Mention personality assessments and eventually, someone will say, “I don’t like putting people in boxes.”
I understand the concern. People are more complex than four letters, four birds, or any other framework. The problem is that organizations are already putting people in boxes. They are simply doing it without labels.
Someone is “leadership material.” Someone else is “too quiet.” Another person is “overly emotional,” “not strategic,” “resistant to change,” or “great with people but weak on execution.”
Those are boxes too. And they’re far harder to escape.
The Real Problem Is What the Culture Rewards
A personality assessment becomes weaponized when organizations already have a preferred style.
If decisive, fast-moving people are viewed as leadership material, employees may come to believe that being more forceful is the path to advancement. If outgoing people are rewarded for visibility, quieter employees may conclude that their natural style makes them less influential. If questions are interpreted as resistance, thoughtful people may learn to keep their concerns to themselves. If harmony is mistaken for weakness, collaborative people may start focusing on their own needs and neglect others.
I once worked with an organization where 48 of the top 50 people were Eagles. Does that mean Eagles make the best leaders? Of course not. But that was the belief in that organization.
That is when people start fearing their assessment results.
An employee takes a profile, sees a high Dove score, and wonders whether management will view them as passive. An Owl worries they will be viewed as rigid or slow. A Parrot wonders whether people will dismiss them as scattered. An Eagle worries that directness will be interpreted as abrasive.
To be clear, the assessment did not create those fears. The culture did.
When Every Style Is Valued
A personality assessment should help people understand their natural tendencies, recognize where they add value, and identify where they may need to stretch.
The healthiest cultures make it safe to be an Eagle, Parrot, Dove, or Owl. People can take pride in what comes naturally to them while developing the range to respond differently when the situation requires it.
That is where personality insight becomes useful. People stop trying to produce the “right” profile and start working to become a more capable version of themselves.
The real danger isn’t putting people into boxes. It’s creating a culture where some boxes are treated as better than others.
About Merrick Rosenberg
Merrick Rosenberg is the creator of the Eagle, Parrot, Dove, and Owl personality framework and author of Personality Intelligence: Master the Art of Being You. As an award-winning speaker and founder of Take Flight Learning, Merrick has helped hundreds of thousands of people unlock the power of personality styles to transform their communication, leadership, and relationships. He’s on a mission to make self-awareness accessible, fun, and unforgettable.