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The story of how our company got its name is rather touching, and a big part of the reason I came to work here.  And it all began with a young man who wanted to start his own company: 

The founder and CEO of The Grant Company, Mack Hull, has three grown children.  His two younger sons have a genetic disorder called Fragile X Syndrome.  Fragile X Syndrome has many physical and developmental characteristics including autism and intellectual delays.  Because of these delays, Mack Hull’s family was a strong advocate for the education of their sons and paved the way for many individuals with special needs being included in the typical classroom today.  When these young men were growing up, their early school days were spent in small rooms, such as the furnace room or a room with no windows, away from the typical classrooms and children.  When they graduated from school, or became old enough that they were no longer eligible to go to school, society had no good “fit” for their wants and desires, causing heightened anxiety for parent and child.  Like any other adult, adults with special needs have the same basic instincts and desire for independence and responsibility. 

However, Mack’s youngest son admired his father and often said that one day he would have his own company, just like his dad.  When asked what he would call this company, he contemplated on the name and said, “The Grant Company.”  If you haven’t guessed by now, his name is Grant.  

When Mack realized that the personality assessment he had created to help him in his own business could be shared with others, it seemed only fitting that the company’s name should be the one his son had chosen years before.  

I mentioned earlier that the company’s name was one of the reasons I wanted to work here.  That’s because I, too, have a child with special needs.  My youngest daughter has Down syndrome and is just now beginning her journey of education and school life.  One that has been made easier thanks to families like the Hulls who refused to allow their children to be shoved in a corner and forgotten.  In raising a child with special needs I have learned that they have a natural ability to assess a person’s personality and bring out the best in them.  So, although we may not write grants, Grant, and others like him are a fitting example of what our company helps businesses and schools do on a daily basis: putting the right people together for a happier and more efficient work environment. 

Today, Grant works at Heartstrings, a foundation started by his mother to give adults with developmental disabilities the opportunity live meaningful, independent, and productive lives through interactions within the community.  But he continues to be a reminder to us of who we are and what we are here to do.

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Although there is a benefit to the detailed personality survey, when it comes to incorporating it into your everyday work day, it can lose its value.   How often do you sit around and think, “Wow, that person is a INTJ, no wonder I can/can’t relate to him.”  And yet, that is exactly what we do in our office on a daily basis.

At The Grant Company, our personality survey is only 25 simple questions and takes less than 5 minutes to complete.  When you are done, you get a result of one of 4 styles; Bridge Builder, Bottom Liner, Energizer or Thinker; along with a brief description of how to apply it.  For the visual learner, it’s also color coded.  It’s easy to remember. 

I can tell you, without looking at my results that I am an Energizer/Thinker (green/blue).  I scored equally on both these styles.  This means that I am creative (Energizer) but organized and detail oriented (Thinker).  I can’t make a decision until I have checked all the facts and considered all the options.  That’s pretty much me to a “T”.

A Bridge Builder (yellow) is someone who is more interested in team success and making sure others are happy than in personal gain.  A Bottom Liner (red) is concerned about the end result, not so much how you got there.  He doesn’t need to do a lot of research before making a decision. 

Our personality descriptions make sense and are easy to remember.  The description on your result is more detailed than what I described above, but this simplified version helps you remember your results without having to refer back to the detailed description.  With some additional consultation from our office, you can start using this information immediately to improve work relationships and increase productivity.

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By now, most everyone is familiar with the movie The Blind Side.  Because of this movie, even those who aren’t huge football fans, like me, can give you the name of Michael Oher and may even be able to tell you that he plays for the Baltimore Ravens.  However, without Googling it, I can’t tell you what position he plays, although I’m guessing many could. (Ok, I had to Google all that information, but I did know his first name was Michael.)

Even though I am not a huge sports fan, I often enjoy sports movies.  They are usually based on the underdog or Cinderella team that overcomes many obstacles to make some great achievement:  Hoosiers, Remember the Titans and Bull Durham are just a few of my favorites.  The overall theme of these stories is:  If you identify with the person, you can achieve more success from the player(s).

