DISC Assessment: Be Brief-Be Bright-Be Gone

I took this assessment as part of my interview and on-boarding process at Integrated Work Strategies. ​It's been awhile since I have taken a professional assessment. It is good to know and compare my previous results (StrengthsFinder) to my current one based on my most recent work environment and experience. As usual, I focused a lot on the communication style while I was reading my results. Communication is an area in my  personal and professional life that I have been working on for the past three years. I believe that communication is a key factor in any interpersonal relationships, both personal and professional. I actually laughed when I read "be brief-be bright-be gone" and "speak at a rapid pace". I like interacting with people and listening to people but for someone like myself, time is important and how I spend it is very important to task completion and my job performance. It is not a preference that I just happened to choose for myself but more of a need based on the demands of my most recent (previous) job. I remember the first few times I had to politely request clients to "get straight to the point" to save both of us time and be able to focus on solutions. It was liberating and empowering; most especially when such request was received positively by the other person. So far it has been effective without clients feeling glossed over or worse. I am sure I have been in interviews where I talked too much trying to fill the gap between a question, my response, and the next question from another person from the panel. 

When it comes to my ideal work environment, the result "group activities outside the job" resonated with me a lot. After going through several (maybe a lot) of job interviews in the past months, I realized how some, if not most, companies seemed to be caught off guard when I ask the question "what do you do for fun outside work?". I am not being sarcastic but is it that hard to answer? If you ask me what I do for fun outside work I have a long list readily available that I do not need to unbury from my head. As much as I like being productive at my job, I like being productive in my personal life as well. As much as I make all the efforts to find fun and joy at any job that I do, I make sure that I have all the fun and adventure in my personal life too.

Another question I started asking during my job interviews is "what is the culture of your team and what does your team dynamic looks like?". I am not judging or criticizing teams and companies that I could potentially be working with but if I get odd stares and looks or a long pause followed by vague responses from potential employers when I ask this question, it is an immediate red flag for me. Yes, I want to work for your organization because of its prestige and how your company contributes to the community and society. However, as much as I want your company's name on my resume, I am more inclined to know how your team dynamic and culture will support my success as an employee as well as  my professional development. I already spend most of my days working,  getting ready for work, spending a good portion of my salary so I can go to work (i.e. transportation), be presentable at work, and be in good physical and mental heath to be able to perform my duties well. The least a company can do, I believe, is support my well-being as an employee and as part of the team through healthy and supportive work culture and team dynamic.

I have learned a lot about myself from my recent job interviews, most especially on what I really want and am looking for. Pay, title, and status all sound appealing but how a company would treat me as a team member has become more important to me lately. I look at employer-employee relationships as give-and-take. I am opposed to employers and employees who only take -- an employee who just collects pay and does not care about making any significant contributions to the success of the company or an employer that gives unreasonable demands to its employees without providing proper recognition and fair compensation to its employees. There are plenty of professional trainings and books written about improving company culture and group dynamics; it is just a matter of placing the right person (managers and supervisors) to implement, execute and actually be a model of said improvements.

Here are some of my DISC Assessment results:
Ways to Communicate with me:

• Deal with details in writing, have her commit to modes of action.
• Use a balanced, objective and emotional approach.
• ​Provide solutions--not opinions.
• Plan interaction that supports her dreams and intentions.
• Look for her oversights.
• Confront when in disagreement.
• Appeal to the benefits she will receive.
• Define the problem in writing.
• Be brief--be bright--be gone.
• Provide testimonials from people she sees as important.
• Speak at a rapid pace.

My Ideal Work Environment:

• Work tasks that change from time to time.
• Tasks involving motivated groups and establishing a network of contacts.
• Forum for her ideas to be heard.
• Position with a tolerant manager.
• Freedom from control and detail.
• Freedom of movement.
• Assignments with a high degree of people contacts.
• Freedom to try new approaches

Keys to Motivating Me:

• Group activities outside the job.
• Rewards to support her dreams.
• No restrictions to hamper results.
• A friendly work environment.
• Freedom from control and detail.
• Exposure to those who appreciate her results.
• Work assignments that provide opportunity for recognition.
• Unusual, new or difficult assignments.
• A forum to ventilate her emotions.
• Independence.
• Participation in meetings on future planning.

My Value to Organizations:

• Bottom line-oriented.
• Team player.
• Inner-directed rather than tradition-directed--brings fresh ideas for solving problems.
• Creative problem solving.
• Verbalizes her feelings.
• Dedicated to her own ideas.
• People-oriented.