Monica Wofford

This is labeled as “A Workplace Fable” by author Monica Wofford as it walks us through a few days in the life of a high-strung, quick to anger female executive. During these days, she undergoes a transformation of thought as she attends a company sponsored training session on personalities and communication styles. She puts the materials to practical use in the workplace and her personal life and sees immediate improvement in all of her relationships.

This book isn’t about how to “deal” with difficult people but, instead, focuses on changing your own perceptions of people. No one is intentionally difficult; it’s just that their behaviors and communication styles are different from our own. Understanding your own personality and those of your family and colleagues makes the difficulty “disappear.” You need to be aware of how you speak to others and realize different communication styles are required for different people, particularly when under stress.

The book centers around the CORE Multidimensional Awareness Profile assessment. The author is a certified CORE facilitator. Taking the assessment, you’re classified into one of four personalities; Commander, Organizer, Relater and Entertainer. Much of the book discusses these profiles in detail and how they can most effectively interact with each other. I believe you’d get more out of this book if you know your CORE profile.

One interesting point made by the author is that many companies promote only commander and organizer types to senior leadership positions—often to their detriment. Each personality has incredible value to offer and a well-rounded leadership team can more effectively manage an organization. I happen to be a relaterentertainer required to act as a commanderorganizer. I wonder how that impacts stress and productivity levels?… (mehr)