Most teams feel overwhelmed and disconnected in today's fast-changing world. But some teams thrive—they adapt quickly and work seamlessly together. What's their secret? Join the virtual showcase, Teamwork: The Ultimate Competitive Advantage, on Wednesday, January 28 from noon - 1 pm EST to:
· Learn about The Five Behaviors model and how it unlocks teamwork
· Preview The Five Behaviors Team Development solution
· Experience activities that inspire cohesive teams
Contact me to register today!
Asking ourselves these questions balances out all the noise from emails, texts, phone calls, children, significant others, jobs, or other external things that require our attention.
7 Questions to Ask Yourself for a Happier New Year
It’s time to look back — and forward.
By Jancee Dunn
Dec. 26, 2025
At the end of every year, I like to reflect by asking myself a question. This year, I’m mulling one recommended by Kandi Wiens, the author of “Burnout Immunity.”
Dr. Wiens told me to ask myself: What is worth remembering from 2025?
Not a list of milestones, she said, but the “real stuff” that gave the year meaning. “It’s the conversation that shifted something, the quiet moment that surprised you, the hard thing that turned out to matter, the small thing that was bigger than it looked,” she explained.
Here is a “small thing” that was bigger than it looked for me: Every two weeks, my mom has a doctor’s appointment that takes a few hours. My dad drops her off and comes over, and we have lunch together.
During that time, I have been getting to know my father in a way that I never did as a kid. I try new recipes on him — sausage and barley soup was a massive hit — and we chat about ordinary stuff. Sometimes he’ll weigh in on a column I’m writing, or he’ll bring his toolbox to tighten a loose doorknob.
Our visits have become a ritual — and they have made my year better.
Now it’s your turn. I asked experts for other reflective questions that could provide a framework for thinking about the year ahead. Pick one or two that resonate, journal about them or discuss them with a friend.
When did you feel the most joyful and carefree?
Valerie Tiberius, a professor of philosophy at the University of Minnesota, suggested asking yourself when you felt truly happy this year. Doing so, she said, can help you figure out how to spend your time going forward. Was it with specific people, or in a place that you love?
“For me, it was when I’ve been in nature, like the north shore of Lake Superior,” she said.
What gave you energy — and what drained it?
A year is not only about what happened to you, but also about how you responded to what happened, said Deepika Chopra, a clinical psychologist and the author of the upcoming book, “The Power of Real Optimism.”
“Two people can live through the same event and come away very differently,” she said. So figuring out what nourished and drained you can help you plan for more positive energy in the year ahead.
Dr. Chopra’s energy givers were seeing live music, starting a mahjong club, reading for pleasure and having “deep, meaningful conversations with people I trust,” she said.
Self-efficacy “is built through evidence, not affirmations,” Dr. Chopra said. “I’ve seen this in my own life during periods that felt genuinely uncertain, where the path forward wasn’t clear,” she added. “What carried me wasn’t positivity, but remembering past moments where I adapted, learned and recovered.”
What habit, if you did it more consistently, would have a positive effect on your life?
Sometimes, as a new year approaches, “we focus on doing new things but forget that we are likely doing good things right now, but inconsistently,” said Anil Chacko, chair of the department of applied psychology at N.Y.U. Steinhardt. Some examples, he said, would be trying to put your phone away when you come home from work and keeping in regular touch with friends.
One habit that Dr. Chacko and his wife plan to make more consistent in 2026, he said, is “to take a walk after dinner, which is supposed to be helpful for regulating blood sugar levels and improving digestion.”
What did you try to control that was actually outside your control?
One of the “fastest ways to reduce your mental load,” said Dr. Chopra, is to let go of things that you can’t hope to control. A classic example? Other people’s reactions, she said.
“You can prepare thoughtfully, communicate clearly and act with integrity, but you cannot control how someone interprets or responds,” she said. Think of something you were unable to control this year, she said — and then let it go.
Is there anyone you need to forgive in 2026?
Hanging on to anger and resentment can take mental and emotional energy, said Anthony Chambers, a psychologist and the chief academic officer of the Family Institute at Northwestern University. Deciding to forgive, he added, doesn’t mean forgetting.
