After taking one or both you may be wondering which is better.

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I’d like to suggest there may be a different way to approach both assessments. Rather than ask, “which is better” ask, “what do each have to offer?”

Here’s my high level review of what each has to offer.

What They Identify

DISC identifies predictable actions and personality traits within human behavior while the MBTI identifies personal preferences in human perception and judgement. So they both measure characteristics of your personality but they approach it in slightly different ways.

DISC measures self-reported observable behavior – or how you would act in a particular situation. The MBTI measures your core personality – how you are naturally wired regardless of your environment or circumstances.

The difference is subtle, but it is an important difference.

User Friendly

How user friendly is each assessment? Both can be taken manually or online so taking them is pretty easy. They both provide a multipage .pdf report that covers your specific personality.

Generally the DISC results are easier to comprehend right away, but they don’t get into the details of your personality. Whereas the MBTI results rely on having a small amount of knowledge of the theory the instrument is based on. Also it can be more difficult to remember your personality type six months later if you haven’t been reviewing it.

Accuracy

According to the MBTI manual, about 75% of people agree with their MBTI results.

About 2/3 of people come out the same if they retake the assessment. Of those people 93% have 3 out of the 4 personality dimensions the same. DISC is considered a very reliable and valid instrument as well. Although I don’t have a specific percentage, a very high percentage of people receive the same results if they take it more than once. For those of you who might be really into this stuff you can view the DISC validity and reliability report here.

Supplemental Information

Each of the assessment reports can provide additional information beyond just your personality results. DISC can provide you with a description of your general style and give it a name, such as Advisor, Developer, Persuader, etc. You can also get a list of historical and/or Biblical people who shared your personality.

The DISC report can provide you with a communication guide for your personality, both how you can communicate better and how others can communicate better with you. It can also include sections on how to navigate the workplace, your strengths in leadership, and types of careers your personality may enjoy.

The MBTI has multiple types of reports that can be provided that will be based on your personality type results. You can receive a basic report with just your results, a career report, communication style report, conflict style report, decision making style report, and a stress management report. Each of the reports has a different focus but they are all based on your personality type results.

The career report provides you with your personality type, your preferred work tasks, preferred work environment, and action steps you can take to enhance your career.

Also, this report provides information about how your type affects your career exploration and career development. It also provides a list about the types of jobs people with this type have reported enjoying and ranks them by their reported popularity among your type.

 My Thoughts

I really like both assessments. I like the DISC assessment because it’s easy to understand right away and you’re more likely to remember which style was your dominant style. I like the MBTI for it’s thorough explanation of the complexity of human personality. I find that each assessment can compliment the other and if possible I recommend taking both to get a full picture of your personality.

However, if I were forced to choose just one instrument to recommend I would choose the MBTI. I feel that it does a better job of providing a more detailed view of the complexity of our personalities.

I’ve experienced the transforming effect of the MBTI myself as well as observed others take action based on their results to make their careers and lives better.

Ultimately that’s the goal regardless of the assessment you use.

Question: Which one do you like better, the MBTI or DISC? Why?

(If you’re interested in taking the MBTI or DISC you can buy them here.)

However, sometimes it can feel like personality assessments raise more questions than provide answers.

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Which is the best one to take? Is it going to say I have the worst personality you can have? How in the world will this help me get a better job? Don’t circumstances dictate how I behave sometimes?

In 2005 I was really struggling with not enjoying my job (actually I was struggling prior to that but I didn’t take any action until 2005) so I quit. I went to see a career coach and one of the things she had me do was take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

The results showed my type as INFJ and after a lot of thought and self-observation I determined the INFJ type fit me exactly.

Taking the MBTI was the cornerstone I needed to begin to figure out who I was, my strengths, my weaknesses and how I could apply those in a work setting.

Now I provide all my clients with a personality assessment depending on their needs. It may be the MBTI, DISC, or Strengthsfinder 2.0. Sometimes all three.

