Top 5 Personality Assessment Certifications Every Coach Should Consider
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Understanding your client's personality is critical as a coach because it allows you to tailor your coaching approach to their needs. This understanding leads to more effective and impactful coaching sessions by creating a better connection with your client and maximizing their growth potential.
A wide variety of personality assessments are available, each with a unique framework and applicability. If you're considering a certification to administer, accurately interpret, and apply your client's assessment results to your coaching framework, this blog post is for you.
So why get certified?
Being certified in a personality assessment enhances your credibility, demonstrates professional competence, and equips you with the necessary skills to conduct and interpret assessment tools when working with your clients.
The journey of selecting the right certification may be overwhelming. However, carefully considering your coaching niche, client needs, and personal coaching style, you can decide which certifications best complement your practice.
Let's look into the top 5 personality assessments used by coaches today:
MBTI (Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator) - used for personal and professional development, team building, and leadership training. It focuses on cognitive processes and preferences.
DiSC - is primarily used for behavioral or personality-based coaching in the workplace. The assessment focuses on how people behave and interact with others, making it very useful for corporate training and development.
Enneagram - a versatile tool used across various types of personal and professional coaching. It focuses on self-awareness and provides a deep understanding of a person's core motivations, fears, strengths, and weaknesses.
Big Five - used in personal and professional coaching and provides a comprehensive understanding of a person's personality traits.
CliftonStrengths - used in personal and professional coaching and helps people understand their natural strengths, and potential and how to use them to succeed in all areas of their lives.
Using certified assessments in coaching businesses provides a number of benefits for the client and the coach. For the client, leveraging these tools increases self-awareness and motivation and enables them to identify unique potential, purpose, and growth opportunities. Understanding the client through their personality assessment helps coaches tailor coaching strategies for more effective personal and professional development.
Being certified allows you to offer nuanced insights based on reliable data, design strategic plans that align with each client's traits and needs, and establish rapport through informed conversations demonstrating an understanding of client psychology.
Adopting personality assessments in your coaching practice can offer profound insights into your clients' lives. Choosing the right certifications and integrating these tools effectively will enhance your value as a coach and provide personalized insights that can lead to lasting change.
“The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance.”
Let's look into each of the top personality assessment tools in detail.
MBTI
MBTI, or the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment tool, is a widely recognized assessment that categorizes individuals into 16 distinct personality types based on their psychological preferences across four dichotomies: Introversion vs. Extraversion, Sensing vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feeling, and Judging vs. Perceiving. The assessment results include one letter from each pair, and a four-letter combination generated reflects one of 16 potential personality types, like INFJ or ENTP.
Extraversion or Introversion - opposite ways to give and receive information
Extraversion - gets energy from the outside world and people. Focuses energy and attention on outward action.
Intraversion - (or introversion) gets energy from the inner world of reflections and thoughts. Focuses energy and attention inwards
Sensing or Intuition - opposite ways to take in information
Sensing - prefers information from the 5 senses (hearing, seeing, tasting, touching, smelling). Focuses on what is real.
Intuition - prefers information that is not understood or known without conscious reasoning or explanation. Focuses on possibilities and what might be.
Thinking or Feeling - opposite ways to decide and come to conclusions
Thinking - Withdraws from situations to examine them without emotional involvement. Chooses to base decisions on rational and objective reasoning.
Feeling - Engages in circumstances to assess human principles and intentions. Tends to base decisions on value systems.
Judging or Perceiving - opposite ways to approach the outside world
Judging - Likes to lead a life that is structured and well-organized. Finds satisfaction in reaching conclusions and making choices.
Perceiving - Chooses to embrace a flexible and spontaneous lifestyle, relishing the freedom of having various possibilities available.
Through understanding these types, people can improve communication and collaboration in personal and professional contexts. Ultimately, the MBTI fosters greater self-awareness and appreciation for diverse perspectives.
You can learn more about MBTI and the certification process at The Meyers-Briggs Company. Headquartered in Northern California, they have global offices and a network of partners. You can choose from a self-paced, online program or in-person training.
