Personality Ergonomics Audit: Does Your Workplace Match Your Traits?

Personality types are affected differently by various aspects of work. For example, Introverts may feel more drained by interacting with people than Extraverts would. And Judging personality types may struggle with unexpected change, compared to others. That’s basic personality theory. (If you want to brush up on the basics, our Theory page and Beginners articles beckon…)

Do you know your personality type? Take our free test to find out.

Accordingly, people work best in environments that suit their personalities or, at least, that don’t push their limits too far or fast. Just as traditional ergonomics can make the things that we use every day fit us better physically, work environments can be “fitted” to help people of different personality types be happier and more productive – that’s personality ergonomics.

But first, you may want to identify your problem areas, and that requires an individual approach. People express their personality traits and respond to their environment uniquely. So I’m going to help you examine how your current working environment matches your personality, then we’ll consider how you can improve things.

Oh, and if you’re a manager, this kind of audit is something that you might consider encouraging. It’s an innovative way to remove impediments and stressors and help people achieve greater performance. That can easily benefit an organization enough to justify some good-faith experimentation.

Ready to audit your workplace for your personality? Let’s go. You’ll need a blank notepad or writing app for a few notes.

A Simple, Eye-Opening Test

The first step is easy. We have a great Work Environments survey. It only takes a minute and gives you an overview of yourself in some key areas. (You’ll need to log in or sign up for our site to access the survey.) Complete that survey and check out your results page.

As you review each survey item, think about your current work environment. How does it match up with the needs and preferences shown in your results? Where is there difficulty, if at all? Think of it as a rough percentage of time that you’re significantly outside of your ideal working zone – when environmental factors are inhibiting your best work. Note that down regarding each item in the survey.

Considering your work responsibilities, how could circumstances around any of those less-than-ideal aspects realistically be improved? Also, could you improve them on your own, or would it require permission or support? Note down your ideas.

As a side note, isn’t it interesting to see how differently various personality types feel about some of the questions in that survey? I think that supports the idea that personality ergonomics are important at work. Different things help different types of people work their best. Let’s go a little further.

Looking at Key Areas of Fit

I’m going to pose some questions below, and I’d like you to address each of them in three ways. First, note down where your typical workday falls between the opposite aspects mentioned in each question. (Like, it might be 30% one thing and 70% the other, or whatever.) Second, note down how well (or not) that supports your happiness and productivity. Lastly, note any reasonable ways in which your needs could be better met in these areas.

Here we go.

Do you have lots of active human interaction at work or very little?
Do you frequently create new goals and methods, or are you mostly carrying out existing mandates and established procedures?
Does your work or workplace often aggravate you by clashing with your beliefs, or are you able to perform your duties without feeling personally conflicted?
Does your daily routine involve a lot of unexpected changes of direction and pace, or does it mostly consist of planned, stable courses of action?

Look at that! You now have a personality type ergonomics action list. (Or maybe we should call it a wish list.) And, hey – if your responses indicate that your work environment is a mostly good fit for your personality, be happy! That’s awesome. But if you think that some changes could help, let’s consider how that might happen.

Improving Your Workplace Personality Ergonomics

There may be a lot that you can do on your own to improve the personality ergonomics of your workplace. Your wish list is a guide, so act on it as much as possible – without getting yourself into any trouble. Some changes might require conversations with your coworkers or supervisor.

Now, it might not be the best idea to go marching up to anyone with the little list you’ve created, slap it down on their desk, and say, “All right, we need to talk about some changes!” (But wasn’t that fun to imagine?)

Let’s soberly consider some possible workplace realities. Many company policies simply may not be very flexible. Certain individual accommodations may be perceived as inappropriate special treatment. And finally, some changes may not be possible due to the budget, facilities, or any number of practical constraints.

But none of that should prevent you from respectfully investigating what’s possible. Of course, work is an exchange, and if you’re going to ask for something, it’s wise to consider what might motivate a favorable response from others. I have a couple of ideas for you.

Discussing Your Needs

Framing the situation in a more objective context can help you gain traction with people. Feel free to cite us to lend credibility to the discussion – we’re an internationally respected authority on personality types: To whom it may concern, we hereby attest that different personality types have different needs and do their best work when those needs are reasonably accommodated. There. Read them that. (Or better yet, this whole article.)

Second, you can acknowledge the difference between trying to make work easier and trying to do better work. Neither is wrong, but either may matter more to different people, depending on the situation. Consider this – what perceptible, positive gains do you foresee from changes to your work environment, and who will benefit?

An internal “WIIFM” reaction from others is reasonable, as fulfilling your request consumes resources, on some level. However, helping people be productive, healthy, and happy at work could be considered a prime responsibility of management and a proper goal for peers. And for caring managers and coworkers, it can be satisfying if that care is rewarded in appropriate, work-related ways. Let’s think about how you’ll do that.

Setting a Productive Goal

When proposing any changes, it’ll be important to highlight the benefits that can be achieved. You’re essentially pitching a mini-project. If you can articulate a clear goal and a plan for meeting it – and pledge yourself to that result – you’ll give people more reason to support you. Obviously, your situation is unique, but let’s consider some broad goals that might make sense to discuss.

Comfort and satisfaction. That might sound self-serving, but someone who likes their job is more likely to care about it. Having workers who value their jobs encourages retention and dedication, which is good in any workplace.
Attitude and morale. Being stressed or impeded can ruin your energy and mood, which is not helpful in the workplace. If a change will boost your spirits, that’s a win for everyone – if you’re ready to show it.
Productivity and performance. An obvious, desirable goal for any workplace change is to help you get work done. Demonstrating progress is a powerful argument in favor of whatever you’re asking for.

Explaining how your requested changes can accomplish these things will help people see the value of supporting you. And if you get anyone’s support for improving the personality ergonomics of your workplace, it’s also a super good idea to tell those people how well it worked and how much you appreciate their help.

Conclusion

Seeking change in your workplace can be a long shot and might even raise some eyebrows. It’s up to you to weigh the risks and take a balanced, reasonable approach. But it might be worth it. It’s not uncommon to get problems like a broken chair fixed or to get some window shades installed when the sun blinds you. This isn’t so different.

The value of a healthy physical work environment is widely acknowledged, as is the importance of morale and productivity. Most companies try hard to motivate and protect their workers. It’s not unthinkable that those goals are served by meeting individual needs related to personality type.

If higher cubicle walls can boost an Introverted employee’s energy and focus, I think it’s a reasonable accommodation to consider. If a capable Extraverted worker is lonely and listless on the quiet night shift, it might be a great move to put them in a more dynamic setting. These things make sense, when you understand personality types – which we’re here to help you do.

When it’s accepted just how differently people of diverse personality types experience the same things, it creates opportunities to maximize the “fit” of the workplace. Hot peppers offer a tasty kick to some and unpleasant pain to others, so it wouldn’t make sense to put them in every dish for an officewide lunch, right? Well, I think catering to individuals’ personality-based needs is sensible in the same way.