The DISC Personality Test

The DISC Personality Test was developed by John Geier in the early 20th century and is used to measure behavioral preferences and styles. The DISC Personality Test is a very simple test; this test is really based on two simple questions you can ask anyone:

• Are you a task oriented person or people oriented?
• Are you an active or passive person?

These two questions will help you find out which ‘quadrant’ the person is in; whether he is a D(dominant), I(Influential), S(Steady) or C(conscientious).

Here’s a more comprehensive test you can use.

There are 15 sets of adjectives below. For each set of 4 adjectives, choose the adjective that best describes you. At the end of the test, count the number of checks you have in one column and add them together. Repeat this for each of the four columns.

THE DISC PERSONALITY TEST

	Column 1	Column 2	Column 3	Column 4
1	Strong-Willed	Persuasive	Kind	Humble
2	Independent	Sociable	Pleasant	Cooperative
3	Bold	Lively	Loyal	Passive
4	Competitive	Cheerful	Obliging	Open-minded
5	Daring	Humorous	Calm	Precise
6	Pioneering	Trusting	Lenient	Tolerant
7	Persistent	Entertaining	Obedient	Neat
8	Energetic	Sociable	Lenient	Peaceful
9	Risk Taker	Good-mixer	Patient	Precise
10	Determined	Energetic	Self-controlled	Systematic
11	Aggressive	Charismatic	Good-natured	Careful
12	Restless	Talkative	Controlled	Conventional
13	Decisive	Popular	Neighborly	Organized
14	Adventurous	Friendly	Moderate	Receptive
15	Brave	Inspiring	Submissive	Shy

The results of the DISC Personality Test will tell you the various degrees of each personality trait you are. 

If you have most of your checks on the first column, then you are a D(dominant) person.

D (Dominant)
A dominant person generally is a direct, positive and straightforward person. He likes to be in charge, do things fast and wants immediate results for his efforts. He is a determined, independent person who likes to solve problems and face challenges.

People who belong to this category are probably the sales superstars and the kind of strong, entrepreneurial leaders. They are people you want to have around in your organization. They are very results oriented and you can expect to see things getting done efficiently. However, they have very low patience and you must continually engage them to keep them in the organization.

They will stay with you to the extent that they feel that following you helps them to achieve their personal goals for their life. Also, they might be cause for some conflicts between people because they’re more task oriented and they would probably step on some toes along the way. Be careful about putting two Ds in the same team, conflict will always arise from two strong-headed individuals.

If you have most of your checks in the second column, you’re an I(influential).

I (Influential)
An influential person is a very people oriented person. They are friendly, outgoing, sociable and they are often around friends. They define themselves by their relationships and they thrive on social contact. They can get along well with most people because they are generally interested in people.

These people are important in an organization because they bring the human touch to the organization. They can make newer people in your organization feel welcome and a sense of belonging.

However, these people are generally not very good at doing tasks well; they are generally less meticulous and would miss out certain details in their work. Learn to use these people accordingly because while they may not perform certain tasks well, they are essential to building an relationship-based organization.

If you have most of your checks in the third column, you’re an S(steady).

S (Steady)
Most Singaporeans, or Asians fall into this category of personalities. Steady individuals generally thrive supporting a D(dominant) leader and doing the work behind the scenes.

These people are loyal, have good self-control, often good listeners and tend to want to avoid disagreements and conflicts.

They are good in an organization because you need people who can be supportive and loyal in your organization. Not everyone can be the one to receive the honour, not everyone can be the head of a team or an organization, but the S(steady) individuals are usually happy where they are. That’s why S(steady) people are absolutely essential for any team to work.

S(steady) personalities generally work well in support roles like managerial roles or as assistants to heads of departments.

If you have most of your checks in the fourth column, you’re an C(conscientious).

C (Conscientious)
Conscientious people are very useful in any organization; they are precise and given to detail. They are very systematic people and they need a lot of information when performing a project. They are like the S(steady) people and they would choose to avoid conflict and tend to be more accommodating to others.

When you are planning something in your organization, you need conscientious people to be around to check you. Sometimes they are able to see things that you can’t, and have foresight about particular events or scenarios that might arise and make provision for them.

You can use this simple test and do it with your team in about 10 minutes or so. When people understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses, you’ll find that they are more willing to adapt and compromise for each other’s shortcomings.

That is how you must be as a leader too. Understand that your team has different personalities and leverage on each of their strengths to make your organization a stronger one.

I had most of my checks in the second column, so I am an influential person.  

When reading through the descriptions of each "type" of person, I wasn't really surprised that the influential category was the one that I fit into.  I would definitely say that I am a people person, and social interaction is important to me.  I've noticed that I get notably distressed if I spend too much time cooped up inside my house without seeing people.  It's like this sense of anxiety and panic starts to build up in me if I don't get my social time, especially in the winter months.

I think that this knowledge will make me as a leader and a better team member because it will help me to understand myself better.  As a people person, I hope to be able to form good relationships with the people that I am leading or working with.  But, as someone who may or may not be very good at doing tasks well... it shows me that I need to be aware of my limits and my weaknesses.  I may not be able to do a task as well as someone else, so I may have to reach out and ask for help to complete certain tasks.