What is your work personality?

The work place is a great assembly of different kinds of personality types. Psychologists say four main temperaments define who we are, how we act and react. You may be a melancholy, sanguine, phlegmatic or choleric; —read on to discover where you belong. The MelancholicMelancholics are schedule-oriented, have perfectionist tendencies, set high standards and are conscious to detail. They are persistent and thorough, orderly and organised and are generally neat and tidy. In the mind of the melancholy, whatever has been started must be completed. They have little room for abortive projects. They chart the process from the beginning to ensure there is logic in the various factors that will culminate in the achievement of the goal. For melancholics, goals are scored before the start of the game. The game only serves to validate their planning. On the flipside, melancholics are not people oriented. They treat people more or less like machines. They demand results regardless of circumstances and are easily depressed over their imperfections. The SanguineSanguines on the other hand, are almost the complete opposite of melancholic workers. They volunteer for jobs, think up new activities, look great on the surface and are creative and colourful. They portray great energy and enthusiasm and often start in a flashy way while inspiring others to join in a charming manner. The sanguines are people at the office to whom life should never be taken so seriously. There is never a way you can separate fun from work and to them, you can only be productive if you mix work with pleasure. On the flipside, they would rather talk than work. They often forget obligations and fail to follow through initiatives. Their confidence fades fast, could be indisciplined and at times find their priorities out of order. They decide by feelings, are easily distracted and waste time talking in the guise of socialising or networking.The cholericCholerics are goal oriented, see the whole picture and are great organisers. They move quickly into action and are keen to delegate to work. They insist on production just like the melancholics and stimulate activity. For the choleric, opposition is a welcome experience since they tend to thrive more in such circumstances. On the other hand, because of their predisposition to perfectionist tendencies, they have little tolerance for mistakes, are bored by trivia and are open to make rash decisions. There are times when they become rude or tactless, often manipulate people and if not checked can be too demanding of others. If you have a boss with more of this tendency, you will realise how they demand loyalty in ranks.The PhlegmaticFinally, phlegmatics are the ‘cool’ workers. They are competent and steady, peaceful and agreeable and have great administrative abilities. In times of conflicts, they volunteer to mediate problems and do all within their capacity to avoid conflicts. They remain cool under pressure and will always find the easy way. However, they are not goal oriented, lack self-motivation and are hard to get moving yet they resent being pushed. They can be lazy and careless, have a tendency to discourage others and would rather watch from the fence. In most cases, workers may exhibit a mix of these traits; the challenge is to find a balance and understanding what others are, for a more cohesive and productive work environment.