Perfection

“Trifles make perfection and perfection is no trifle.” — Michaelangelo

Rather than Meyers-Briggs (where I usually rate as an INTJ, though I don’t think that always describes me well), my company, to the extent it has folks who do personality inventories, prefers the DiSC test. I’ve done it three times now — in 2000, 2003, and yesterday at a staff meeting — and the results have been fairly consistent and usually quite accurate.

While previously I’ve gotten the “Objective Thinker” pattern, this time I ended up with the “Perfectionist” pattern (which had been a secondary on previous go-throughs). The summary of that type (an where I think there’s a match):

Emotions: displays competence; is restrained and cautious.

Goal: stability; predictable accomplishments

Judges others by: precise standards

Influences others by: attention to detail; accuracy

Value to the organization: is conscientious; maintains standards; controls quality

Overuses: procedures and “fail-safe” controls; overdependence on people, products, and prodedures that have worked in past

Under pressure: becomes tactful and diplomatic

Fears: antagonism

Would increase effectiveness through: role flexibility; independence and interdependence; belief in self-worth

Note that the “Response Focus” for this is the workplace; the results might be different if focused on home or among friends or on my blog (though probably not terribly much).

The detailed narrative is more fo the same (“They want specifics on work expectations, time requirements, and evaluation procedures … may become bogged down in the details of the decision-making process.”), though some items don’t apply (I don’t react to compliments by asking myself, “What does this person want?”).

All in all, though, a pretty good summary. The Objective Thinker is similar, and still fits me at least as well, I think, if not better in some areas:

Emotions: rejects interpersonal aggression

Goal: correctness

Judges others by: ability to think logically

Influences others by: use of facts, data, and logical arguments

Value to the organization: defines and clarifies; obtains, evaluates, and tests information.

Overuses: analysis

Under pressure: becomes worrisome

Fears: irrational acts; ridicule

Would increase effectiveness through: self-disclosure; public discussion of their insights and opinions

The point is not to pin cunning labels on people, of course, but to identify how to better work with them, to maximize team strengths, etc. But it’s always interesting to see the results of something a bit more, ah, thorough than “You are: CAPTAIN JANEWAY” sorts of things.