DiSC
The DiSC Model of Behavior analyzes how individuals express emotions through four primary traits: Dominance, influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. These are four key personality traits that help individuals understand their own behavior as well as the behavior of others.
D (Dominance) type personality - strong-willed, competitive, confident, and action-oriented. Places emphasis on accomplishing bottom-line results.
i (influence) type personality - high-spirited, optimistic, warm, and social. Places an emphasis on relationships and influence on others.
S (Steadiness) type personality - calm and even-tempered. Places emphasis on dependability and collaboration.
C (Conscientiousness) type personality - analytical and precise. Places emphasis on quality, accuracy, and competency.
Organizations can tailor their communication styles to foster better interactions by identifying these traits among team members. This understanding helps in minimizing conflicts and improving collaboration among diverse personalities.
This framework allows coaches to understand their clients and how they fit into larger team dynamics—a vital component if you're facilitating group sessions or corporate coaching. You can facilitate sessions where team members explore their different DiSC profiles together and use role-playing exercises based on DISC profiles to help your clients practice adapting their communication styles.
Several organizations in the United States offer DiSC certifications through their online or in-person programs. Notably, the lowercase "i" in DiSC is a trademark by publisher John Wiley & Sons, where the small "i" is part of their copyrighted branding. The resources below are specific to DiSC training.
Enneagram
The Enneagram name comes from the Greek words Ennea (means nine) and Grammos (means drawn symbol). It’s a personality theory that classifies people into nine personality types based on their core motivations and beliefs.
Type 1 – The Reformer: Perfectionistic and principled, they strive for integrity.
Type 2 – The Helper: Caring and interpersonal, they seek to be loved and needed.
Type 3 – The Achiever: Adaptable and success-oriented, they want to be admired for their accomplishments.
Type 4 – The Individualist: Sensitive and introspective, they seek authenticity and identity.
Type 5 – The Investigator: Innovative and secretive, they crave knowledge and understanding.
Type 6 – The Loyalist: Committed and security-oriented, they need reassurance and support.
Type 7 – The Enthusiast: Spontaneous and versatile, they desire freedom and adventure.
Type 8 – The Challenger: Self-confident and decisive, they seek control over their environment.
Type 9 – The Peacemaker: Easygoing and reassuring, they prioritize harmony in relationships.
The Enneagram is a highly adaptable framework. While our fundamental core personality type stays constant throughout our lives, the way we express it can change as we encounter different life experiences. Leveraging the Enneagram can help with a variety of personal and professional goals and can complement any coaching discipline through one-on-one or group coaching.
Pursuing an Enneagram certification can offer coaches an incredible opportunity to deepen their understanding of human behavior and significantly enhance client relationships. By gaining expertise in this model, coaches can better understand their clients' diverse perspectives and facilitate more meaningful conversations during sessions. Clients often feel heard and validated when their traits are recognized through the lens of the Enneagram.
Here are a few resources to learn more about the Enneagram and get more information about the Enneagram certification program.
Big Five
The Big Five model (also known as the five-factor model of personality or OCEAN model) categorizes human traits into five key dimensions: Openness, Conscientiousness, Agreeableness, Extraversion, and Neuroticism—collectively forming the acronym OCEAN.
The assessment operates on a continuum, positioning individuals along a spectrum that ranges between two polar extremes.
Openness - refers to how open-minded a person is to new ideas or experiences and is connected with curiosity, creativity, and imagination. People who score high in this trait enjoy new experiences and learning new things. People who score low in this trait may be resistant to new ideas and change.
Conscientiousness - refers to being responsible and cautious and is connected with self-discipline. People who score high in this trait are planners, goal-oriented, organized, and detail-oriented. People who score low in this trait are disorganized and often procrastinate.
Extraversion - refers to getting energized by social settings and is connected with being the center of attention. People who score high in traits are talkative, excitable, and high energy. People who score low in this trait are introversions and tend to be quiet, reserved, and don't need as much social interaction.
