Understanding Personality

Building a Strong Foundation for Success

 What is Personality? Building strong relationships - building strong
relationships requires dignity and respect for
each other. We need to treat others the way
A unique combination of traits that we want to be treated, focus on the other
influence thoughts, feelings, and person's needs and feelings, create a sense of
behaviors. Shapes how we interact with calm and safety to facilitate communication,
the world. and radiate positive energy and confidence.

Career success - experiencing financial

Why is Understanding Personality Important? health and work you enjoy, while feeling
fulfilled in your peer community and life
Self-awareness and self-improvement - Self- choices.
aware people are able to manage their
behaviors and adapt to situations. They can Personal growth -is a process of both
accurately evaluate what the situation requires understanding yourself and pushing yourself
and then modify their actions accordingly. This to reach your highest potential. It means
can be vital in many areas of life, including always asking yourself who you are becoming
your relationships and work. It can also factor and how you plan to get there.
in when it comes to personal development.
The Five-Factor Model (OCEAN)

Openness to Experience

Imaginative vs. Conventional

The holistic nature of creative Intelligence can be best understood by comparing it to the conventional intelligence that
has traditionally been prized by our culture. This conventional intelligence is mental, rational and analytical; creative
intelligence is all that but also imaginative, inventive and innovative.

Curiosity, creativity, and open-mindedness

This are attitudes that allow you to explore different perspectives, question assumptions, and learn from feedback. In
this article, you will learn how to cultivate these attitudes and overcome some common cognitive biases that can hinder
your creativity.

Calm vs. Anxious

Emotional stability and vulnerability
Conscientiousness - the personality trait of being responsible, careful, or diligent. Conscientiousness implies a
desire to do a task well, and to take obligations to others seriously. Conscientious people tend to be efficient and
organized as opposed to easy-going and disorderly.

Organized rganized person is neat, prompt, and detail-oriented. They tend to show up to
meetings on time (or five minutes early). They're able to keep track of complicated systems
and large amounts of data.
vs.
Laid-back If you describe someone as laid-back, you mean that they behave in a calm
relaxed way as if nothing will ever worry them. [informal] Everyone here has a really laid-
back attitude. Synonyms: relaxed, calm, casual, together [slang] More Synonyms of laid-
back.

Extraversion
Outgoing vs. Introverted Sociability, assertiveness, and excitement-seeking
Agreeableness - a personality trait that describes a person's ability to put others needs before
their own. Those who are more agreeable are more likely to be empathetic and find pleasure in
helping others and working with people who need more help.

Trusting vs. Suspicious Kindness, cooperation, and empathy

Neuroticism - a core personality trait characterized by emotional instability, irritability, anxiety, self-doubt, depression,
and other negative feelings. Like other personality traits, neuroticism exists on a continuum, which means that people
can be high, low, or somewhere in the middle in terms of this trait.

Calm vs. Anxious Emotional

stability and vulnerability

Personality Assessment Tools - are designed to measure different aspects of personality. They can be used for personal
development, career planning, and understanding yourself and others better. There is a range of different tools available,
so it's important to choose the one that is suited to your needs.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - is a self-reported personality assessment. During the
test, an individual answers approximately 94 questions that evaluate preference toward four
different dichotomies: Introversion-extroversion, sensing-intuition, thinking-feeling and
judging-perceiving. Categorizes people into 16 personality types based on four dimensions:
introversion/extraversion, sensing/intuition, thinking/feeling, judging/perceiving.
Big Five Personality Inventory - Measures the five factors of the OCEAN model.

an instrument designed to assess the personality of individuals aged 18 and above. The
original version consists of 44 items divided into five sub-scales representing each of the five
personality factors: agreeableness, neuroticism, conscientiousness, openness, and
extraversion.
Enneagram- A nine-point system that identifies personality types based on core
motivations and fears a system that groups human personality into nine basic types.
While it's not a medical tool, understanding your typology might help you gain insights
into your actions, feelings, motivations, stress management, or interactions with others.

simply the Enneagram, is a model of the human psyche which is principally understood
and taught as a typology of nine interconnected personality types. The origins and
history of ideas associated with the Enneagram of Personality are disputed.

GENERAL TYPES OF CHARACTERS

1. Positive Character / Good Character / Positive Trait –
These are attributes such as integrity, honesty, courage, loyalty, fortitude, and other
important virtues that promote good behavior and habits. Further, it is said that:
a. Being honest and taking responsibility for your actions are admirable qualities.
b. Adaptability and compatibility are great traits that can help you get along with
others.
c. Drive and determination will help you keep going no matter what.
d. Compassion and understanding mean you relate well to others.
e. Patience is a virtue and also a good personality trait.
f. Courage will help you do what’s right in tough situations.
g. Loyalty is a good quality to possess, making others trust you.
2. Negative Character / Negative Character / Negative Trait – A person’s predisposition to
commit evil acts. Negative character traits are those that reflect undesirable qualities about
someone's personality or behavior. For example, arrogance reflects an individual who is self-
centered or egotistical. Other negative character traits include selfishness, rudeness,
impatience, dishonesty, laziness and disrespectfulness.

a. A propensity for lying, in order to avoid responsibility for our actions, is a deplorable
quality.
b. Being rigid and selfish, unyielding to the needs of others are not endearing qualities.
c. Being full of laziness and excuses is sure to drive others away, too.
d. A hot temper and an inability to empathize with others will also alienate us from others.
e. Being quick to anger will turn people away.
f. Being disloyal, quick to talk about others behind their backs or, worse, stab them in the
back for personal gain also falls high on the scale of negative personality traits.
3. Neutral Character / Neutral Trait - Commonly used to describe a person who doesn’t pick sides
in disputes; neutral also pegs anything that refuses to be bold.
a. Judges, for example, must remain totally neutral when hearing a case.
b. Manner’s mavens say that it’s best to remain neutral when topics like politics and religion
come up during a party.
c. Boxers can look to the neutral corners in the ring to escape a punch.