Instead, it’s a “choice to stop letting a past action control our present emotions,” he said, and it can be good for your mental health. To help his patients get started, Dr. Chambers frequently recommends the book “Forgiveness Is a Choice,” by Robert Enright.
“Forgiveness allows you to move forward feeling freer and fulfilled instead of filled with bitterness,” Dr. Chambers said. “And what better way to bring in 2026 than to have a sense of freedom?”
And here’s one final question my father suggested for me during a recent lunch: How often did I call him in 2025, and how could I do it even more next year? (A little dad humor for you.)
From my colleagues at PeopleKeys: Gift-giving and recognition are challenging even in the best circumstances: budgets vary and preferences are unpredictable. And despite your best intentions, generic, one-size-fits-all gifts can sometimes fall flat.
Employees don’t all feel valued in the same way. Some crave meaningful conversation; others love public recognition. Some appreciate a gesture that is fun or festive; others want something practical and useful. When we try to appreciate everyone in the same way, we risk missing what matters most to each person.
DISC takes the guesswork out of that process. It helps us understand what motivates each team member, and which gestures feel genuinely thoughtful to them. During a season centered on generosity and connection, that kind of insight is a leadership gift in itself. Here is a holiday-ready guide to showing appreciation for each style.
Appreciating the D Style: Give it to them straight (and make it useful)
D personality style employees are driven, decisive, and goal-oriented. They want results, not fluff.
What they’ll appreciate:
A high-quality tool, resource, or gadget that genuinely improves their workflow, a gift card that lets them choose what’s most valuable, or direct, concise appreciation: “Your leadership this quarter made X possible.”
Appreciating the I Style: Make It Fun, Festive, and Full of Connection. I personalities thrive on energy, enthusiasm, and social engagement.
What they’ll appreciate: Experiences: tickets, outings, creative workshops, and holiday events, colorful or fun gifts that show personality, or public praise during a holiday gathering or team meeting.
Appreciating the S Style: Thoughtful, Personal, and Heartfelt Wins Every Time.
What they’ll appreciate: A cozy, comforting gift (a blanket, a set with their favorite tea or coffee, a plant, etc.), a heartfelt handwritten card acknowledging their consistency and teamwork, or a one-on-one moment of appreciation rather than public recognition.
Appreciating the C Style: Purposeful, Intelligent, and High-Quality Matters
C-styles are analytical, detail-driven, and thoughtful. They appreciate gifts that are useful, well-researched, or tied to their intellectual interests. Skip the gimmicks and gag gifts.
What they’ll appreciate: A high-quality pen set, planner, or organizational tool, books or subscriptions related to a topic they enjoy, or clear, specific appreciation outlining exactly what they did well.
Not Sure of Your Team’s Styles? This is the Perfect Time to Find Out.
If you’re unsure of the DISC styles on your team, consider hosting a team DISC workshop or year-end training. It’s a fun, energizing way to strengthen communication, deepen understanding, and equip your team with tools that serve them long after the holidays. DM me for more!
Making the Wrong Talent Decision Hurts.
No one enjoys dealing with the fallout, especially when it puts their organization’s well-being in jeopardy. But there’s no need to put your company at risk.
The PXT Select™ assessment gives your organization objective, reliable, and accurate data so you can confidently hire, manage, and retain productive employees. With the right people working in the right
roles and developed to their full potential, your organization can build and engage a high-performing workforce that drives results.
How Does PXT Select Work?
As a comprehensive, “full person” assessment, the PXT Select assessment measures how well an individual fits specific jobs in an organization by
assessing their Cognitive Ability, Behavioral Traits, and Interests. The job-matching feature of the PXT Select assessment enables you to evaluate an individual relative to the qualities required to perform a job successfully.
PXT Select Helps You:
• Establish an efficient hiring and selection process
• Avoid costly hiring mistakes
• Improve employee satisfaction,performance, and retention
• Assist managers with employee coaching and onboarding
• Identify talent gaps and focus on leveraging employee strengths.
Before assessing an individual, I will help you develop performance models for the jobs you need to fill. A performance model is a benchmark you will compare individuals against to establish the degree of Job-Person Fit. Once we create the performance model, candidates take the assessment online after receiving a link from the HR administrator or hiring manager.
