Five voices personality types, is this clash resolvable?

[Boxina]

I work in a small team in a unique role and have increasingly been finding it frustrating to work in, things feel much more difficult to get anything done now, and lots of hoops to jump through. In particular my line manager is often abrasive and makes me feel small, and often does this in meetings so I am humiliated.

We recently all did the five voices personality test as part of team building, and it turns out that most of the team are now Guardians, including my line manager, whereas I am a Connector.

This means my way of communicating and working is totally different to theirs, and explains a lot of my frustration and upset.

I'm wondering if this is going to be resolvable or if I should just leave?

Increasingly they are introducing numerous forms and templates we have to fill in for absolutely everything, whereas I'm used to working in a less structured way and being more creative.

Does anyone know about how these types can work together well and give me some tips on how to approach things? Or is it a lost cause?

My boss inherited me but has taken on a lot of the people who have turned out to be the same type as her. So I'm obviously not the type she would choose!

It would be a real shame to give up a job when t sounds like you really used to enjoy it.

I'm not familiar with the 5 voices personality test but I've done other personality tests with teams including Myers Briggs and Insights.

One of the benefits of the personality tests is to give you the words to talk about the difference in styles and how it impacts you, and how you can work together better. Great teams recognise and celebrate difference.

As a team you could be exploring what you're missing not having the different types. Hopefully you feel you could have a conversation with your line manager about how you're feeling in the first instance.

Good luck!

don't take the test too seriously

Those tests are a load of bollocks, take no notice of it.

The problem is that I talked to her before and she hasn't made any changes. Only today she embarrassed need in a big meeting, and is in the process of introducing yet more forms and templates for everything. It feels like soon there will be a form for going to the toilet!

I did use to enjoy it but the role has changed, the manager has changed, and it's such hard work trying just to get on with everyone now due to all these hurdles and red tape.

I was hoping there might be some tips for how best to communicate with her and her her to let me work in the way that works for me.

You are missing the actual point of my post. I have issues with her and need help in resolving them.

Plus, I don't think they are bollocks, mine is very accurate about me. They are based on Myers Briggs.

The Myers Briggs is a load of bollocks - the devisers (I won't use the term researchers) averaged averages of multiple other personality tests to devise their categories.

It doesn't distract from the issues you have with your manager in any way. No decent manager humiliates a member of their staff in public - whatever category they fall into based on a personality test.

As to how you approach a solution - well it depends on the type of person you are. I would ask her why she felt it appropriate to humiliate you in front of colleagues, but I'm a slightly more abrasive personality.

edited for spelling

Look for a new job

The thing is she doesn't mean to, it's just how she approaches things, but my main issue is with all the bloody processes and forms and templates we have to fill in! I just can't work that way, it's stifling. I'm used to being self employed and/or in creative industries and this is so different, but it didn't use to be like this.

Do you think that's the only answer? We can't find a way forward where we can communicate with each other better?

Well.....unless you can sit down with your boss and or your boss and HR and work out a way forward......what else is there to do to reach a satisfactory conclusion?

The personality types are a red herring

Whose idea was the personality test? Was it someone in the team, or from HR? If it's within the team, then you can assume at least one person has bought into it. If so, you should be able to have a conversation referencing it and the fact you have different communication styles.

Also, if it was a vaguely well planned thing, there should be some sort of conversation about how you deal with people with different styles from your own, and probably how having people with different styles can compleeach other and achieve greater things overall.

However if it came down from HR, then going by my experience if such things, most people will say it's a load of bollocks and will ignore it, and the only benefit is that someone got to tick a box

As for the forms - are they doing something like ISO or other stuff which might get audited and needs a paper trail? If so, you're probably stuck with it. Or they might be trying to track which tasks take up most time, or to gather the correct information up front. You might get things changed if you can show there are more efficient ways of doing the things they've been put in place to achieve, but I doubt you're going to get rid of them entirely, if you have a form-loving manager, so you probably need to make your peace with it or start looking for another job. Lots of places do like forms for requests and repetitive tasks, though, to gather information, as a checklist of tasks, to create an approval and audit trail and so on, so the grass may not be greener elsewhere.

I'm talking about the ways of working, the templates and forms and red tape and all that. Her way of wanting things done is at total odds with the way I work best.

I don't do those kind of tasks though, my role is more mentoring and creative, I can't really explain without it being outing.

One example is I had an idea for an event, but before I could even explain and go through with her what it would achieve and how it would work, she was straight into his much will it cost, is there a room big enough in hq, have you contacted the room booking people to cost it up, fill in a form in order for it to be considered, write a business case, and I just felt so bombarded with stuff that needed to be done later down the line, in my opinion. She's so focused on the forms, and I'm all about the ideas and vision. It's such a mismatch.

The personalities thing was bought in by my boss, we don't have contact with HR really, so yes I can use that, my post was about how I do that.

Do the results of the tests not come with profiles that include things like how to communicate/manage different types?

