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How to Interact with 10 Personality types in the Workplace

Managing different work personality types can be difficult. Learn about 10 different personality types in the workplace and how to best work with them.

Collaboration is essential in the workplace, and that means understanding different work personality types and how to work with them. There are several personality types in the workplace; some people are designed to lead while others are great with numbers and logic. Understanding work personality types and what they excel at can help you make the most out of collaborative projects that require different personality types to work together.

Knowing the different personality types can help you understand the cultural fit of employees and how to work together with employees. While it’s good to have a leader personality type on your team, that leader needs to work with the other personality types to ensure everyone is doing their part. This can be tough when you’re dealing with conflicting work personality types.

The good news is that learning about workplace personality types is easy. In this guide, we’ll talk about the different personality types you’re likely to encounter in the workplace, plus we’ll give you tips for how to deal with different personality types. We’ll even discuss the possibility of changing your personality to be a better match for the people around you. Keep reading to learn more.

What is a workplace personality type?

Workplace personality types are basically used to describe the way a person behaves at work. Some people like to put their heads down and focus on the task at hand while others are great at delegating and getting a team of employees motivated. The work personality types are the same as the standard personality types, but there’s a stronger focus on how these personality types affect performance in the workplace.

Whether you’re an employee or employer, understanding personality types of employees is important. Learning about work personality types helps you understand what makes people tick, which means you can work better as a team with various personality types. As an employer, you can use your understanding of workplace personality types to make sure everyone is doing a job they excel at, which can help improve employee mental health and job satisfaction.

10 types of workplace personalities

There are lots of different personality types you may notice in and out of the workplace. Different people have different strengths and weaknesses, but combining the strengths of several employees can allow you to tackle tough projects with fewer resources. In this section, we’ll talk about 10 types of workplace personalities and what defines them.

1. The analyst

The analyst, also known as the INTJ personality type, is one of the less common workplace personalities. People with this personality type tend to be independent and self-sufficient, which is partially due to the fact that they rely on analytical thinking. Analyst personality types are able to look at a problem objectively and use analytical thinking to determine a solution based on the data. While this makes the INTJ personality type great at some things, it can be a hindrance as well.

People who have the INTJ personality type tend to prefer working on their own, which means they can be neglectful of input from others. This is often difficult when you’re working as a team to create the best version of something or meet a deadline. That being said, an analyst personality type can provide several benefits to a team with the right personality types.

2. The leader

One of the most essential personality types, the leader is responsible for acting as the head of the group and ensuring everyone is working toward a common goal. Leader personality types may not have the best creative or analytical minds, but they excel at organizing. By organizing groups of people and processes in more efficient ways, leader personality types can oversee a project to make sure everything goes smoothly.

The problem with leader personality types is that they tend to have a singular focus on long-term goals. This means leaders may lose sight of the short-term creative vision. Plus, you may have a difficult time getting through to a leader personality type if you’re not pitching your ideas with confidence because that’s what the leader personality type recognizes.

3. The logician

The logician is a personality type that excels at analytical thinking, whether that means theorycrafting to plan for a project or reading a manual to gain in-depth knowledge about new computer software. Logician personality types are great at work as long as they have a sufficiently challenging project in front of them. Typically, the logician personality type prefers to be given a challenging project that they can focus on by themselves.

In many cases, logician personality types are also quieter and more reserved. Some people who are logicians may even have trouble picking up on or appropriately reacting to social cues, so they may seem a bit strange or socially awkward to others. Still, this is one of the most important personality types to have on your team.

4. The logistician

The logistician is similar to the logician in some ways, but there are some key differences. Logisticians are all about following order, which means working hard to meet deadlines and achieve milestones. This personality type often does an excellent job of keeping other people in line, which makes them a cornerstone of a successful team.

When it comes to working with logisticians, it’s crucial to make sure you’re doing your part to make sure deadlines are met. Logisticians expect everybody to do their part and work to meet deadlines, and they tend to see people who fail to meet deadlines as a liability. The best thing you can do if you’re working with a logistician is to clearly discuss your role and how you’re going to help meet deadlines, then follow through with what you’ve talked about.

5. The campaigner

The campaigner is generally a high-energy person who excels in lots of different social circles. This is the kind of person who can brighten anyone’s day and get along with any group of people, and those people skills are extremely valuable in the workplace. The downside to the campaigner personality type is the fact that they’re often talkative and curious to a fault. It’s important for other personality types to help keep the campaigner focused on the task at hand, especially when they start to lose focus and trail off into something else.

Campaigners are great at brainstorming, but they can also be a distraction if they’re not kept in check. Invite campaigners to brainstorming sessions, but try to gently guide them back toward the matter at hand if they start talking about other stuff. As long as they’ve got someone to help them stay focused, the campaigner is a great person to have at work.

6. The advocate

Advocate personality types are all about working to accomplish things they care about. This personality type is extremely loyal to the people and ideas they care about, which means it can be difficult to get them interested in or focused on other things. That being said, advocates are one of the best personality types to have on your side if they’re working toward a larger goal that they believe in. This is why it’s important to be clear about the goals you’re working toward and how achieving those goals will be beneficial.

