I’m fully aware that this blog is only going to be amusing to a handful of people, so I apologize in advance if you fall not into that hand.
Tom came over to my desk to visit the other day, which was a nice break. He always makes me laugh – and this day was no different.
*As a side note, Pam has also come to visit me…meaning only Stella and Aaron are mean people who hate me and secretly poke sharp, pointy pins into a sad little doll that looks like me. Well….them, and maybe their boss.
Moving right along…..
So Tom came over to say hi on his daily walk, and hung out for a little bit. The conversation somehow ended up on the SCR training (Successful Customer Relations) that we had many, many, many years ago from a company called Success Sciences.
I know many companies utilize this same training, and was pleasantly surprised when I joined Pampered Chef and found out they had done the exact same training. And there are lots of training programs that use the same premise, but switch out the terms and such.
It’s all about identifying personality types. First you determine what type of person you are: Socializer, Relater/Empathizer, Director or Thinker. You take these tests, and it plots your personality on a graph with each of the 4 types listed in different quadrants. Then you learn how to identify other people’s personality types – and how to align your communication to match the other persons…for better understanding and a more successful interaction, blah, blah, blah.
So we were talking and reminiscing about “the old Intuit days”, and we started talking about SCR training, and what personality types we had.
I said that I was one who was right on the line, and depending on the circumstances would slide into one of 2 very fluently. Then the conversation went something like this:
D: Guess which 2 they were?
T: Socializer would be one of them.
D: Right. And the other?
And here’s where it happened…where I got one of those great little nuggets I used to be able to blog about when I sat with these guys all day long.
Without barely even taking a breath, and if it were so blindly obvious that it could be nothing else, he blurts out :
“Empathizer!”
OMG!! I hadn’t laughed that hard all week long. As soon as he said it, he realized to whom he was speaking, and what a horrible and decisive mistake he’d made.
Yes, yes…..I am Dottie – she who has empathy as a strong personal characteristic trait!
If the following is true, then I am, in fact, the worlds biggest empathizer EV-ER.
Empathizer : em-pa-thizer
Inflected forms : em-pa-thized, em-pa-thiz-ing
Date: circa 1921
: to to be disgusted by, and loathe 98% of all humanity without prejudice; to find human intelligence in general to be equivalent to that of a pile of soggy, 3 day old dog vomit; to be almost completely lacking in patience for just about anything; one who despises incompetence or illogical behavior
Now, Socializer is dead on – with the caveat that I’m with my people. Then I’m definitely the girl you want at the party. Back when we did these tests and took the classes, it was true without any such disclaimers - I was just very outgoing and excitable. Not so much anymore. I tend to save my energy for people I really like now.
But I’m pretty sure Empathy is my least utilized trait. In the history of my whole life. Maybe someone else will be better at pegging what my alter-personality is.
Here are some general definitions of each….
Director: This person is fast-paced and assertive. These are the people who have been called “Type A.” Their indirect
Empathizer/Relator: Has a slower pace and a relationships-oriented approach. Exceptionally easy to work with, quite good at cooperating with others. A Relator is likely to strive for a happy team rather than a task-oriented group. Working for a manager who seems more concerned about the feelings of the people involved than the degree of organization in the department can be really frustrating for the team member who likes to have his or her tasks laid out in a perfectly organized fashion.
Socializer: Socializers indicate both a desire to build relationships and a fast-paced, aggressive approach. Socializers are fun, always a bit playful. Their general interests run toward interacting with others rather than playing the loner. A Socializer is usually quite talkative, but works well with others — and quite quickly.
Thinker: Thinkers see themselves as efficient and place a high value on thoroughness and precision. Their space is neat and structured. These people have a thoroughly analytical approach to their work, and they prefer to solve problems at a slow, cautious pace. They are typically computer-oriented and enjoy getting the data into shape on their terminals. Communication with the Thinker should take place at their slower pace, with a good deal of emphasis on showing proof. colleagues often perceive them as competitive and controlling. He or she is the person in an organization who can be depended on to get results, but may be criticized for having too little concern about the effect of those results on the feelings of others.
Oddly enough, I don’t see MY definition anywhere in there….hmph. Apparently there should be a 5th type. I shudder to think what it would be called.
We’ll just discuss those using our inner-monologue. 
