Dealing With Multiple Personalities At Work
Blending multiple personalities in a workplace can enhance creativity and lead to new ideas. The same situation, however, can also lead to communication barriers, conflicts and lower productivity levels. If you ineffectively staff your business with multiple personality types, you could face unneeded challenges.
The trick to dealing with multiple personalities in the workplace is viewing each individual objectively, focusing on each person’s strengths, promoting positive communication, and helping others do the same.
Here are 4 easy steps.
Ask clarifying questions. Instead of making assumptions about the reasons and motives behind employees’ actions and words, ask questions that will help improve your understanding of each individual. When you take the time to understand the staff at your workplace, you can make better decisions regarding project management and task delegation.
Allow for some autonomy. It is important to understand that your way is not the only way to approach and complete work. Different personality types perform best in different situations. As long as employees meet deadlines and consistently perform well, it may be beneficial to allow some autonomy in how they approach projects.
Promote open, constructive communication. When dealing with multiple personalities in the workplace, creating a non-judgmental environment allows for the flow of ideas and the expression of suggestions, constructive criticism and concerns. Make sure your employees understand that different personality types and points of view can lead to creative solutions and the improvement of company products and services.
Embrace your employees’ personality differences and strengths, and encourage other staff members to do the same. When employees recognize and understand each other’s differences, they can act more respectfully toward one another and play to each other’s strengths when completing projects.
