By Micah Bevans, Montana CU

While personality assessments may seem unnecessary in a professional setting, understanding your personality can provide valuable insight into both your own behaviors and the ways you interact with others. It can also help you better understand your team members and strengthen workplace relationships. Although there are many personality assessments available, this discussion focuses on the DiSC Assessment, which measures four primary personality styles: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness.

The DiSC Assessment helps explain why people approach work, communication, and problem-solving differently. It highlights both the similarities and differences among personality styles and provides strategies for building stronger connections with others. My personality style is CS (Conscientiousness/Steadiness), which means I tend to prefer a steady work pace, rely on facts and data, strive for accuracy and high-quality results, and display emotions more reservedly

Understanding my CS style also helps me recognize how I may differ from other personality types. For example, my opposite style is i (Influence), which is typically more outgoing, focused on possibilities, and energized by a fast-paced environment. Despite these differences, we share several common traits, including a preference for positive interactions, a non-aggressive approach to conflict, and a willingness to encourage and praise others

By understanding both our similarities and differences, as well as the motivations that drive our behaviors, I can adapt my communication style and find more effective ways to collaborate. This awareness can help with completing tasks, solving problems, providing feedback, and even reducing tension during challenging situations.