The assessment doesn’t require monitoring, and an individual can take it from any device with internet access. The system instantly scores the assessment and sends the requested reports to the hiring manager. PXT Select provides you with a suite of 13 reports you can use for hiring and selection, onboarding, leadership development, coaching, succession planning, and more.
DM me for a demo or more information!
As technology continues to transform the workplace you can help. As an Everything DiSC Certified Practitioner, you will gain the tools and skills you need to create a collaborative culture that inspires meaningful human connection.
Contact me to learn more about certification or go to https://www.karengeiger.com/new-everything-disc-certification for pricing and upcoming dates!
DiSCember starts early! Everything DiSC is offering 25% off Worksmart on Catalyst for a limited time only starting November 24!
In a world where change is constant, your managers are the key to stronger teams and better performance in 2026.
Contact me to get started with Worksmart and equip your managers with the skills they need to lead!
#Worksmart #EverythingDiSC #DiSCember
With Thanksgiving and family/friends gatherings coming next week, I thought I’d repost something helpful PeopleKeys has put out there:
The holiday season can be a time of joy—but it’s also notorious for adding stress to our lives. According to the American Psychological Association, 38% of people report an increase in stress during the holidays, between financial pressures, time constraints, and the hype of holiday commercialism.
DISC offers a unique lens to approach this busy season by identifying how different personality styles can manage stress and thrive during social gatherings. Developed from William Marston's DISC theory, this system categorizes behavior into four primary traits: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Compliance.
Here are some Thanksgiving tips tailored to each DISC style.
1. Tip for D Style. Your natural leadership skills make it tempting to take control of the kitchen—whether that’s cooking everything yourself or managing everyone else’s contributions. You’re the one who wants to set the menu, choose the desserts, and assign tasks to family members.
This year, try stepping back and allowing others to play a larger role. Focus on preparing just one simple dish instead of managing the entire meal. Take the opportunity to relax—curl up on the couch to watch the game or take a moment to reflect on what you’re thankful for. Letting go of some control can help you truly enjoy the holiday.
2. Tip for I Style. As the social butterfly of your circle, you thrive on connecting with people. Whether it’s sending out holiday invitations or curating the perfect guest list, you excel at bringing people together.
However, your excitement can sometimes lead to overlooking key details. Avoid last-minute stress by creating a plan in advance like a grocery list or a schedule for the day. And remember to take a break from social media during the holiday. Spending quality, undistracted time with loved ones will leave you feeling recharged.
3. Tip for S Style. Known for your dependability, you’re often the go-to person for those who need support. Whether it’s running out to replace a burnt pie or peeling extra potatoes at the last minute, you’re always ready to help.
This Thanksgiving, prioritize self-care. It’s okay to say no to extra tasks or step away from being everyone’s problem-solver. By setting boundaries and making time for yourself you can avoid burnout.
4. Tip for C Style. Your attention to detail makes you the ideal person to organize holiday logistics from coordinating who’s bringing each dish to finding the best grocery deals. You’re great at crunching numbers and ensuring everything is just right.
But remember: not everything will go according to plan—and that’s okay. Try to embrace the unexpected and focus on enjoying the moment. Sometimes the best memories come from a little chaos!
With these DISC-inspired tips, you can navigate Thanksgiving and the rest of the holiday season with less stress and more joy.
Use the Five Behaviors tool to build teamwork across different backgrounds and cultures. This will:
* Build trust across leaders from different backgrounds and perspectives. Vulnerability-based trust helps leaders overcome biases and value each other’s perspectives.
* Manage conflict constructively by embracing diverse opinions. Your leaders learn to engage in healthy debates where differences enhance decision-making.
* Strengthen commitment to shared values of inclusion and equity. Your leadership teams can co-create commitments that integrate diversity into strategy and culture.
* Reinforce accountability for inclusive practices at leadership levels. Ensure that your leaders model inclusive behaviors consistently.
* Focus on results that reflect collective performance and innovation. Your leadership teams will focus on enterprise-wide results where inclusion drives innovation and growth.
DM me for more info!
Join us on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, 10:00 am - 11:00 am (Chicago) | 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm (London) to discover the new features and benefits of the Everything DiSC® on Catalyst™ platform.
Join this exclusive training session to learn about the newest addition to the Catalyst™ platform: the Catalyst Practitioner Experience!
