What's Your Communication Style?

1. You are a costumer waiting in line to be served. Suddenly, someone steps in line ahead of you. You would:

a. Let the person ahead of you, since he or she is already in line

b. Pull the person out of line and make him or her go to the back

c. Indicate to the person that you are in line and point out where it begins

d. Be furious but pretend like nothing is wrong

2. A friend drops in to say hello but stays too long, preventing you from finishing an important work project. You would:

a. Let the person stay, then finish your work another time

b. Tell the person to stop bothering you and to get out

c. Explain your need to finish your work and request that he or she visit another time

d. Let the person stay but be irritated with his or her presence

3. You suspect someone of harboring a grudge against you, but you don't know why. You would:

a. Pretend you are unaware of his or her anger and ignore it, hoping it will correct itself

b. Get even with the person somehow so that he or she will learn not to hold grudges against you

c. Ask the person if he or she is angry, and then try to understand why

d. Gossip about this person but not ask him or her directly what's wrong

4. You bring your car to a garage for repairs and receive a written estimate. But later, when you pick up your car, you are billed for additional work and for an amount higher than the estimate. You would:

a. Pay the bill, since the car must have needed the extra repairs anyway

b. Refuse to pay, and then complain to the motor vehicle department or the Better Business Bureau

c. Indicate to the manager that you agreed only to the estimated amount, then pay only that amount

d. Pay the bill but write a bad review on the garage

5. You invite a good friend to your house for a dinner party, but your friend never arrives and neither calls to cancel nor to apologize. You would:

a. Ignore it but manage not to show up the next time your friend invites you to a party

b. Never speak to this person again and end the friendship

c. Call your friend to find out what happened

d. Pretend it doesn't bother you but ignore your friend after

6. You are in a discussion group at work that includes your boss. A coworker asks you a question about your work, but you don't know the answer. You would:

a. Give your coworker a false but plausible answer so that your boss will think you are in top of things

b. Not answer but attack your coworker by asking a question you know that he or she could not answer

c. Indicate to your coworker that you are unsure just now but offer to give him or her the information later

d. Just aggressively shrug your shoulders