Our behavioural temperament is hard wired into us. It is instinctive behaviour and usually our fall back position. Under stress, our temperament will guide our behaviour.
Key personality traits are unchangeable and its how we express these traits is malleable.
Answer these questions to determine which characteristics make up your temperament ...
- Do you get energy from being alone or do you get energy from a being in a group?
- Do you work best in the evening or in the morning?
- Are you extremely organized or do you prefer to be chaotically disorganized
- Do you prefer to ask questions and seek advice when making a decision? Or do you prefer to think through a problem on your own?
- Do you make decisions based on fact or feeling?
- Do you make decisions based on what is best for you or what is best for everyone?
- Do you feel safer with firmly set rules or flexible rules?
- Do you see the cup half full or half empty?
- Do you set work guidelines and trust it will be completed or do you need to look over others work and follow up?
These unique temperment differences can create great conflict in a group. For some, their temperment may be barely tolerated or there can exist a healthy respect and understanding for others. Temperament is hard wired but behaviour is a choice.
In workplace relationships, we tend to bond with people with temperaments much like ours. Yet, tension works. We need our differences to be a balanced team.
We are not programmed to see things the way other people see it. Here, small adjustments can make a big difference. For someone who works with an evening person this could mean starting the day off slower with a coffee and easing into the difficult work later on.
Don't seek to change people, understand them.