Crystal’s Ultimate Guide
to Personality Types
to Personality Types
Learn what DISC, 16-Personality, Enneagram,
and the Big Five can tell you about yourself
Why your personality matters
Personality impacts everything we do, including the career path we choose, the way we maintain our friendships, how we communicate with others, and what we choose to do with our free time.
So what is personality?
Personality refers to the measurable, unique behavioral patterns that make you different from other people. This includes the way you like to communicate, what motivates, energizes and stresses you, how you like to interact with others, and so much more. When you add all of these individual traits together, you get a complex, unique mix of tendencies that help drive your daily thoughts, feelings, and actions. This mix, which we simply refer to as your personality, is a big part of what makes you you.
Patient, logical, and supportive
Direct in verbalizing concerns
Meticulous and detail-oriented
Straightforward and practical
Skeptical of change
Analytical about decisions
Appreciates planning
Appreciates fast results
Enjoys working with people
Supportive and empathetic
Focused on the big picture
Craves accuracy and consistency
Ambitious and persuasive achiever
Driven by results or goals
Communicates with casual language
Your personality has a profound effect on many areas of your life.
With an accurate picture of your own personality, you can better understand the true drivers of your behavior and make better decisions in light of it. Because of this, millions of people have recently made efforts to get to know more about their own personalities with online personality assessments.
Personality tests can help people:
Harness their
strengths.
strengths.
Understand and manage their blind spots.
Balance stress with productivity.
Make better career decisions.
Personality insights also offer us the opportunity to better understand others.
When friends, family, or coworkers identify their own personality types, it makes it easier for us to understand their motivations and actions. Developing this awareness can help you communicate more effectively, manage and resolve conflict, and put others in a position to succeed.
Your personality is already shaping your life and the lives of those around you. So, when you learn more about it, you will likely feel more connected, more self-aware, and more capable of making wise choices.
Your personality is already shaping your life and the lives of those around you. So, when you learn more about it, you will likely feel more connected, more self-aware, and more capable of making wise choices.
Where your personality comes from
Currently, there is a lot of work being done in the fields of psychology and neuroscience to understand more about personality traits and their causes, and much of it remains a mystery. However, over the past few decades, this learning process has accelerated and we have learned far more than when the first personality models were created.
Here are the basics…
Your personality emerges from a combination of your genetic makeup - the nature component of it - and the environment in which we grew and developed - the nurture component. Here’s what we know about each:
Nature
We are not born as “blank slates”, but instead, personality is baked into our DNA.
There are natural variations in our brain structures and chemistry.
We inherit some personality traits; certain traits are likely to be more heritable than others.
Some nature-related personality traits, like temperament, may take time to emerge.
There are natural variations in our brain structures and chemistry.
We inherit some personality traits; certain traits are likely to be more heritable than others.
Some nature-related personality traits, like temperament, may take time to emerge.
Nuture
We are affected by our families (how we’re raised, sibling order, family’s financial stability, parents’ relationships with each other, and more.)
We can be altered by the relationships we build with peers.
We can change after experiencing traumatic events.
The culture we are born into plays a large role in our development.
We can be altered by the relationships we build with peers.
We can change after experiencing traumatic events.
The culture we are born into plays a large role in our development.
However, we also have the option to choose how we act, despite our more natural tendencies.
In order to do that, though, we need to have a healthy level of self-awareness and understanding. Learning more about your own psychology and having a more comprehensive, honest view of yourself can help with your personal development.
The Major Personality Models
There are many personality models, but four of the most popular are DISC, 16-Personalities, Enneagram, and Big Five.
DISC
DISC is a "four-factor" personality model, meaning that it groups people into four categories based on behavior patterns.
Each category consists of a set of personality traits. Everyone has a primary category, and often a second category. You can see details about each category below.
DISC was developed in the early 1900s by psychologist William Marston, the same man who also happened to create Wonder Woman and the polygraph. It resembles other four-factor models that have been around for more than 2,000 years, when Hippocrates first described the “four temperaments”.
