DISCovering the Strengths in You - SeaVoices - Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union (SMOU) Publication

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08 Nov 2022

3 mins

DISCovering the Strengths in You

As a seafarer who often works with a diverse group of people with different personalities, conflict might sometimes arise due to strained communication or misunderstandings. Through the “DISCovering the Strengths in You” workshop, on 9^th September, the youth members and officials learnt about their strengths through the DISC analysis, and how to communicate effectively with others based on the various personality styles.

Ms Sarah Goh, who is a trainer at the Lifeskills Institute, introduced the DISC Personality System, which is based on four categories known as Dominant (D), Influence (I), Steadiness (S), and Conscientiousness (C), and how each of this category has traits that are valuable in certain situation or job type

From her explanation, Sarah also shared with the youths on the possible weaknesses that accompanies each particular DISC trait. The youths were taught on how they can work and communicate effectively with the person based on their personalities. For example, a person with high S, who prefers to follow than to lead, a thriving work environment for them would be to have a clear direction.

With an assessment done prior to the workshop, the youths were given the result of their DISC assessment, with graphs illustrating the reactivity of a person in a given situation. This allows them to gain a deeper understanding of their own traits and behavioural patterns.

In order to put their knowledge to the test, the youths were given several scenarios, where they had to discuss and apply what they have learnt. It was through the activities and discussion, were they then able to have a better appreciation of each other’s traits, and understand how the different traits, when combined, helped strengthen the team as a whole, and complement any weaknesses.

Rounding up the session, participants were asked to pick a picture that best described their biggest takeaway from the workshop. Some shared that the workshop was beneficial as the knowledge acquired would be useful for them to communicate tactfully, and some gained deeper insights of the various traits which allows them to better understand the behaviour or reaction of others in a different light.

“I signed up for this workshop to learn about my own strengths and weaknesses, as well as how to work with people who have differing personalities from me. From the session, I was able to better understand more about not just myself, but how to overcome my weaknesses and utilise my strengths to its fullest potential.”

Louis Pek, 2nd Engineer

“The workshop helped me understand my personality better, and taught me how I should handle my actions towards others. The session was very informative and the activities during the workshop helped me engage with other seafarers and put what I learnt into practice right away. As all individuals have different traits, I believe that this workshop would be useful for people of all ages as it will help them identify their strengths and weaknesses.”

Siti Nasuha, 3rd Officer