If you’re struggling to figure out the kind of work you’ll love I really recommend starting with a personality assessment.

Even if you’re not struggling with your work I highly recommend taking a personality assessment.

Here are five reasons you should take a personality assessment:

1. It will increase your self-awareness. Self-awareness is the key to unlocking the type of work that fits you best. In addition, self-awareness allows you to be able to more effectively communicate with and influence others. Those who lead truly successful lives, and not just at work, are highly self-aware. They’ve taken the time to figure out exactly who they are and how to leverage their design in all aspects of their lives.

2. It will help you know your strengths. We live in a culture that promotes improving things you’re not very good at. Don’t believe me? Ask any elementary school student what gets pointed out on their papers? Their mistakes or their correct answers? Yet, we are all good at something or many things. If we know what those things are we can put our energy and time into being exceptional in those areas instead of being mediocre in an area we struggle with.

3. It will help you know your weaknesses. We all have blind spots. No matter how you slice it, we just aren’t good at everything and we aren’t always objective in judging our own actions. When you know your weaknesses you can avoid situations, jobs, and relationships that prevent you from using the very best parts of you. Then you can find others who excel in the area of your weaknesses to help you out.

4. It will help you create a filter to find the right type of work for you. Knowing your personality helps you edit and filter the infinite number of opportunities and paths you can choose in your work. Although we may not be able to be anything we want to be we can be more of who we already are. Having the results of a personality assessment is like having a compass. It doesn’t tell you where to go but you can use it to make sure you’re heading in the right direction.

5. You will be better able to read other people. The first step is to understand yourself. The next step is to understand others. When you begin to understand how other personality types operate you can communicate more effectively with them, predict their typical behavior, and understand why they do that thing that drives you crazy (hint: it’s not personal).

Although a personality assessment can’t explain everything you’d want to know about yourself it can explain a lot. The path to enjoying your work begins with understanding who you are. A personality assessment is a great tool to help you do just that.

Question: What other benefits do you think a personality assessment might provide?

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I know that may sound like a really strange question.

You might be thinking, what do you mean by “supposed to be doing?”

Most discussions about what you want to do in your career don’t revolve around this question.

Here’s what I mean.

If you ask a friend what they were supposed to be when they grew up you’ll likely get a response like:

“I was supposed to go to medical school and become a doctor.”

“My mother wanted me to be a full time stay at home mom.”

“I was supposed to go into the plumbing business with my Dad.”

“My parents didn’t care what I did as long as I made a lot of money.”

“I was supposed to get my MBA and climb the corporate ladder.”

In her book “I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was” Barbara Sher says this is an interesting question,

“Because even if you can’t figure out what you want to be doing, you probably know exactly what you’re supposed to be doing.”

The problem is we often have trouble figuring out the type of work we want to do because we’re trying to please the person who told us what we were supposed to be doing.

We are all influenced for better or worse by so many external factors.

We are each part of a family, neighborhood, community, and culture who influence us.

All of those influencers have an impact on how we shape our decisions when it comes to our careers.

Often we can’t even pinpoint who we’re trying to please, we just know there was an expectation of us to do something that fit within the mold of what it means to work where you come from.

Now let me say that not all influencers are bad. In fact, most of the people in your life were probably well intentioned. They truly wanted what was best for you.

However, their guidance likely was targeted toward things that worked for them or they thought would have been better for them.

Maybe a parent or influential adult had done well in a corporate position and they knew you could do the same even though you hate staring at a computer screen all day. Or perhaps they always wanted to be a jazz pianist but never ventured into that area so they put you in piano lessons even though your hands felt like potatoes pounding on the keys.

The key to enjoying your work is to be able to know yourself well enough to know what makes your heart sing.

Unfortunately most of the people around us aren’t tuned in to listening to us or paying attention to what we do well. I mean can you blame them? It’s hard enough to figure it out ourselves let alone for someone else.

