I believe I was in 7th- or 8th-grade when my Dad (I call him Daddy) brought home personality assessment tests for us to take based on the four temperaments. The tests identified personality types using four colors: red (choleric), yellow (sanguine), blue (melancholy), and green (phlegmatic). I was fascinated by the test, and it helped me understand things about myself, as well as other people. Most people’s test results displayed a dominant personality type, but no one fell squarely into a single personality type; instead they each had a mixture of percentages across all the four colors.
My dad used that test in his workplace as a means of relating to and understanding his employees better, as well as placing people in positions that best suited them.
I think it’s pretty cool that he recognized the same assessment that worked at work could be used at home so our small family of three could relate to each other easier. As you can tell, he has a love of people, especially family–and beyond a doubt, grandchildren.
“Poppa Ken” can also be a pretty awesome dork when he wants to be, which the kids adore.
A couple of years ago, I went searching for that same test online because I was having some frustrations in parenting and wanted my kids to take the test. We needed to find the hang-up in our communication, and I wanted to equip them with self-knowledge to help them navigate their relationships. I also wanted to take the test again because while most people don’t dramatically change their personalities throughout their lifetime, there is often a shift when they move away from parents and start living independently.
Relate to your children in a way they understand and help them relate to others.
When searching, I did not find the same test that I took as a child, but I did find something similar with the Myers-Briggs personality test. If you are not familiar with Myers-Briggs, a search will turn up endless amounts of information about it. The reason I am writing about it is because I believe it is a powerful tool for relating to our children in a way they understand and helping them relate to others.
Personal assessment is difficult because we do not always see ourselves clearly. Understanding our inherent personality traits serves as a catalyst to communicate more effectively, select career paths more successfully and approach our weaknesses more gracefully. In other words, this is a great test for high school students to get them on the right path for their future.
The Myers-Briggs can be taken online at various websites, but a lot of them are cluttered and ugly. Having worked as a web designer for several years makes it almost impossible to link to websites that make me wince.
So, I’m linking to my friend’s career website because it has a fresh, simple design I like. Plus, she clearly defines the 16 personality types, and then provides a way for you or your kids to take the test for FREE. And no, there’s nothing in it for me, but there should be because I’m a big fan of the work she does online, and she knows it.
Knowing their personality type can help your kids select their career choice.
After taking the test, Emelie, my oldest child who has never cared much for school and had no interest in college, wanted to get ideas for what careers were possible for her without college. I purchased the book, Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You Through The Secrets of Personality Type because I knew it would help her, and I found it interesting too.
Since then, Meredith has read the chapters that relate to her to see if nursing is a good match for her personality type. Kenny is in 7th-grade, and while he’s interested in his personality type, he isn’t thinking about his career; that’ll come later.
So, take the test and let your kids take the test, and then make it a family night of sitting around and talking about personalities. I am an ESFJ, so taking family time to read each other’s personality types and talk about how it all ties in with the person and our family as a whole is fun for me.
Here’s the link to the test again.
Here’s the link to all 16 Personality Types.
And if you have a minute, click over and answer a question for me: What is your biggest frustration with homeschooling? I’d appreciate it! Thanks!
Heather Sanders is a homeschooling parent who desires families to live, love and learn together. Married to Jeff, Heather lives in the East Texas Piney Woods and homeschools her three children, Emelie, Meredith and Kenny.