In Michael Oher’s case, his talent was being lost by the coach’s inability to reach him.  One of the more famous scenes of the movie is when Leigh Ann Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) walks on to the practice field and tells the coach he can thank her later.  She then instructs Michael to consider his team his family, even relating some of the players and the coach to the Tuohy family members.  Once Michael had a new perspective of his team, that of being his family needing his protection, he had no trouble blocking the players from the other team and his true talents shone.

As a novice sports observer, it appears to me that talent often overshadows many other aspects of the player; the greater the player’s talent, the greater the forgiveness of any transgressions.  However, one thing I take away from all of these movies is that talent, although important, is not more important than a person’s learning or personality style.  Although Hollywood may sensationalize many of these stories, the core issue remains true: when we relate to a person, we bring out the best in their ability.

By understanding a player’s learning and personality styles, a coach and fellow team members can create a more successful team.  That’s not to say talent isn’t important.  I love to dance, but I’m lousy at it.  Even with an instructor that relates to my personality and learning styles, I am never going to be a superstar.  But for those with talent, being able to find the key to what makes your players tick could be the difference between a winning season and one that you’re glad is finally over.

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What do you think is the true reason of success for many of these Cinderella teams?

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Recently my daughter was assigned a class project that required her to work with several of her classmates. Teamwork is not a strong suit for my daughter. As a high Thinker personality type, she prefers to work alone. She is a stickler for rules and somewhat of a perfectionist. These are not bad traits, but they can make working with others difficult. 

From day one this project caused a lot of frustration for my daughter and me. She would get upset with her teammates because she felt they were not covering all the key requirements of the project.  She wanted all the statistics and facts to support the project where her teammates were more interested in the emotional side of the issue. I spent a lot of time trying to calm my daughter down and explain that just because they were not doing it her way did not mean it was wrong. 

Although we do not know the final grade of this project, according to my husband it was as good if not better than the other projects presented at the Parent Presentation night.  In fact, this project drew a lot of student attention due to the “graphic content”, as my daughter put it.  She would have preferred statistics and facts, but the emotional side her teammates preferred is what drew the crowd. 

Teamwork is an everyday occurrence and something everyone must develop.  We work with others in school, church, social organizations and at the office.  Although teamwork is difficult for my daughter, this project was a great opportunity for her to grow.  Bridge Builders enjoy the team-oriented environment, but can spend so much time building consensus among all team members that they can slow a project down and confuse the project goals.  My daughter’s Thinker personality can be a great asset to a team comprised primarily of Bridge Builders who are often less attentive to details.  As a Thinker, my daughter was constantly referencing the assignment requirements and ensuring they were included.  She was concerned about time; kept the team on task and did much of the research.  

During this process I often reminded my daughter of her Thinker traits.  I was not trying to change who she was, but I felt it was important for her to understand that these traits can sometimes cause obstacles.  In addition, understanding and accepting who we are can help us identify what assets we bring to the table.  

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How do you feel about team projects?

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I’ve often heard it said that you should choose a career that makes you happy.  You spend a lot of time at work, and you don’t want to always be miserable.  Through personal experience, I know this to be true.  I have left a job or two because of it.  However, I have also had the unique experience of having a dream job turn to dread simply because of those around me. 

Several years ago, I worked for a state agency regulating licensed individuals.  I liked most of my co-workers and my boss.  I loved my job.  After several years of working at places that I didn’t feel used my college degree to its fullest extent, I was happy to finally be doing something I went to college for.  I felt I was making a difference for the people in our state.  

A couple years later, my husband and I decided to move back to our hometown area.  This was several hours from where we currently lived and would mean changing jobs.  However, this state agency had a satellite office in the city I was moving to, and although my particular position was not housed in this office, I asked if I could take my job with me.  My request was granted and I happily set up shop in my new office.  I would still report to my boss in the city I had left; files would still be set up and sent to me from the main office; and any interviews I held with licensed individuals would be handled at the main office.  However, day to day responsibilities would be handled from the satellite office. 

From day one, I was met with resentment and anger from those working at the satellite office.  These individuals made no effort to accommodate me and made it clear they did not want me there.  When I complained to my boss, she simply told me to avoid those who were being difficult.  Unfortunately, this was not easily accomplished since there were only 4 of us in the office and 2 openly disliked me while the other was nice to my face but badmouthed me behind my back.  In a few short months, a job I loved turned into a job that often left me in tears.  