This easy-to-use solution is designed to equip Practitioners with the tools and support they need to deliver world-class DiSC® learning experiences.
At this webinar, we will walk you through this powerful solution and its many features, including customizable practitioner resources, real-time access to learner insights, and ongoing education and community!
During this webinar, we’ll cover:
• The key features of the new Catalyst Practitioner Experience
• A review of the tools and resources available to help you get started
• How to address common questions and challenges
This training will boost your efficiency and ease of facilitating Catalyst learning experiences in your organization.
DM me to register Today!
Could you use easy-to-understand information about the candidates you are considering for key roles and get applicable questions to ask to strengthen your interviews? Meet PXT Select™! This assessment helps make the very human decisions about hiring simpler and smarter. It is a powerful selection assessment that measures a candidate’s cognitive abilities, behaviors, and interests.
PXT Select measures a candidate’s thinking style, behavioral traits, and interests: three areas that impact an individual’s approach to situations in the workplace.
Once the candidate takes the PXT Select Assessment, you have access to a suite of reports you can use over time to help select, onboard, coach, and develop your employees:
o Comprehensive Selection Report. Is the candidate a good fit? This powerful report helps you make smarter hiring decisions with confidence. Featuring dynamic interview questions and tips on “what to listen for” with each candidate, this report gives you a meaningful edge in your hiring process.
o Comprehensive Selection Report: Sales*. This powerful report helps identify a candidates fit to a role. It features dynamic interview questions to help strengthen the overall hiring process. With a focus on sales, this report highlights critical sales practices and describes how a candidate might demonstrate them, helping you select the right salespeople for your organization.
o Multiple Positions Report. What’s the best fit for a particular individual? Compare a candidate or employee to multiple jobs in your organization.
o Multiple Candidates Report. Make hiring decisions with ease. Compare multiple candidates for a single position.
o Team Report. See how a potential candidate fits an existing team, or address your current team’s dynamic and strengths.
o Manager-Employee Report. Discover how a manager and employee can work more effectively together.
o Individual’s Feedback Report. Candidates can learn from PXT Select, too! This narrative report doesn’t reveal scores and is perfectly safe to share with applicants.
o Individual’s Feedback Report: Sales*. This participant report offers personalized feedback to the candidate or employee using common sales language and does not include critical sales practices.
o Individual’s Graph. Are you more of a visual person? The graph illustrates a candidate’s results that you can view at a glance.
o Coaching Report. Wish you had coaching advice tailored to each employee? This report gives you exactly that and more!
o Coaching Report: Sales*. This report provides tailored coaching guidance giving managers personalized tips and strategies to develop their sales team members.
o Performance Model Report. Understand the range of scores and behaviors for the position you’re trying to fill. Learn about the ideal candidate for that role. *sales-focused report available.
DM me for a demo!
For all L&D folks: Get access to this one-stop-site which has everything you need to deliver DiSC training that drives results: The Everything DiSC on Catalyst Practitioner Experience. It has ready-to-use materials, real-time insights, ongoing training, and a supportive community. Which means less prep time, more impact for you.
And DM me to register (at no charge) for an exclusive training session to learn about this new addition to the Catalyst platform on Tuesday Nov 18, 11-noon EST.
Wiley Product Operations Manager Sharon Moore will walk you through this powerful solution and its many features and will cover:
*The key features of the new Catalyst Practitioner Experience
*A review of the tools and resources available to help you get started
*How to address common questions and challenges
Contact me to learn more!
*Now through Dec. 31, 2025: free upgrade for existing Everything DiSC on Catalyst Facilitation Kit holders!
A fellow DiSC consultant and deep thinker Jerome Paige (https://whatsonjeromesmind.com/about/) has applied the DiSC model to authoritarianism vs. democracy and I think it's worth us all thinking about. Here's what he says:
The Battle Within. Fascism and democracy are not just political systems; they shape how we behave, lead, and respond to power. The DiSC model offers insight into how individuals and institutions uphold democratic values or enable authoritarian control.
In America, fascism and democracy coexist, not as distant ideologies but as everyday choices. The same leadership that fuels movements for justice can also reinforce oppression. The same need for stability that sustains communities can also create passive compliance.
American Fascism and Democracy have always coexisted, shaping the nation’s identity.
