Welcome back to our article series about the ways that Diplomat personality types are likely to fit (or not) into various careers. We hope to provide some guidance on “The Puzzle of Career Compatibility.”
In part one, we talked about careers that are a likely match. Now, let’s look at some career facets that might not be the best fit for most Diplomat personalities.
Pieces That Don’t Match
Diplomats’ strong spirits can carry them through all kinds of work-related challenges. But like an out-of-place puzzle piece, there are certain things that these personality types have a hard time fitting into fulfilling careers. We’re not talking about universally objectionable things like low pay or nasty bosses, but rather things that bother these personality types more than most.
Even career areas that broadly seem like a good match may contain hidden issues. Ignoring them can be like trying to jam the wrong piece into a puzzle. Things that don’t align with Diplomats’ principles or preferences can rob them of their energy and enthusiasm, making it hard to do their best work.
So it’s not just happiness that’s at stake, but also success. Here are some things that Diplomats typically dislike in any job or workplace:
- Impersonal culture
- Heavily repetitive work
- Inflexible thinking
- Insistence on the conventional
- Purely profit-driven goals
- Overly detailed work
- Brusque behavior
- Policies that devalue people’s feelings
- Adversarial or competitive environments
- Strong cynicism
Each Diplomat personality type can have even more unique reactions to what they experience at work. Some things make it significantly harder for them to be happy and authentically engaged in their job.
Advocates
Relative to most, this personality type tends to be sensitive to:
- Constant contact with strangers. Advocates may enjoy socializing and meeting new people, but it tends to consume their energy. It may feel like too heavy a demand on an ongoing, day-to-day basis.
- Disorganized environments. This personality type functions best when things match their sense of order. Clutter and chaos can be stressful in the long term.
- Lack of privacy. As Introverts, Advocates relish privacy and the chance to direct themselves productively. They may see too much oversight as invasive.
- Unexpected change. This personality type values continuity and preparation – they like to know what’s happening in advance.
- Directing others. In leadership positions, this type may struggle with their own comfort when confrontation is required.
- Frequent redirection. Advocates revel in completing important things, and changing course often can frustrate their sense of accomplishment.
Read more about Advocate career paths and workplace habits.
Mediators
Relative to most, this personality type tends to be sensitive to:
- Excessive social interaction. Like Advocates, Mediators may enjoy socializing and meeting new people, but it tends to deplete their energy.
- Too many rules. This personality type often feels restricted by regulation, which they may see as rigidity.
- Not enough freedom. Though often personable, Mediators relish chances to do things their own way without being constantly evaluated.
- Unchanging routine. Mediators are easily led into boredom by their Prospecting trait.
- Leading others. In leadership positions, this type usually prefers a more hands-off approach and may not enjoy doling out discipline.
- Conformity. Being limited mutes some of Mediators’ greatest strengths – and they can feel repressed when asked to conform.
Read more about Mediator career paths and workplace habits.
Protagonists
Relative to most, this personality type tends to be sensitive to:
- Isolation. Protagonists have a powerful social drive, and regularly being alone can make their days feel lifeless, even if they are productive.
- Stagnation. Protagonists tend to have strong, active visions for their work processes and goals.
- Incompletion. Protagonists like challenges, but they tend to measure success heavily on thoroughness.
- Incoherent environments. Protagonists have a strong sense of how things should be and prefer purposefulness to chaos.
- Inconsistency. This personality type values active follow-through, tending to question frequent change.
Read more about Protagonist career paths and workplace habits.
Campaigners
Relative to most, this personality type tends to be sensitive to:
- Restrictive environments. This personality type tends to push limits unabashedly.
- Routine. Campaigners are prone to restlessness and do their best work when they can shake things up.
- Pressure to conform. This personality type excels in unconventional thought and imagination, and doesn’t like to be silenced.
- Isolation. Campaigners thrive on socializing and working with other people, even clients and customers.
- Idleness. Lack of stimulation will almost always cause Campaigners to fill the void with some form of activity – productive or not.
Read more about Campaigner career paths and workplace habits.
Any of the above conflicts may be caused by a workplace culture or from the work itself. But Diplomats don’t have to avoid any particular career to avoid these issues, if they’re careful about where they pursue that career.
A great way to do this is to check out a career in advance. It’s sometimes possible to get a tour or shadow someone while they work. Showing cheerful interest and asking questions can open many doors.
To this end, you can try our career investigation exercises. It can be fun to see how the career compatibility puzzle looks in the real world – and you may find some hidden pieces.
Working In the Big Picture
Regardless of what statistics might say, using your willpower and imagination to make the best of whatever compatibility exists in a job can let you excel and be happy. Don’t feel like everything has to be perfect before you act.
We interviewed some people who really like their job, so let’s finish up by examining why it works for them. We hope their words inspire you to seek out the subtle potentials of your place in the working world.
Think that a major timber company might be a poor fit for a Diplomat? Don’t be so sure. Consider what a now-retired Assertive Protagonist told us about their work as a forest tree seedling manager:
“I experienced tremendous personal satisfaction in producing a crop every year. That satisfaction was rooted in both growing the seedlings and managing a well-trained workforce. The biggest challenge I faced was ‘managing from the heart’ while being conflicted with company policy that only looked at the bottom line.”
Working outdoors and knowing that the crops they produced would reforest thousands of acres was a happy fit for this Diplomat. Protagonists take satisfaction in forging good relationships and making sure things are done the right way. They also tend to boldly apply their own moral sensibility, even against authority.
Think that tech is the realm of Thinking personality types? Think again. An Assertive Campaigner told us about their work as a technical writer for cybersecurity software and hardware:
“I feel like Super Woman. By making complicated topics such as cybersecurity easier to implement, I am helping people protect their assets. I want to make life as difficult as possible for scammers.”
Fighting the world’s bad guys? That’s a feisty, idealistic Campaigner at their best – and getting paid to do it. Protecting people is a great way for a Diplomat to make the world better. And a field that’s frequently beset by new threats seems like a good fit for this energetic personality type’s forward-looking adaptability.
Think that the bowels of government bureaucracy are a bleak place for a Diplomat? Not necessarily! Check out what an Assertive Protagonist said about their job as a workers’ compensation adjudicator:
“A year-round Santa Claus by day; law-wielding Batman by night! I have the unique opportunity to be a conduit of benefits while clients recover from injury. When my decisions are challenged, I issue legal orders defended by a legal team. Makes it easy to feel like I make a difference.”
Bringing justice and aid to people in need is a common drive for Diplomats. And there could hardly be a more satisfying thing for a Protagonist than fighting for what’s right and justified as part of an organized team.
With their own words, we think these people’s experiences show how Diplomats can bring the best qualities of their personality type into diverse careers and work environments.
Career compatibility might not always require finding a job with a uniquely perfect fit, but perhaps fitting into a job in a unique way.
Piecing Together Your Future
We’ve covered many career paths likely to fit Diplomat personality types, and what they might dislike in a career. If you’d like to discover more about yourself, our Academy offers deeper learning in many areas of life, career path included.
We hope we’ve given you some inspiration and ideas for exploring potential career areas. Don’t forget to check out those career investigation exercises.
And as a final note, we want you to know that it’s totally normal for career planning to be stressful. Lots of feelings may be churning inside you. But trust yourself – you’re worthy of it, and you will do great things whatever your path.
Further Reading
Canny Callings: Analyst Personality Types and Career Compatibility (Part I)
How to Survive Your First Day on a New Job, by Personality Type
Humanities vs. STEM: Personality Types Weigh In on an Age-Old Debate