Eventually I did move on and took another job that I found fulfilling, if not quite as “perfect” as the one I had left.  At times, I still miss that job and those I left behind, although I’m not sure I would still be there regardless of the events that had transpired.  It does make me wonder, however, what would have been if I could have only connected with those people and worked through that resentment.  Unfortunately, our personalities were such that this was not possible; we simply did not connect. 

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Have you ever had job satisfaction and happiness change just because of the people you worked with?  What did you do?

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Personality surveys can be a fun party game. Like many of the quizzes you take on Facebook; you answer the questions, get your result and then see if you agree or disagree with the description.  But how do you take that information and use it to improve your business relationships? 

Many companies that sell their personality surveys to businesses spend a lot of time explaining to you what you already know: who you are and what makes you tick.  They then instruct you to identify your client’s personality and change who you are to mirror the personality style of your client.  A lot of time and money is spent on turning you into a chameleon and, after the initial training is over, so is the company’s support.

Although it’s true that everyone has all four* quadrants of a personality profile, we are stronger in some quadrants than others.  We typically function in the quadrant/s that we “own”.  When forced into a lesser quadrant, either by design or by frustration, we are less tolerant of those we are dealing with.  This does not create the best environment for success.  If we try to change who we are to work with those around us, as many personality assessment companies would  have us do, we are only setting ourselves up to fail in our business relationships.  

For example, my husband and I met through a mutual friend.  I went to college with this friend and my husband had gone to high school with him.  Since my husband went to another college, I didn’t know he existed even though he had known about me for the past a year.  One thing that surprises me to this day is something our friend had told my husband: “She’s nice, but don’t get on her bad side.”  Now, I don’t argue that this statement is not true.  I value friendship above many other things and I will judge for myself if a person is good, not based on other’s opinions.  However, if you do push me to that quadrant of least tolerance, you will have a very hard time getting back into my good graces, if at all.  What I found surprising about this comment was the fact that my friend even knew this about me.  We didn’t hang out all the time and I didn’t realize I had ever let this side of me show.  When we show our least tolerant quadrants, it is with such force it makes a quick and strong impact on those around us, even without our knowledge.

This is one of the many reasons why our company has a different approach to survey results.  Instead of training a person to become the chameleon, we train the business to create the right teams and connections to ensure the strongest personality traits will connect.  Although you may turn a client or two away, in the long run, your success rate will be much improved. 

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Can you think of a time when you were pushed to a breaking point?  What affect did that have on you and those around you?

*Note:  Not all tests break down personalities to only 4 quadrants.  Regardless, everyone has some level of each quadrant or style tested.

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Some people know from an early age what they want to be when they grow up.  My sister was one of them; she wanted to be a chemist and never strayed from her goal, even when one science teacher told my mom she should choose a different profession.  He said my sister didn’t have what it took to be a chemist.  This just made my sister more determined to succeed and, she did.

I, on the other hand, waffled even into my college years.  Early in life I wanted to be a nurse, because that’s what my mom was; later I wanted to be a mechanic; a truck driver; a journalist; and finally a teacher.  I went to college pursuing the teacher idea, but I didn’t want to be an elementary school teacher, I wanted to teach secondary education; specifically, junior high.  In order to teach secondary school, you have to major in a specific subject and minor in education.  At the time I was going to school, I was told that English and history were over saturated and I would not be able to find a job if I majored in one of these subjects.  My best bet was math or science; my two worst subjects.

Although I struggled with math, I had taken all the advanced classes available in high school and had relatively good grades.  This was not achieved without a lot of tears and hours of frustration and homework.  I often went into class early to discuss assignments with my math teacher.  When I told my mom I was going to be a math teacher, she did not try to dissuade me from pursuing it, even though she knew the difficulties I had through my high school years.

