What's Your Opinion Of Tests?

I find the concept of personality tests interesting however I believe psychologists consider Personality to be a complex subject.I think a lot of experts agree that it is not possible to change. There are different types of personality tests it seems . Tony Alessandra uses the terms Director,Socializer,Thinker,and Feeler which seem to be transferrable to the DISC classification. An example of a director would be Lyndon Johnson, a Socializer Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton,a thinker Gerald Ford and a Feeler Jimmy Carter.Some people seem to be born Entreprenuers and others to work in a J.O.B. I wonder if you don't like your peronality type if you are stuck with it. from my test i appear to be a C,type/Thinker. I think of myself as a bit of a maverick although I was the good ,make no waves kid most of my life. Heaven is like entirely bit,I know it,s better than going to Hell.It is to my chagrin that i appear to have a loser peronality type. As a child I was more outgoing but am perfectly comfortable spending time alone. It surprised me that one of my extroverted friends said he is not comfortable being alone. I am also a bit more of a rebel than most C types. I wonder f it is possible to change at least part of personality. The most annoying trait I have is that I tend to suffer with indecision.

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Permalink Reply by Luke Townsley on June 30, 2012 at 12:00pm

Why would anyone want to change their personality type? That would be a bit like wanting to change gender. We can all struggle with certain aspects of our personality weaknesses and enjoy certain strengths we may enjoy, but when we really come to properly appreciate what we are given, it is really hard imagining wanting to change.

Some of the introverted C types, such as the Meyers-Briggs INTJ are pretty rare. If you feel you want to change your basic personality type, very likely you are in an environment that doesn't appreciate your personality type or perhaps you have never really developed any of your strengths enough to properly appreciate them.

Indecision can certainly be a show stopper, but its twin brother is conscientiousness and in the right context, that can be invaluable.

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Permalink Reply by Luke Townsley on June 30, 2012 at 12:18pm

I guess I didn't answer the question. Regarding my opinion of personality tests, I think some of them are better than others and some personality type methods are dedicated towards emphasizing certain qualities over others.

If you have realistic expectations of what a specific test can provide and its level of accuracy, I think personality tests are an extraordinary tool.

On a personal note, as a Meyers-Brigg INTJ, I find the way some people describe certain DISC characteristics a bit frustrating.

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Permalink Reply by GARY LEAGUE on June 30, 2012 at 6:21pm

Thanks for the input I am an ISTJ, and have read the Book "Now Discover Yoru Strengths" I didn'tcare much for that profile either as it did not identify any particular skills.

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Permalink Reply by Scott Moore on June 30, 2012 at 1:47pm

Gary,

I get frustrated with personality tests. After taking many of them, I've found the StrengthsFinder 2.0 to be the most helpful. With 34 different areas of strength, the test ranks your top five and has excellent descriptions of each. I know lots of people love the DISC - if that works for you, great. I just found it too vague. Plus, I like focusing on strengths, instead of generic personality types.

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Permalink Reply by GARY LEAGUE on June 30, 2012 at 6:19pm

Thank you for the input. I have taken the strengths finder test and didn'tcare for the results because none of the so called strentgths were indicative of any concrete skills.

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Permalink Reply by Luke Townsley on June 30, 2012 at 6:32pm

Gary,

I think I may see what you are referring to about concrete skills. Temperament is an indicator as to skill and aptitude, but hardly enough to be definite.

For instance, I am a skilled woodworker, even though I fall outside the typical "artisan" temperament profile. It is, however, true that I am probably not passionate enough about most types of woodworking to want to make it a lifelong career. On the other hand, there are places in the woodworking world I could be quite comfortable.

My temperament would indicate I could be a scientist or computer programmer. I am very interested in science and dabble in programming, but there are other issues besides temperament that make me not want to directly pursue a career in either of those.

Sometimes there are no easy answers. Sometimes it is just a matter of using your interests, temperament, position in life, and other things you are given and just trying things out. You may do something for a while that will lead into something else you like better or you may change fields completely.

You can also try several things concurrently.

Dan talks repeatedly about really needing to be at least in your forties to have enough life experience to really embark on your life's work.