A neutral character (also called "true neutral") is neutral on both axes and tends not to feel
strongly towards any alignment, or actively seeks their balance. Druids frequently follow this
dedication to balance and, under Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules, were required to be this
alignment.
TYPES OF CHARACTERS

1. Self-realized Character. A person with this type of character is ever enthusiastic for he
knows his potentialities and limitations. This sort of a character is an asset not only to the
family but also the society in which person lives. Self-fulfillment of one's personality and
personality potential. Self-realized is the truth about who we are and what we are. The
energy of that body that gives us life, not the perception that we are not the body, but the
body we are thinking.
2. Covetous Character. This refers to a jealous or acquisitive character. It is held that, persons
with greed will endeavor to go all out in collecting worldly possessions and fulfilling his
personal petty ambitions by adopting any means open to him even crossing all the limits of
moral and ethical limits. In effect the person will become most arrogant, repulsive, slanderer
and fully bereft of any moral feelings for the humans. He is the burden not only on the family
but also the society in which he lives.

3. Superstitious Character. In a way all are superstitious but when we’re over superstitious
then problem starts. It is not merely bad for the individual concerned but also for those who
come in contact with this unpredictable person, who may change his tag any moment thus
leaving everybody around in the lurch. Too much reliance on superstitions also robs us of
scientific temper and forward-looking approach in our life. But we should not compare
superstitious and traditionalists.
4. Egoistic /Overbearing / Bossy / Tall-Talker. The person who thinks that world runs due to
him and everything and everybody should respect him as such. His overbearing and bossy
disposition puts him in the category of hard-to-please (fastidious). This person learns his
lesson after sometimes. This fellow with ‘I-DAMN-CARE- ATTITUDE’ hardly cares for others.
This sort of egocentric character is the bane of any society, irrespective of their status in the
society.

5. Anti-social Character. A person who neither cares for the norms set by the society nor
cares for the moral or ethical values is an anti-social character. This character is both a sinner
and a criminal. He could also be termed as an offensive character. This like character resorts
to offense besides being abusive on even a pettiest pretext. This anti-social behavior cuts
him off from the community in which he is living and has to fend for himself ultimately for his
acts of omissions and commissions.
6. Insincere Character. When a person does something good for us, we express our sincere
thanks and go extra mile in being sincere to that person in whatever way it is possible for us.
Contrarily, a person who thinks others is there for serving him and is without any warmth in
the feeling for others. This like person is not only a insincere to his own family, society and
even to the Creator who had created him!

7. Complacent Character. We all should have confidence on ourselves. It is good for day to
day functioning of our society. But when we cross the threshold of confidence and step into
the realm of complacency then problem starts. A person who imbibes this trait finally faces
ignoble defeat for being so and learns a lesson.

THE SIX (6) PILLARS OF GOOD CHARACTER

(Source: Josephson Institute -charactercounts.org)

1. TRUSTWORTHINESS
This is the pillar of good character that is considered the most complicated of the six core
ethical values and concerns a variety of qualities like honesty, integrity, reliability and loyalty.

When a person is trusted he is given a greater leeway and no need to be monitored just to
assure that they meet their obligations. When they are trusted, we develop in them higher
esteem which may be satisfying to them. They must constantly live up to the expectations of
others and refrain from even small lies or self-serving behaviour that can quickly destroy
relationship.
a. Honesty- There is no more fundamental ethical value than honesty. Honesty is associated
with honor. Thus, a person of honesty is a person of honor and he is admired and trusted
because of his being straightforward.
A person of good character must be a person of honesty in both communications and
conduct. Honesty in communications is expressing the truth as best we know it and not
conveying it in a way likely to mislead or deceive.

THREE DIMENSIONS OF HONESTY

1. Truthfulness. Presenting the facts to the best of our knowledge. Take note that, intent is the
crucial distinction between truthfulness and truth itself. Being wrong is not the same thing as
lying, although honest mistakes can still damage trust insofar as they may show sloppy
judgment.

2. Sincerity. One must observe genuineness, being without trickery or duplicity for it
precludes all acts, including half-truths, out-of-context statements, and even silence, that are
intended to create beliefs or leave impressions that are untrue or misleading.

3. Candor. In relationships involving legitimate expectations of trust, honesty may also

require can dour, forthrightness and frankness, imposing the obligation to volunteer
information that another person needs to know.
4. Integrity. Persons of integrity are those who acts according to his beliefs, not according to
expediency. He is also consistent. There is no difference in the way he makes decisions from
situation to situation; his principles don’t vary at work or at home, in public or alone.

The person of integrity takes time for self-reflection, so that the events, crises and seeming
necessities of the day do not determine the course of his moral life. He stays in control. He
may be courteous, even charming, but he is never duplicitous or unfaithful. He never
demeans himself with obsequious behavior toward those he thinks might do him some good.
He is trusted because you know who he is: What You See Is What You Get. People without
integrity are called “hypocrites” or “two-faced.”

5. Reliability (Promise-Keeping). Reliable persons are those who keep their promises for he
believes that doing so create legitimate basis for another person to rely on him, and that he
undertakes special moral duties. They accept the responsibility of making all reasonable
efforts to fulfil their commitments. Because promise-keeping is such an important aspect of
trustworthiness.