In college, I chose to skip a pre-calculus class and proceed straight into calculus because the other class would not count towards my credited hours.  Within a few weeks it became clear to me just how good my high school math teacher was.  My college math professor was much more analytical in his teaching method, if you could really call it teaching.  He would come into class and simply work problems on the board.  He rarely looked at the class.  I liken it to the scene in “The Mirror has Two Faces” in which Barbra Streisand’s character tells Jeff Bridges’, “You’re up there with your back to the room, solving your own problems.  It’s like you’re having a math party, and only invited yourself.” 

I could not see how anyone was learning anything in that class.  I expected everyone to be struggling as much as I was because our professor was not teaching us anything.  However, I was wrong.  Many of my friends had little or no difficulty in class.  I spent hours studying and in the end, received a D in a 5 hour class my first semester of college.  I immediately dropped all pretense of wanting to be a math teacher and started looking for the right career for me. 

My ability at math had not changed from high school to college.  I was still capable in some areas, such as algebra, and struggled in others, such as fractions and word problems.  What changed was the teacher.  If this same class had been taught by my high school math teacher, I’m confident my grade would have been better.  I related to her.  I liked her.  However, in the end, my college math professor taught me a valuable lesson and helped me to realize I needed to pursue a career much more suited to my learning and personality styles.  Once I found that path, I graduated with a 4.0 in my major and succeeded in my career.  Something I never would have been able to do if I had continued to pursue math.

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In your journey to adulthood, did you have any career changes along the way that made you realize you needed to be true to yourself?  Did you have any teachers that helped you with that realization?

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We often talk about customer service here at the office.  When your business is based on personal dynamics, you tend to tune into the service you receive and why you may or may not have related to someone.  I’ve asked more than once during our meetings, “Why is it we are surprised when we receive good customer service?”  Shouldn’t it be expected instead of accepting the rude and unfriendly service as the norm?

I hate going to the grocery store and having to listen to the conversation between the checker and bagger.  I’m basically ignored until I get the monotone total for my bill.  I’m lucky if I get a thank you as I walk away.  Or worse, when I go to a restaurant and get the frustrated “Can’t you read?” look from the person taking my order.  Many restaurants now have lunch combos that, for someone who doesn’t visit often, can be confusing.  I recently went to one of those sandwich places where you had to choose the sandwich; then all the stuff you wanted on it; then what side item, some of which were an additional cost; then the drink, which is sometimes included in the price and sometimes not.  Because it’s lunch hour you feel pressured by the employee and those behind you to hurry up and choose.  When I asked about the sides, the employee just pointed to the menu and said nothing.  No explanation or assistance was provided.  I was so frustrated I swore I’d never go back. 

What these employees don’t seem to understand is not all of us are there on a daily basis for several hours.  We don’t sit around and memorize the menu.  What might seem obvious to them is confusing to someone who hasn’t stepped into their restaurant for several years.  Perhaps someone with a little more “Bridge Builder” in them would be better off taking orders and the “Bottom Liner” should be making the sandwich or running the cashier.  It’s not that the “Bottom Liner” isn’t competent, but s/he is more about getting the job done and less about being all warm and fuzzy.  If the person would have simply pointed me to the center and explained that some choices cost extra, I would have walked away happier, not having paid extra for a salad that I didn’t really want and willing to eat there again. 

This restaurant is the closest choice to my office.  I only have 30 minutes for lunch so time is an issue.  Instead of going somewhere close that has healthier choices, I chose to either bring my lunch or drive further, scarfing down a burger and fries on my drive back to the office.  If management had taken just a few moments to consider the personal dynamics of their employees and made their schedule based on these strengths in addition to the employees’ skills, they would not have lost my business.

Building a personal relationship can help prevent some of these anger and forgiveness issues. When you have a good relationship with someone, you take the time to see his/her side of the issue. You give him/her the benefit of the doubt and consider his/her intent.  You may still get angry, but if the relationship is important to you, you will eventually find a common ground, forgive and move forward. The more you like the person, the easier this becomes.

In the business world, personality connections can either make or break the relationship. For example, I have had the same hairdresser for over 7 years. She’s not the best hairdresser I ever had. Sometimes I walk out of the salon far from thrilled with the cut I received or the style she did. It is not uncommon for me to go home, wash my hair and restyle it to my preference. A couple years ago, my hairdresser went on maternity leave. During that time, I had another stylist at the salon cut and style my hair. I really liked the cut.  It was one of the best cuts I’d had in recent history.  But, when my hairdresser returned, so did I.  Even though I didn’t get that great cut again.