The personalities thing was bought in by my boss, we don't have contact with HR really, so yes I can use that, my post was about how I do that.

Find an example where you've found communication difficult, explain how it made you feel and the things which would have made you feel better able to absorb the information. You can reference the personality types for this.

They will probably point out that communication goes both ways and there are things you could also change. For example, if you came to me with an idea, I would probably say, that's interesting, but who is the audience, when, where, what budget, how does it feed the department's/your annual objectives, etc - like your boss did, because they're the sort of questions, especially around budget, that pretty much any organisation will want to know. And whether you like doing it or not, you could have expected and prepared for that. Ideas mean nothing of you can't show they're feasible - and I bet there is not a working person on this board who doesn't have some tasks thry dislike in their job.

Apparently not! Really unhelpful! I've googled but can't find anything hence asking here

Maybe you're the same type as her! The thing is I'm happy to answer that, I know all of that, but if that's the first thing you ask instead of about the idea itself, all I hear is "I don't think you know what you're doing, you haven't thought this through". It comes across as nitpicky to me and dismissive of my actual idea.

That's basically what I mean, how do we resolve this clash in approaches because I can't work like that. I feel attacked every time I suggest something because of the list of questions. So I'm just saying less and less.

I mean, I don't come up with ideas that aren't feasible! Why assume I do? It's insulting.

You sound a lot like me. I just did that personality test (a free version anyway) and I also got Connector.

Like you, I struggle with implementing new processes that don’t feel valuable and feel like they focus more on bureaucracy than on material things. I have tried to change my attitude to this by seeing the perspective of those in my team more keen on the extra forms and systems and stuff - that keeping these meticulous records etc (for example) help make the work more accessible and transferable to other people. When I help myself to see the purpose and take a moment to think about the impact not doing those things has on others, it does make me more invested in the process and so J find it in turn (slightly) less if a ball ache. It’s still my least favourite part of the job though!

Is there any way you could examine yourself, and then speaking to your manager about the fact that these new processes or activities are not playing to your strengths and you could use some support? Are there any minor changes which would make it easier for you which you could suggest?

Im not a manager but I think it’s great to have both the perspectives of the enthusiastic and the non enthusiastic!

Yes there are lots of things I fill in because I can see they are useful to others, like monthly updates on projects etc, but I'm drowning in them bringing in more and more. It's just so much bureaucracy.

But what's not happening is any leeway towards those if it's who don't work well in this way. We have so many guardians in the team we are being taken down a paperwork route and I really hate it. It's stifling and I just can't work well.

I feel I've met them more than halfway but I'm just being asked to step forward more, and I need them to accommodate my style a bit now.

I’ve not done this particular personality test, but I am similar to you on other team wheels. I’m also been around the block a bit at work. I can say that the worst managers I have ever had are these controlling types and I’ve been much happier in my role when I’ve moved on.

Currently, I work for a director who is an ideas type person and he loves me because I can solve his problems for him and make his ideas workable. It also gives me greater job satisfaction. I then pass the work down to the controlling type people who can put procedures in place and manage the tasks.

TLDR but in summary move on, move your career upwards, the more upwards you move the more likely you are to work with/for creative people who will appreciate your ideas and problem-solving abilities.

It sounds like she wants to have all the practical elements nailed down rather than discussing vision beforehand.

If you know she will want to know the practical details and a business case then do all that and send it to her before your discussions with her. Include your vision in the business case. Then when you discuss with her you can skim over the practical points as she can see they are dealt with, and you can speak more about the vision.

She obviously shouldn't be belittling you in meetings, that needs to be dealt with separately.

I must admit my answer is slightly biased through working with a few 'vision' people in the past who think their job is to state their vision and feel their job is done, and someone else will need to now pick up the details and deliver it. (And they weren't in a senior position to expect this).

Doesn't matter if you're promising unicorns and rainbows or a box of donuts on Friday afternoons - if somebody else then has to do all the grunt work sourcing, costing, ordering, booking and waiting in the queue at Krispy or nothing will actually come of it because you're 'an ideas person' who can't possibly trouble her head with the things that make it possible, you're the problem and the reason why the forms are there.

Getting a business plan in place, with rough costings, is one of the first things that you do, prior to pitching anything. It sounds like your new boss is being more efficient and doesn’t want to waste time and energy on things that have no business basis.

I think the form filling is to concentrate peoples minds and to get them to focus on the important stuff.

The bottom line @Boxina is that the paperwork is not going away and this person is your line manager, so you have to find a way to work with both.

It sounds like your manager feels the area of the business you work in was mismanaged before, hence the influx of forms.

When she embarrasses you in meetings, is it because you have said something that undermines her? It sounds like she may feel that you are somewhat unmanageable. Do you get an impression of how the other people in the meetings feel about your contribution and her interruptions?

The only behaviour you can change is your own. I think if you want to stay in the job, you're going to have to follow these processes. I think once you relent, you will find that your manager relaxes and you can begin to have creative conversations again. At the moment, do you think she feels like you are just pushing against her the whole time?