It’s not their fault and it’s not your fault. There’s no one to blame here. It’s just the way it is.

However, it’s absolutely essential that you figure out if what you’re doing now is in alignment with who you are.

Does it bring out the best of your personality?

Does it allow you to use your greatest talents and skills?

Does it connect with what you value and what you’re passionate about?

If it doesn’t, then I’m afraid you’ve got some work to do.

But don’t be afraid of hard work. Be afraid of working at something and succeeding in something that means nothing to you. That would be the greatest travesty of all.

Question: So tell me, what were you supposed to be doing with your career?

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When you don’t like your job and you feel stuck, one of the best things you can do is take a personality assessment.

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Two of the best, most reliable and valid personality instruments on the market are the DISC and Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

The MBTI was the instrument I used during my career transition and it literally changed my life.

Or maybe I should say it explained my life.

You see, none of us are completely objective when it comes to evaluating our own personalities.

We all have blind spots about how we engage with the world.

The other thing that happens is we devalue our strengths.

A certain thing comes easy to us so we disregard it and think everybody can do this. In our mind it’s nothing special.

The DISC profile and MBTI help get us see ourselves more clearly and understand what we do best.

There are some significant differences between DISC and MBTI.

DISC will provide you with four areas of personality and will tell you which one is your most prevalent, second most prevalent, third, and fourth.

You will primarily be a D, I, S, or C.

D = Dominant or Driver – Do you know someone who is assertive, to the point, and wants the bottom line? This is the D style.

I = Influencing or Inspiring – Do you have any friends who are great communicators and friendly to everyone they meet? This is the I style.

S = Steady or Stable – Are you a good listener and great team player who is loyal and steady? The is the S style.

C = Correct or Conscientious – Have you ever worked with someone who enjoys gathering facts and details and is thorough in everything they do? This is the C style.

My primary style is S followed closely by I.

The MBTI on the other hand measures four different areas of our personalities and provides you with a four letter type.

(I) Introversion or (E) Extraversion – This aspect of our personality determines the source of feeling energized. Either by being alone or from interacting with others.

(N) Intuition or (S) Sensing – This is how we prefer to take in information. Either through our five senses (S) or through themes, meaning, and patterns (N).

(T) Thinking or (F) Feeling – This preference has to do with how we prefer to make decisions. We either prefer a more objective and analytical approach (T) or a more people focused and empathetic approach (F).

(J) Judging or ( P) Perceiving – This is how we prefer to organize our lives. We either prefer a very structured approach to life (i.e. love calendars, schedules, and to-do lists) (J) or a more free and open approach to life (i.e. no schedule or calendar, likes to keep options open) ( P).

So, for example, my MBTI type is INFJ.

Now that you know a little about each of the assessments here’s why you need to take them:

1. It will give you objective insight into yourself you otherwise may not know. Many people after taking DISC or MBTi will say, “Did my mother write this?” It’s amazing how well it explains our behavior and thinking.

2. It will help you identify your strengths. The best way to do work you love is to do something you are crazy good at. When you play to your strengths in what you do it will feel natural and fulfilling.

3. It will help you identify your weaknesses. We all have limitations and you will be better off knowing what they are and avoiding doing anything related to those areas of your personality.

4. It will help you filter different opportunities based on how well they fit your personality. When you do determine a career path to pursue you will still need to wade through the many options that will come your way. Knowing your personality and what you do well will help you make the best decision when the time comes.

You were uniquely designed and there has never been anyone on earth like you. The more you know about yourself the higher your self awareness will be.

This will lead you to having more options and allow you to make better decisions. In the end you will find the work you enjoy because it will be connected to who you are at your core.

Questions: Have you taken DISC or MBTI? What’s your type? How has it helped you to know more about your personality? 

(Consider adding a comment below)

*Warning!* Shameless self promotion. You can purchase both assessments on my website by going here.

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