One thing to keep in mind when it comes to working with an advocate is the fact that they’re typically very private. You want to discuss long-term goals with advocates to make sure they’re committed to the project, but you need to be careful not to invade their personal space or sense of privacy. As long as advocates feel an adequate sense of privacy and are committed to the project, they’re fiercely loyal workers.

7. The debater

The debater personality type loves to argue with people, whether they’re arguing for something they actually believe in or simply doing it for sport. This might seem like an abrasive personality type, but that inquisitive nature can help debaters get more done. As you might imagine, some of the other personality types don’t necessarily get along with the debater personality type very well. People who understand the importance of tone of voice typically have an easier time interacting with debater personality types.

Giving debaters independence is one of the best things you can do to keep them motivated and working hard. Debaters may like to be around others when it’s time for a debate, but they typically prefer to work in a more independent setting. If you’ve got an independent job you need a hard-working employee to take care of, debaters are often a great choice for that type of work.

Debaters are also great if you need somebody to work in consulting and other hybrid independent/team-based jobs. A natural proclivity for debating and an interest for getting a better understanding of the job or project make debaters great at giving advice and helping to make decisions based on advice.

8. The executive

As far as the executive is concerned, law and order are the most important principles when it comes to the workplace. This is a personality type that believes in following the rules and doing things by the book, and anyone who doesn’t do that is essentially going against the executive. Executive personality types also value honesty above all else, so you need to make sure you’re speaking clearly and honestly with this personality type.

Because executives typically spend a lot of time “climbing the ladder” at work, they’re driven by a commitment to become better at what they do and to further their careers. This means that executives can be hard-headed about doing things their way, much like the analyst.

The best thing you can do to get in good with the executive personality type is to show them that you’re committed to their way of doing things. Follow the rules, be honest, and do what you can to help move the vision of the executive and leader forward.

9. The entrepreneur

Entrepreneur personality types are risk-takers who are willing to jump into just about any situation if there’s room for growth. In fact, entrepreneur work personality types are such risk-takers that they may get themselves into a situation without thinking about the pros and cons or the potential outcome. While this can get entrepreneurs in trouble, it’s the very spirit that makes them great at adopting and developing new ideas.

Some entrepreneur types have a difficult time working in a corporate setting where everything is rigid. You can remedy that by allowing entrepreneurs to be on the cutting edge of everything your business does, whether you integrate them into the newest projects or put them in charge of adopting new technology that other employees will use.

10. The mediator

Mediator personality types are creative thinkers who have all the tools to thrive in various roles, but they’re also generally somewhat introverted. The result is that many mediator personality types have a difficult time focusing on things that a logician or analyst may focus on. Instead, mediators tend to spend a lot of time with their thoughts, which makes them a great fit for jobs that require creative thinking.

The biggest concern with mediators is the fact that they may not be the best at following deadlines and using analytical thinking. If you want a mediator personality type to work hard and focus on a project, you need to convince them to believe in that project. As long as mediators are committed to a project and have the resources to use their creativity, they can excel in a variety of roles.

Why understanding different personality types matters

As an employer, it’s essential to understand the different office personality types and how they work together. If you’re a leader or executive personality type, understanding your workplace personality as well as the workplace personalities of your team can give you a better idea of how to organize your team to make sure you’re getting the most out of everybody.

Understanding different work personalities is about more than simply getting everyone to work hard. Just like some people learn better with hands-on demonstrations or visual aids, different work personality types excel at different types of jobs. By understanding what analysts, logicians, campaigners, and entrepreneurs do well, you can assign everyone to a job that they’re good at and enjoy doing.

Employee wellbeing is a crucial part of operating a successful business, and understanding personality types can help you keep your employees happy. Certain work personality types prefer different approaches, so you need to be mindful of that and consider personality types when you’re dealing with employees.

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to dealing with your employees, and attempting to find one is doing a disservice to the people who work hard for you. Take the time to understand your employees and their strengths and weaknesses, and let that inform the way you interact with each employee.

How to manage different personality types

The first step to managing different personality types is learning how to identify them. We talked about some of the traits that are common in different work personality types in our list above; look for these traits in people to help you identify their personality type.

When you’re putting together a team for a project, keep personality types in mind to help you build a better team. If you’re coming up with a new logo or working on a creative project, you want creative thinkers who can bring unique ideas to the table. If you need to meet a strict deadline or pore over data to make an informed decision, an analyst or logician may be a better fit. No matter what the job is, there’s a personality type that excels at it.

Avoid treating your employees like they’re all the same. As much as we’ve been taught to treat everyone as equals, that’s not the case when it comes to personality types of employees. While some people may like engaging conversations about sports or weekend activities, others might prefer to be left alone so they can stay focused. Treat each employee the way they want to be treated according to their work personality type.

Hone your management skills

Managing a team of employees can be a difficult job, but understanding employee personality types helps you hone your management skills to become a more effective manager. By treating people the right way and putting the right people on the right projects, you can get more out of your team without hiring more people.

With Mailchimp, you can save time on marketing and email so you have more time to work on becoming a better manager. With Mailchimp marketing services, you save time and money that gives your business a boost. If you want more time to hone your management skills and grow your business, try Mailchimp today.

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