Even if you wholeheartedly disagree with what these tests and signs say about you, it’s always fun to discuss our personalities and what makes us the way that we are. As long as that information isn’t weaponized against us, especially in the workplace. One woman recently detailed on Reddit how she maliciously complied with her boss’ demand to take a personality test. Below, you’ll find the full story, as well as conversations with the woman who posted it and scholar, speaker and author Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe!
This woman’s boss thought it would be a clever idea to make his team take a personality test
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But he didn’t anticipate anyone’s results matching up with his
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Later, the woman provided a brief update on the situation
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“He was absolutely disgusting in every way”
To learn more about this situation, we reached out to the Reddit user who shared this story, Woolen_goose, who was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda. The OP shared that she was inspired to tell this story by recent circumstances in her life. She was in the middle of a wrongful lease termination with a cruel landlord that reminded her of this past experience. “I have a disabled son and already had lost most of my money and my career to an ex who didn’t want our child anymore but wanted all of my money,” Woolen_goose explained. “So I paid out for our safety and freedom. I was finally tired of having powerful men push me around. My bad boss was the start of this. I had a bright future, and my director promoted me two months into my job there. The new middle manager was a narcissistic parasite who ruined so many people. I had one coworker go from being bright to suicidal. I was tired of letting others win with cruelty, so I decided to post.” We were also curious about what ended up happening to this boss. The OP says he was never fired, but he definitely blacklisted her. “The real turning point was when one of his favorite people below him, who he played basketball with each week, raped me and another woman on the team,” Woolen_goose revealed. “Then, the guy also came to work and shared a story about how he tried to rape a woman,” she continued. “When I went to evil boss about this lunch time story, he said, ‘If you don’t like how someone chews their food, move tables. It’s the same thing.’ This also is knowing that lunch is when we would often mingle to be recruited to projects to advance our careers. He was absolutely disgusting in every way.” As far as how he was able to get away with treating his employees like this, Woolen_goose says, “One reason was because my director (my previous direct report) was a actually a really good person. We were small at the time, and there was no need for hard politics. We were both about 26. My director had his position because of his engineering talent, but also because we were so small we didn’t need someone to be a hard manager. The new manager was older than him.”
“We need a new way of working that is based upon trust, care, and understanding”
“In fact, one time the old director pulled me into a room and told me ‘off the record’ he will never promote me or even allow me to transition to other teams,” the OP added. “But then I told him about my rape, about the rape lunch story, about the quizzes, about another two employees being raped… He was shocked. I think my old manager just hid everything until anyone brought it to HR.” Woolen_goose says she did eventually go to HR. “The guy feels bad to this day he didn’t do what he should have done for me, but he was brand new,” she added. “He did what he could, and I appreciate him. The thing that stands out most is he said to me, ‘Whatever you choose, get out of here for your own safety.’ We are friends to this day. He hates the former company and my ex boss. We speak every week still over a decade later as friends.” As far as whether or not this horrible boss learned his lesson, the OP isn’t optimistic. “I am not sure if he is aware he is a sociopath or not,” she added. “His LinkedIn suggests he is successful enough but likely not where he wishes he could be.” Woolen_goose also noted that she’s been so busy moving, she hasn’t been able to read all of the replies to her post. “I never expected it to gain traction. I have even more stories about him. I was just venting after another round of life altering inequality at the hands of money and status grubbing sociopathic men,” she explained. “My career had never fully recovered from him, even if I’ve had high titles and salaries; I am definitely blacklisted somewhere that makes it difficult to transition jobs even with my good history. I am just proud I have never become like him since his method seems to work. We need a new way of working that is based upon trust, care, and understanding – so I have continued to operate that way in my career,” she shared.
Many companies use personality tests to assess employees today
According to Psychology Today, about 80% of Fortune 500 companies use personality tests to assess their employees. These are used to help hire, build teams, train new team members and develop relationships. But the reality is, many of these tests aren’t entirely accurate. Leaders reports that about 80 million people take a personality test each year, but the results of these tests aren’t often fair. They typically assume that traits are fixed, which can unfairly impact candidates and employees. We were also lucky enough to get in touch with Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe to learn more about how accurate personality tests are and whether or not they should be used in the workplace. Dr. Robyne is a multi-award-winning education and psychology instructor, author, and resiliency expert, and she was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda, noting that personality tests have a solid history in the field of psychology. “Personality tests can be insightful tools for self-reflection and understanding, but their accuracy can vary depending on various factors such as the quality of the test, the honesty of the respondent, and the complexity of human personality itself,” the expert says. “However, it’s important to recognize that personality is multifaceted and dynamic, and no test can fully capture its complexity,” she added. “So, while personality tests can offer valuable insights, they should be used cautiously and in conjunction with other methods of self-reflection and assessment.”
“Personality tests should supplement, not replace, other assessment methods, and their results should not be used to make high-stakes decisions alone”
Dr. Robyne also says personality tests can offer valuable insights into workplace dynamics, aiding in team building, conflict resolution, and employee development. “However, their use should be approached with caution, ensuring they are implemented ethically, transparently, and with respect for individual privacy,” she noted. “Personality tests should supplement, not replace, other assessment methods, and their results should not be used to make high-stakes decisions alone.” We were also curious if there might be any alternatives to personality tests that can help employers understand their teams. “Other methods of assessing the suitability of the potential employee yield better results, such as behavioral interviews,” Dr. Robyne told Bored Panda. “Can you tell me a time you experienced a tight deadline and how you managed it. Or can you tell me a time when you had to work with a difficult colleague. What happened? Another example is using portfolios or samples of work. Having a potential employee show past examples and speak to relevant experiences is more of a real-time assessment than a personality test.” “You can gain significant insights about a person’s temperament and interests by asking them to share with the interviewer what are their hobbies outside of work or asking goal-oriented questions like what was the last personal and professional goal you accomplished,” the expert added. As we’ve seen in this story, some toxic bosses might also try to weaponize personality tests against employees. PEAT warns that personality tests can sometimes collect unlawful data from employees, such as information about mental health conditions. These tests are also often used to ensure that workers fit into the culture of a company, but that can undermine diversity goals. There is absolutely no need to have a company full of extremely similar people. In fact, that will likely do more harm than good. Best Buy, CVS, and Target have all found themselves in hot water for using personality tests to discriminate against applicants.
A toxic boss can take a huge toll on employees and the company
While personality tests can understandably put employees on edge, the test was only a drop in the bucket of issues that came from this particular boss. Nobody wants to be stuck dealing with a toxic manager, but unfortunately, most of us know that experience all too well. According to a 2023 Harris Poll, 71% of workers say they have had at least one toxic boss in their careers. In fact, one third of employees say that they’re currently stuck working for one. Sadly, having a toxic boss can impact workers’ lives outside of the office too. 71% of those surveyed admitted that they have anxiety on the weekend about going back to work on Monday, also known as “Sunday Scaries.” And over half of employees say that they’ve even had nightmares about their horrible bosses. 41% of workers have started going to therapy due to a toxic boss, and two thirds have heard their employers say, “What I say is final because I am the boss.” We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments below, pandas. Then, if you’re interested in reading another Bored Panda piece featuring malicious compliance in the workplace, we recommend checking out this article!
Later, the employee responded to a few readers and provided additional details
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Amused readers applauded the woman and chimed in with similar stories of their own
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