The DiSC Styles in Action. Throughout history, these behavioral styles have defined key moments in American democracy and authoritarianism:
Dominance (D): Franklin D. Roosevelt’s decisive leadership during the Great Depression and World War II saved democracy, while Richard Nixon’s abuse of executive power undermined it.
Influence (i): Martin Luther King Jr. used persuasion to mobilize the Civil Rights Movement, whereas Joseph McCarthy weaponized fear to spread propaganda.
Steadiness (S): Many Americans quietly upheld Jim Crow, fearing instability, while others worked behind the scenes to sustain movements for justice.
Conscientiousness (C): The Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling used legal integrity to challenge segregation, while courts under Jim Crow enforced racist laws without question.
Fascism weaponizes all styles: D for authoritarian rule, i for propaganda, S for passive compliance, and C for bureaucratic enforcement. Democracy, on the other hand, requires a balance: strong but just leadership, persuasion that mobilizes rather than manipulates, stability that nurtures rather than suppresses, and integrity that upholds fairness rather than enforcing oppression.
Understanding behavioral styles isn’t just about workplace dynamics—it’s about recognizing how we contribute to either justice or oppression in all aspects of life.
Reclaiming Agency: A Meditativist Approach. Fascism thrives when individuals submit without questioning their behavioral defaults. Democracy requires a balance of all styles—boldness to resist oppression, influence to mobilize, steadiness for long-term justice, and conscientiousness for accountability.
Reflection:
Identify Your Default Style. How do you engage with power and resistance?
Investigate Your Internalized Response to Fascism. Are you resisting or complying?
Work With Opposites. How can you integrate other styles to strengthen democracy?
Democracy is not a given—it is a daily practice. Our choices in leadership, interactions, silence, or resistance determine whether we uphold or let it erode.
Success isn't about individual talent anymore; it's about how well teams collaborate, make decisions, and execute under pressure. We have a tool that builds powerful teamwork and engagement - the Five Behaviors Team Assessment.
Learn more about this at the virtual showcase Teamwork: The Ultimate Competitive Advantage on November 17, noon-1 pm EST online to:
* Learn about The Five Behaviors model and how it unlocks teamwork
* Preview The Five Behaviors Team Development solution
* Experience activities that inspire cohesive teams
Email me at karen@karengeiger.com to register at no charge and learn how this powerful process can make the difference for you!
What if performance reviews actually worked?
As part of the Everything DiSC Catalyst platform, in just one hour, Worksmart helps managers:
• Give feedback that sticks
• Handle conflict with empathy
• Lead meaningful review conversations
Less stress. More impact. That’s Worksmart. Learn more at an upcoming Catalyst showcase and webinar!
Check out this page for dates and to register: Resilience at Work: Using DiSC in the Face of Change — Karen Geiger & Associates, inc.
#EverythingDiSC #PerformanceReview #ManagerTraining
If you and a colleague have ever taken an Everything DiSC® profile, you can generate a Comparison Report at no extra cost. Each of you can use it to talk about how your working relationship is going and learn ways to adapt to each other so you make the most of it.
The Everything DiSC® Comparison Report allows any two Everything DiSC participants to see their similarities and differences in six areas. The report includes a narrative that explains these similarities and differences and guides participants in a discussion around them. Overall, the purpose of this report is to improve communication and efficiency, while reducing tension and misunderstandings.
So for the cost of 1 assessment (Workplace is $90), you can generate unlimited Comparison Reports as your working relationships change.
DM me for more info!
We can make developing leadership personal to each of our leaders by using Everything DiSC Work of Leaders®. This model lays out a clear path for helping leaders at all levels make the connection between their DiSC® style and leadership. Bringing together best practices from 300 experts in over 150 organizations, the important work of the most prominent scholars, and over four years of additional research and development, this all-inclusive classroom and online program approaches leadership as a one-to-many relationship. With one unified model of leadership—vision, alignment, and execution—it focuses on helping leaders understand their own leadership styles and how their tendencies influence their effectiveness in specific leadership situations.
Here's what your leaders will walk away with:
-a research-validated, online assessment -a 23-page leader-specific profile report providing detailed context-specific feedback based on the three-step Vision, Alignment, and Execution Model and the three drivers associated with each step.