The DISC personality model classifies people into four overarching behavioral categories:
d 
Dominance
i
Influence
s
Steadiness
c
Conscientiousness
D-personalities are likely to be direct, assertive, independent, and decisive.
Each of the four type categories is made up of subtypes. Because most of these sixteen subtypes are a combination of two primary types, they can identify people more specifically and offer more complete insights about people. They delve more deeply into personal motivations, strengths, and weaknesses, and can be helpful for understanding how others think, act, and communicate.
Click a DISC type to learn more about it
Things to consider before you use DISC
Best Uses
Personality learning in professional settings
Improving communication skills
Leadership development
Improving communication skills
Leadership development
Pros
Four-factor personality models, like DISC, have been validated by scientific research.
DISC is easy to learn since there are four overarching categories.
The results are useful for both individual and relationship insights.
Because DISC offers more general insights, it’s much easier to apply practically
DISC is easy to learn since there are four overarching categories.
The results are useful for both individual and relationship insights.
Because DISC offers more general insights, it’s much easier to apply practically
Cons
DISC hasn't been studied as often as similar models and has less controlled research to support it.
DISC doesn't tend to offer deeper, more emotional insights.
DISC doesn't tend to offer deeper, more emotional insights.
16-Personality
The 16-Personality Type Indicator is a very well-known personality assessments.
Inspired by the work of Katharine Cook Briggs, her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers, and Carl Jung, 16-Personalities has become especially popular in modern workplaces to help companies better understand their employees.
This model has four distinct traits that represent differences in the way people think and behave:
e
Extroversion
i
Introversion
Extroversion: Extroverts tend to draw energy from spending time around other people.
N
Intuition
s
Sensing
Intuition: Intuitive types tend to love to explore new ideas and think in terms of the big picture.
F
Feeling
T
Thinking
Feeling: Feeling types usually prioritize emotion over logic, often choosing to follow their gut when making decisions.
J
Judging
p
Perceiving
Judging: Judging types tend to be very structured and organized.
Learn more about each 16-Personality type by selecting a combination below.
Extraverted
Introverted
Sensing
Intuitive
Thinking
Feeling
Judging
Perceiving
Learn more about
estj
Things to consider before you use 16-Personality
Best Uses
Self-development
Personality insights for large audiences
Personality insights for large audiences
Pros
Easy to remember and understand, since it’s only a combination of four distinct traits.
Tends to be popular among the general public.
There are plenty of online resources that can help people learn more.
Tends to be popular among the general public.
There are plenty of online resources that can help people learn more.
Cons
It has limited scientific validity and reliability compared to other models.
Each personality trait is represented as a binary "either or," rather than a normal distribution
Each personality trait is represented as a binary "either or," rather than a normal distribution
Enneagram
The Enneagram is a personality model that dates back more than a thousand years.
Though it’s unclear just how it began, it has recently exploded in popularity. The Enneagram consists of 9 main, overarching types that interact with one another in unique ways. This model also features “wings,” which is a way of describing when an individual primarily shows the characteristics of one type but shares a few with another type as well.
1 
Idealist
2
Caregiver
3
Performer
4
Creative
5
Thinker
6
Loyalist
7
Adventurer
8
Protector
9
Peacekeeper
Type ones seek moralistic behavior and reform. They are naturally positive, determined people, with a heart for helping others.
The Enneagram consists of 9 main, overarching types that interact with one another in unique ways. This model also features “wings,” which is a way of describing when an individual primarily shows the characteristics of one type but shares a few with another type as well. The Enneagram focuses primarily on internal personality traits and attempts to describe deep motivations, fears, and emotional drivers rather than purely behavior.
Things to consider before you use Enneagram
Best Uses
Self-help
Counseling
Relationship development
Counseling
Relationship development
Pros
Helps with personal growth and self-awareness.
Allows for more specific typing through its use of “wings”.
Accounts for personality abnormalities in times of stress and growth.
