The following is a brief overview of the four basic temperaments. It is not meant to be all inclusive. Understanding your personality helps you look at your life more objectively, working to include areas that are natural to you and refining areas of your personality that are not as appropriate for a given situation.

D - Direct people are fast paced. They like to keep busy. They aren't team players, preferring to do things by themselves or delegating work they don't find interesting. They can become annoyed when having to work with others and do things differently from their chosen way. They are persistent, viewed as stubborn, overcome obstacles and win at any cost. They're great people to have on your side. They will fight for you and protect you. They are fearless. They have high expectations of others. They are interested in meeting their own goals. Direct people are so goal oriented, they are not aware of other people's feelings and frequently override them. They appear uncaring, however their main concern isn't another person's feelings but getting the job done, meeting the goal. They tend to tell people, instead of ask. They are forceful, bottom-line people who hate to waste time. They want straight talk and direct answers. They want answers to their "WHAT" questions

I-Influential people are fast paced with a lot of energy and usually very busy. They have a network of contacts. They like people and like to talk. They are good at promoting ideas and seek to persuade others to agree with them. Time gets away from them and everything takes a lower propriety when they're discussing ideas. They would never intentionally antagonize anyone. It's important to them that others have a favorable impression of them. Never embarrass an I - Influential person in public. It will devastate them. They're more interested in people than in accomplishing tasks. They thrive in the social scene. They can be a poor judge of people because they are so optimistic. They believe everything will be all right and everyone is "such a nice person". They tell people, they don't ask. They communicate well and need freedom of expression. They may overuse praise. Some people may see it as flattery and feel manipulated. They have trouble staying focused. They can become easily distracted. They are imaginative. They like what is new and innovative. They tend to think in the future. They want answers to their "WHO" questions.

S-Steady people desire to keep their environment from changing. They have a consistent work performance. They accommodate others. They get along well with others because they are flexible in their attitude. They may not say anything if they disagree just to keep peace, however they seem to find a way to get what they want. They are moderate and controlled. They are modest. They like to help others, make good counselors and are great listeners. They can speak on an intellectual level and prefer quiet discussions with one or two people. They build close relationships with a small group of friends. They like to maintain familiar and predictable patterns. They are consistent in accomplishing work. If they receive appreciation, they maintain a high level of performance. They may need help when starting a new project. They like to feel comfortable with anything new before actually starting it. They enjoy something in writing so they can refer to it. They ask, they don't tell. They want answers to their "HOW" and "WHEN" questions.

C-Cautious people are critical thinkers. They draw conclusions and base action on facts, correctness, the rules and accuracy. They are slow paced and task oriented. They are trivia experts, someone who might appear on Jeopardy. They are very effective in their work. They combine intuition with facts to reach a conclusion. They like to work with people who think the way they do. They like to keep peace. They may not be shy but people find it difficult to read them. They don't show their feelings. They tend to protect their privacy. Aggressive people upset them. They control their environment by understanding the rules and following them. These may be existing rules or their own rules but they will follow them. They study privately to learn about a subject before discussing it in public. They only start a project when they're sure of perfection. Perfection is very important to them. They tend to be critical of themselves. They defend their position and support it rather than show flexibility. They think in outline form, frequently saying, "number 1 and b", thinking things in sequence. They make to-do lists. They ask, they don't tell. They want answers to their "WHY" and "HOW" questions.