Agreeableness - refers to the ability to get along with others and is connected with social harmony. People who score high in this trait are often popular and tend to make friends easily because they are seen as trustworthy, honest, and empathetic. People high in this trait show kindness and affection and have genuine concern for other's well-being and happiness. People who score low in this trait are more competitive and may not be concerned with other's well-being
Neuroticism - refers to the level of emotional stability and is connected with the ability to self-regulate. People who score high in this trait express more stress and moodiness. People who score low on this trait are more resilient.
The Big 5 Personality test is excellent for personal and professional coaching as it identifies which trait is most dominant so the person can gain insight into how they may respond to certain situations and how others may perceive their actions or personality.
The Big Five model is supported by extensive empirical research, lending credibility to your practice and assuring clients of a scientifically sound approach. It has applications across diverse fields such as life coaching, organizational management, and career development, making it versatile to various coaching niches.
Pursuing certification in the Big Five personality assessment significantly enhances your skill set as a certified personality assessment coach. This qualification equips you with a comprehensive framework for understanding human behavior, thereby enriching your coaching practice.
Here are a few resources to learn more about the Big Five model and get more information about the Big Five certification program.
Table Mountain Consulting Group
CliftonStrengths
Previously known as StrengthsFinder, CliftonStrengths, provides insight into the question, What defines me? The StrengthsFinder gauges the strength of an individual's abilities across 34 distinct CliftonStrengths themes within four domains - Strategic Thinking, Relationship Building, Influencing, and Executing. The results show a unique combination of these themes.
Strategic Thinking - how an individual absorbs and analyzes information to make decisions.
Analytical: excels at analyzing information and identifying patterns.
Context: understands the present by examining the past.
Futuristic: often visualizing of what could be and is forward thinking.
Ideation: innovators and are drawn to new and fresh ideas.
Input: collecting and archiving information and ideas.
Intellection: introspective and enjoy time alone to think and reflect.
Learner: strong desire to constantly learn and improve.
Strategic: able to see possibilities and alternatives.
Relationship Building - how an individual creates connections and fosters positive relationships with others.
Adaptability - embraces change, anticipates uncertainty, and is able to easily adjust to change.
Connectedness - believes there is a connection in all things and sees themes and patterns where others see chaos and confusion.
Developer - recognizes and nurtures the potential in others.
Empathy - senses and understands the feelings of others.
Includer - accepting of others; is aware of those that are left out and makes an effort to include them.
Individualization - interested in the uniqueness of others.
Positivity - upbeat, enthusiastic, and can motivate others.
Relator - trusting, sees the value of relationships.
Influencing - how an individual takes charge and persuades others to achieve a goal.
Activator - helps others turn thoughts into action.
Command - has presence and can take control of a situation.
Communication - speaks confidently and ensures others are heard.
Competition - enjoys challenging themselves and others to perform at a higher level.
Maximizer - seeks to improve what is already working.
Self-Assurance - confident in their own ability
Significance - wants to make a big impact in the world.
Woo - winning others over.
Executing - how an individual completes tasks and achieves goals.
Achiever - pushes to get things done and has a strong self of urgency.
Arranger - is organized and arranges people and resources to maximize efficiency.
Belief - aligns work with values.
Consistency - maintains stable routines and is comfortable with rules.
Deliberative - careful, vigilant, and considers all possibilities before taking action.
Discipline - creates structure and order.
Focus - sets a goal and focuses on working towards achieving it.
Responsibility - committed to keeping their word and owning their commitments.
Restorative - enjoys solving problems.
CliftonStrengths focuses on a person's greatest opportunity for development (rather than on a person's weaknesses), so the assessment is a great compliment to help your client achieve success at work, personal relationships, and leadership development.
The CliftonStrengths certification program is offered through Gallup, an analytics and management consulting company. You can find more information about their certification program here.
Utilizing leading personality assessments boosts your professional qualifications and improves your capacity to assist clients successfully. By thoughtfully choosing the most suitable psychometric instruments for your coaching practice, you can expand your business using validated personality assessment methods catering to various client requirements.
