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Four Lenses training provides insight to building strong relationships

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. Edward Snyder
  • 169th Fighter Wing/Public Affairs
MCENTIRE JOINT NATIONAL GUARD BASE, S.C. --  Local Four Lenses instruction provides an additional professional development training opportunity for South Carolina Air National Guardsmen with Swamp Fox instructors leading the way, Feb. 18.

No this isn't playground name calling that some of us who wear glasses may have experienced in elementary school, but it is a course that will help individuals to better understand their coworkers, family and friends through personality analysis.

By utilizing hands-on practical assessments, this course was designed to assist trainees in understanding why people think, feel and act the way they do. This in turn will aid in learning better ways to interact with different personalities.

"It's okay for others to think differently," said 169th Fighter Wing Command Chief Master Sgt. Robert Davis. "The key to remember is for us to be aware of it and understand how we can better get along with each other."

This initiative began this past September when nine SCANG members attended Yellow Ribbon, deployment readiness and Four Lenses training at March Air Force Base, Cali. This group of future Four Lenses trainers consisted of 169th Fighter Wing Command Chief Master Sgt. Robert Davis, Chief Master Sgts. Bonita Floyd-Ross and Shawn Chrystal, Senior Master Sgts. Rhonda Hill and David Hutter, Master Sgts. Martina Borg, Cynthia Rucker and James Jefferson, and Tech. Sgt. Michael Bryant.

"The main goal of this training is for you to be able to communicate and work better with other people and not take things so personal," said Tech. Sgt. Michael Bryant from the 169th Security Forces Squadron and a Four Lenses instructor.

Each person completes a personality assessment to begin this course of instruction. This assessment pinpoints a primary temperament which is color-coded as gold, green, blue and orange. After completing the color assessment, students are divided into their color groups to complete an exercise designed to identify their common traits, which are then compared with the traits belonging to the other color groups.

"We are a blend of all four colors, but we each have a primary color," said Bryant. "Everyone has their own values and things that really motivate them."

According to Bryant, learning to adapt one's color-style with others will help each individual to remain flexible and better able to compromise and reach solutions. This will result in achieving mission goals and conflict resolution that will help each person in their professional and personal lives.

"The course has given me insight to utilize a person's strengths and identify what motivates them," said Master Sgt. James Jefferson, from the 169th Logistics Readiness Squadron and a Four Lenses instructor.

As an example in his duty section, Jefferson said he would assign a person with a green temperament to finish a mandatory report because that type of person values perfection. As another example, he would assign a person with a blue temperament as a mentor to someone new to the unit, because that person values people and relationships.

This training will be given to the 169th Student Flight during the March drill with additional classes being planned during the 169th Fighter Wing's annual training in Savannah this summer. More classes will be scheduled in the future with class sizes of 20-30 students. The class takes about three to four hours to complete.

"Although this training is not mandatory, I highly recommend it to everyone," said Davis. "As for me, I feel that I am a more effective supervisor and leader because of the Four Lenses training I received."