Why would I continue to go to a hairdresser that didn’t wow me?  Simple.  I like her.  I have a personal relationship with her that is more important than the service.  Sure, there comes a point in a business relationship where the service is more important than the personal connection, but the greater the likeness, the greater the forgiveness.  For the most part, I’m happy with the haircuts I get.  They are good enough to keep me coming back and if I’m going to sit in that chair for an hour, I want to enjoy who I’m talking to. 

In the business world, mistakes happen.  No matter how diligent you are, you are going to mess up from time to time.  If you work with those that you connect with, you have a greater chance of client forgiveness and moving past that mistake, keeping the relationship intact.  In the alternative, if your client does not like you on a personal level, even the smallest of mistakes can be the reason s/he was looking for to end the business relationship. 

This is why we at The Grant Company disagree with the philosophy to change who you are to relate to your clients.  Instead, we recommend you work with those you connect with and refer those you don’t to someone else.  In the end, you will be happier with your clients and your clients will be happier with you.  You will place more business and be more readily forgiven when that rare mistake does occur.

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When was the last time you had a business relationship fall through because you did not like the person?  Has there ever been a time when you accepted less than perfect service just because you liked the person?  Have you ever been forgiven for a mistake that could have easily ended the relationship just because you had a good personal connection with your client?

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Since my children have been in school, I have received an annual letter from the principal about next year’s classes.  In the letter, it states the school will begin assigning students to classrooms over the summer.  The process includes input from the current teacher regarding each child’s temperament and learning style and who he/she thinks will be the best teacher for the upcoming year.  The principal also states that although we cannot request a particular teacher, we can provide a letter about our child to be considered during the process. 

Sometimes I have taken advantage of this opportunity and sometimes I have not.  The reasonings behind these decisions have been numerous.

When my oldest was first starting school, I was naive and ignorant about a lot of the bureaucracy of the school system.  I didn’t know what to expect.  I put faith in the current teacher to know my child well enough to assist in her placement for the upcoming year.  I didn’t really know what I should tell them that would be important.  Finally, sometimes I simply forgot to write the letter.

As my daughter got older, I continued to have faith in her teacher, but there were issues that I felt needed to be addressed.  For example, my daughter is highly creative and had a hard time sitting still.  She often seemed distracted during lessons.  However, she would surprise you by being able to answer a question you were sure she didn’t hear.  She was highly emotional when she was younger and cried easily.  It was important that she had a teacher that could be patient with her and receptive to her creativity. 

When I took the time to write a letter to the school, I think my daughter got teachers who better matched her learning and temperament styles.  When I didn’t, her school years were less successful.  One year sticks out in my mind as a particularly challenging year.  My daughter and her teacher did not seem to “click” and I often felt the teacher had “favorites” that did not include my daughter.  We had many discussions that year about just surviving the year and the following year would be better.  It was and things did improve.

Why is it that we have to play “teacher roulette” with our children?  Although the school takes great care in placing students in the best classroom for them, some children still get the wrong placement.   Parents who are more involved in the school have certain advantages.  Parents who do not have the time to volunteer or the knowledge of the system sometimes unwillingly put their child at a disadvantage.  Could there be a better system?

We think so.  Our system is not designed to replace the school’s placement system, but to assist it.  Schools who work with us have access to our online real-time system that can identify each student and teacher’s preferred communication, temperament, and learning styles. Administrators can use this data to eliminate any teacher/student pairings that are complete opposites.  This can not only speed up the process of student placement, it can eliminate years where a student is unhappy and not excelling as well as s/he could.  Our system matches students based on their answers  to our survey, not their parents.  In the current system, although I have my daughter’s best interest at heart, I may be missing some key information that could help her to be paired with the perfect teacher.  Not to mention the school and student do not have to rely on the parent’s ability to write an effective letter and actually have it turned it in.

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How does your child’s school place students in classrooms?  Do you get input in the placement?  Do you think there’s room for improvement?