrastinate.
The fun-loving person may not take on their share of responsibilities and thus annoy those who must take up the slack.
7. The Loner: These people are often found in the sciences. They are unsentimental, they are not feelers, but instead are observers and doers. Their main problem is not understanding other people’s feelings, so they hurt others inadvertently.
The loners at home include the computer-obsessed person who would rather surf the Net than spend time with family or tinker in the garage at the expense of time with spouse or children.
8. The Go-Getter: Usually successful, the go-getters are ambitious, often overly self-confident and concentrate on their own goals sometimes to the detriment of organizational goals. They forge ahead, not caring if they step on other people’s toes.
The go-getter may overly push their children to excel academically or at sports in ways that may not be beneficial to them. Winning becomes everything.
There are many other personality types, but these are ones that seem to impact the workplace the most.
If you do not get the recognition you feel you deserve at work, if you do not have the colleagueship you expect, ask yourself whether any of these personality types, or combinations thereof, fit you and thus may be the problem.
Hardly anyone fits into just one category. People can be restless and aggressive, or restless and worried. On the other hand, go-getters are not usually loners nor leisurely, but can be workaholics.
To find out, observe your responses when under pressure. It usually indicates the basic personality type that you control better under more normal circumstances.
If you don’t have a clue as to what personality type you have, show this list to a few trusted colleagues or family members and ask them to categorize you. Don’t be defensive about their responses, even if you disagree. Remember that feedback is a gift that is meant to help. Only by identifying the way your behavior affects others can you make the necessary changes.
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Josefowitz is a freelance writer and author based in La Jolla, California, who may be contacted at natasha.josefowitz@sdjewishworld.com This article appeared previously in La Jolla Village News.