More of That

A few weeks back, I described the training program my company is putting us through. On that day, we had some instruction in the Myers-Briggs personality measurement. (Todd = INTJ). Then we all went sailing. Click the first link for the pretty sailing photos. Yesterday was Phase II. No sailing this time, but we did have more personality assessment activities which I enjoyed. The day once again started without popcorn which was momentarily distressing to say the least. Plus the guy sitting next to me had this half-eaten pastry which for some reason smelled like fresh chocolate chip cookies. I kept glancing over there hoping to find cookies but they never appeared. Torture! The walls were covered with charts and diagrams. For part of the day, we took a test to measure what strategies we use to handle conflicts. The test we took is called the Thomas Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument. I'll give you the extremely quick version. A questionnaire determines how often you turn to one of five conflict strategies. All of the strategies can be useful in different situations. However people tend to overuse one or two of them. This test tells you which ones you turn to. Unlike Myers-Briggs, your scores on this test change over time. It was no surprise that I was in the middle of the spectrum, slightly slanted towards "avoidance." Here are my scores: Competing 70th percentile Collaborating 10th percentile Compromising 60th percentile Avoiding 80th percentile Accommodating 50th percentile I avoid conflict often, but when I get in there I want to win! We did other things throughout the day but it wouldn't be interesting if you don't work at my place. Stay tuned for part III in three months or so! Then tonight we turned to one of our dinner staples, Szechuan Spicy Noodles with Carrot-Cucumber Relish. Yum, ya-yum yum yum. I took some "during" photos for your enjoyment. Then I wolfed it. Cooking the meat Adding the sauce Mixing the relish The whole shebang!