Allows for more specific typing through its use of “wings”.
Accounts for personality abnormalities in times of stress and growth.
Cons
It has been criticized for being overly subjective.
It lacks the psychological evidence to support the ways in which it categorizes personality.
It lacks the psychological evidence to support the ways in which it categorizes personality.
Big Five
The Big Five, or Five Factor Model, is widely considered the most scientifically accurate personality model,
as it is often used for psychological studies. It consists of five traits that have their own causes and behaviors. They do not correlate with one another across any population.
O 
Openness
C
Conscientiousness
E
Extraversion
A
Agreableness
N
Neuroticism
Openness is the measure of how open to experience, open-minded, and imaginative an individual is.
Each trait is represented by percentile. For example, you may have higher Extraversion than 82% of the population, but higher Agreeableness than only 30% of the population.
Learn more about each Big 5 trait by selecting an option below.
Things to consider before you use the Big Five
Best Uses
Individual assessments
Counseling
Population personality studies
Counseling
Population personality studies
Pros
Big Five has been studied by psychologists and therefore has the most scientific validity and reliability.
The results are relatively easy to understand.
The measurements are very precise for the individual traits.
The results are relatively easy to understand.
The measurements are very precise for the individual traits.
Cons
The practical application of Big Five knowledge can be very difficult.
People are more likely to be upset with their results in regards to Neuroticism.
People are more likely to be upset with their results in regards to Neuroticism.
How to get someone’s personality type
Learning more about other people through personality data can help you improve relationships, make sales, reach a new audience, resolve conflict, and more. Taking the time to invest in people and communicate with someone in a way they want is important to making both of your lives easier and more enjoyable.
There are a few common ways to find someone’s personality type:
Assessments:
These can be made up of multiple choice, word ranking, or behavior rating questions. While this is generally the most accurate way to identify a personality type, it requires active participation from the person. If you are trying to get to know more about a stranger, or even a friend or family member who is simply turned off by the idea of completing a questionnaire, this is likely not possible.
Personality AI:
This is the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to predict someone’s personality from their writing style, or attributes about them. This new technology analyzes publicly available information on websites like LinkedIn to predict someone’s personality, using artificial intelligence and machine learning. We built our product, Crystal, to harness Personality AI and enable anyone to identify personalities online to improve their communication and build stronger relationships, all based on the core principle of empathy.
How to Use Personality Data
Personality data gives you a deeper look into the people around you and can be used in infinite ways. Here are a few:
Improve your Phone Calls and Meetings
When your job involves effectively communicating with others through calls and meetings, it’s important that you understand the best way to get through to the other person. Otherwise, you’re likely to waste your time. No matter what field you’re in, by using personality data, you’ll enjoy each call and meeting more and leave a bigger, lasting impact.
READ MORE
Upgrade your Emails
Because most people’s inboxes are overflowing with emails, it can be difficult to break through the noise and be relevant. But while many salespeople are thoughtlessly playing the numbers game, pumping out as many emails as they can, you can have an advantage: personality data that helps you approach prospects in a way they want. Now, you can communicate effectively, even through email.
READ MORE
Effectively Lead Teams
Leading a diverse group of people can be challenging, since each team is composed of complex, dynamic individuals with different communication styles, motivations, and experiences. Personality data will help you introduce empathy into your company culture to create a collaborative, communicative team.
READ MORE
Resolve a Conflict
Because we all have our own ways of communicating, conflict is inevitable. However, there are ways to make it more painless. By understanding another person’s personality and making an effort to approach conflict in a way that comes more naturally to them, you’ll be able to resolve any issue in a quicker and much less stressful way.
READ MORE
Pitch Pricing
Conversations about cost can be some of the most difficult, especially if you’re in sales. When you’re trying to approach pricing in the best way for your prospect, you need to know a bit about how they view finances. Crystal’s insights and suggestions will help you move the process forward quickly and cement the sale.
