Lions, Tigers and Bears, OH MY!
Personality types—there are so many ways to test for them. Are you an ESFJ or an IIFJ within the Myers-Briggs personality indicator? Or maybe you are an Influencer, as stated in the DISC assessment?
Whatever your personality type, it is critical to remember within your team that each of you is different, and it takes all personality types to make the world go around. Think about what it would be like if the entire practice were like you.
Let’s break down personality types a little differently. Let’s look at what animal you might be!
Are You a Lion?
Let’s first look at the LION. A lion would be seen as a born leader. This person is strong-willed and can be ready to roar at any minute. They can make a decision very quickly and are typically goal-oriented.
A lion gets it done and likes to work toward advancement. They don’t sit back and watch—they get in and do the job. They can be aggressive and don’t like to be crossed.
What About a Beaver?
Next, let’s look at a BEAVER. Beavers are meticulous. They like everything to be done in order. They are highly organized and disciplined.
Coloring outside the lines is not within their description. They may not be very sociable and can become negative if you try to veer off the path that they have organized.
Are You Possibly an Otter?
What about the office, OTTER? This is everyone’s cheerleader! They love having fun and are most definitely the life of every party. They may have trouble staying on time because they try to be friends with everyone. They are compassionate, friendly, and talkative. An otter seeks approval and can be easily offended by those around them.
Maybe a Golden Retriever?
We all need the loyalty of the GOLDEN RETRIEVER in our practice. We know we can always count on these people to be there. They are consistent, calm, and supportive of those around them. A Golden retriever is the worrier of the office, and they can lack the ability to make decisions.
The Importance of Understanding One Another
In practice, we must understand one another, and breaking it down can help.
The Beaver in the office and the Otter can only work together productively if they know where the other is coming from. The Beaver will be driven to stay on time and do every step of any procedure in a particular order, even if there are other ways to get there. The Otter will achieve the same result but will be better at building a relationship with the patient while doing so because that is their driving factor.
We all typically carry pieces of all of these within us, but there will be traits stronger than others and shining brighter. This uniqueness is what makes our team strong.
You may find you are stronger in the Lion-Beaver areas and only have smaller amounts of the Otter-Golden Retriever. Or you may be an Otter-Golden Retriever with just a small amount of the Lion or Beaver.
Remember, it’s not about fitting into a specific mold but embracing your unique strengths and contributing to our team’s success.
It is important to remember that understanding where your co-workers align within personality types can help how the team views each other. Understanding each other will improve the culture of the office.
It can help increase productivity because you will understand and play into each other’s strengths while being more understanding of where the weaknesses lie and can pick up the ball for each other in those areas. This means a win for everyone; no one will have to fear the Lion’s roar if they know how to interact with them.
About the Author
Tamela Jones, DAADOM
Tamela started her dental journey in December 1989.
She is a Missouri native and has been a member of AADOM since 2017. Tamela received her AADOM Master Distinction in 2022 and her AADOM Diplomate Distinction in 2024.
She loves to cook and read in her downtime, but when she is not in the office, she truly enjoys farming with her husband of 12 years. She and her husband share 4 children and are grandparents to Ryker, who is the light of their life.