-Recognize the priorities and tendencies, based on their own DiSC style, that shape their approach to the fundamental work of leaders: creating a vision, building alignment around that vision, and championing execution of the vision
-Explore in detail how to play to their strengths and overcome challenges to improve their leadership effectiveness
-Identify strategies to develop preferred behaviors based on context-specific best practices
And you can facilitate these modules with the Facilitation Toolkit which gives you:
-Five 60-90-minute modules, including a fully-scripted facilitation dialogue to use with experiential learning activities and thought-provoking group discussions.
-video clips, PowerPoint presentation, Leader’s Guide, and handouts. Customize sections to fit any timeframe.
-Engaging 17 video segments of contemporary leadership examples. Use as stand-alone clips or integrate with the facilitation PowerPoint or your custom PowerPoint presentation.
-36 dynamic podcast segments specific to one of the three components of the Work of Leaders model—vision, alignment, and execution.
Want to take the profile for yourself at no charge? DM me!
Do you want to make a strong impact on your organization's or your team's effectiveness? Here's a way to build your portfolio and make a difference: Earn the Five Behaviors® Certification! This will prepare you to deliver engaging and impactful Five Behaviors® experiences that build cohesive teams.
In this two-week immersive experience that combines live, instructor-led sessions with self-guided online learning, you will:
· Discover the foundational principles of The Five Behaviors model.
· Explore the entire Five Behaviors solution portfolio from two perspectives – the learner and the facilitator.
· Learn how to build custom solutions and deliver Five Behaviors experiences.
· Practice facilitation and coaching techniques while receiving feedback in a supportive environment.
· Gain ongoing access to Wiley’s online training center, where you can access all of the course content and connect with their fellow Practitioners and Wiley’s education specialists.
Upon successful completion of the exam, you will earn the credential of The Five Behaviors Certified Practitioner. You must own a Five Behaviors Facilitation Kit which is not included with the course. You may purchase the kit separately from me.
Click on Certifications here, then Five Behaviors - https://www.karengeiger.com/the-five-behaviors-facilitator-certificationkg - to find the dates that work best for you (all virtual).
Every workplace faces change. The difference between teams that struggle under pressure and teams that come back stronger? Resilience. Join Wiley’s Dr. Mark Scullard on Sept. 24 from 11-noon EST for a free webinar to discover how DiSC can help your team turn challenges into growth opportunities.
You'll learn:
• Why people react differently to change and how to build adaptability with Catalyst
• How to create a resilient culture that boosts productivity and morale
• How DiSC on Catalyst tools help teams adapt
Contact me today to register!
What if you had an easy-to-access online platform you could use to make the most of your relationships with your colleagues? Well it's here - Everything DiSC on Catalyst! For only $90 each, each of you can...
• Discover your DiSC style
• Deepen your understanding of yourself and others
• Learn how to build better relationships
• Access real-time tips for more effective interactions with colleagues
• Build the foundation for future social and emotional skills training
DM me for a demo today and get set up on Catalyst!!
Are you struggling to find the best people who will perform well and stay with your organization? I have help - The PXT Select™ assessment gives you objective, reliable, and accurate data so you can confidently hire, manage, and retain productive colleagues. With the right people working in the right roles and developed to their full potential, you can build and engage a high-performing workforce that drives results.
PXT Select™ Helps You:
• Establish an efficient hiring and selection process
• Avoid costly hiring mistakes
• Improve employee satisfaction, performance, and retention
• Assist managers with employee coaching and onboarding
• Identify talent gaps and focus on leveraging employee strengths.
Before assessing an individual, I will help you develop performance models for the jobs you need to fill. This is a benchmark you will compare individuals against to establish the degree of Job-Person Fit. Once the performance model is established, candidates take the assessment online after receiving a link from either me or you. The assessment doesn’t require monitoring, and an individual can take it from any device with internet access. The results will tell you how well an individual fits specific jobs in an organization by assessing their Cognitive Ability, Behavioral Traits, and Interests. The system instantly scores the assessment and sends the requested reports to whoever you want to receive it. One assessment provides you with a suite of 13 reports you can use for hiring and selection, onboarding, leadership development, coaching, succession planning, and more.
DM me for a demo and we can plan how to use it for the finalists for your critical hires so you make the most of your hiring process.