READ MORE
Recruit the Perfect Candidate
When you need to hire the right person, it’s important to set your organization apart by both communicating with candidates in a way that resonates with their individual personalities and placing the best people in each position. Fortunately, personality tools make this process much easier by helping you reach out more effectively, eliminating any potential bias, and suggesting the best responsibilities for each personality type.
READ MORE
Enhance your Relationships
For those of us who work in roles where we collaborate, communicate, and engage with other people, our relationships often drive (or hinder) our long-term career success. Personality data and tools like Crystal will help you build stronger, lasting connections with others, through interaction, collaboration, conflict resolution, and adaptation. By making an effort to understand how to work with and appreciate the differences, you’re likely to find that creating and maintaining positive, healthy relationships can be exciting.
READ MORE
Schedule a Meeting
Meetings seem to be unnecessarily frustrating and difficult to set up. With an abundance of new communication technologies at our fingertips, it can be difficult to convince someone to set aside time for a meeting. Personality data provided by Crystal gives you advice on communicating effectively with others, which will help you get the meeting you deserve.
READ MORE
Tools to get started
Crystal has already created a few tools to help you utilize personality data in your daily life.
Profiles
Crystal can create a personality profile for anyone, whether a co-worker, friend, prospect, customer or job candidate. Personality profiles offer insights into someone’s natural behaviors, strengths, blindspots, communication styles, and more and are created in two ways:
1. Assessments
You can take a personality assessment and discover your types for free by taking Crystal's free personality test
2. Predictions
You can use Personality AI tools to learn about people you don’t know, like a sales prospect or job candidate.
Predictions tend to be best for those you don’t know. Use the Chrome Extension to create a predicted profile for someone through LinkedIn or a CRM record in tools like Salesforce.
Create your own profile
Chrome Extension
Crystal’s Chrome Extension generates a predicted personality profile by analyzing someone’s LinkedIn page or CRM record in tools like Salesforce. This will help you better understand how another person likes to communicate (even if you don’t know them) and offer suggestions for how to format and phrase your emails to them. Whether you need to build personal rapport, request meeting times, negotiate, collaborate, or just make an effective sales pitch, you can start guessing less and sending emails with more confidence.
DownloadConversation Coach
Every call, meeting, and discussion you encounter is a unique situation, and you don’t always have much time to prepare. To help with this problem, you can use Crystal to get scenario-specific advice for communicating with your colleagues, clients, and potential customers. Crystal can help you resolve conflicts, collaborate on a project, brainstorm ideas, deliver difficult news, and more. Rather than flying blind, it’s like having an expert sitting next to you, telling you the best way to begin the conversation, frame your message, and call others to action.
Download
Slack
Crystal’s Slack app allows you to access personality insights quickly within Slack. Rather than needing to go directly to Crystal’s website or mobile app, you can view personality profiles for co-workers and get communication guidance for everyday situations without ever leaving a conversation in Slack. Crystal’s Slack bot offers communication advice for specific scenarios, as well personality overviews for your coworkers, which will help you improve communication with others.
Learn MoreMobile App
Crystal’s mobile app makes personality insights available wherever you go. Use the app to take a personality test from your phone, view personality profiles for others, and invite friends or co-workers to join you. The mobile app also provides a seamless way to use Crystal’s Conversation Coach on-the-go, so you can get real-time advice for time-sensitive scenarios, like making a good impression on a hiring manager or resolving a tense conflict with a friend.
Learn more
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Drew D'Agostino
Greg Skloot
Drew D’Agostino and Greg Skloot are CEO and President of Crystal, respectively. Crystal is the app that tells you anyone’s personality. Using AI, Crystal accurately identifies a person’s motivations, communication style, and other behavioral traits. Their company has been featured in Inc, Fortune, CNN, Fast Company, MIT Technology Review, Wired, and the Guardian. Previously, Greg and Drew co-founded Attend.com, an event software company. They are co-authors of Predicting Personality: Using AI to understand people and win more business, an upcoming book being published by Wiley in November 2019.
