Am I the problem at work? The common denominator test
"Is my manager the problem, or am I?" drew 380 comments when a reader sent it to Ask a Manager. It is a hard question to answer alone. In Tasha Eurich's research, about 95 percent of people believed they were self aware, and only 10 to 15 percent were (Harvard Business Review).
This test does not ask how you feel about yourself. It asks about twelve things you can check: whether the same friction has followed you across jobs, what you do when you are told you are wrong, how disagreements with this manager end, and what you tried before deciding. You get a mirror score from 0 to 100, where higher means more of the evidence points at you, and one of four readings. One of them says plainly that it is not you.
It takes about four minutes and shows your result without an email. At the end, one optional question asks how two colleagues would score you.
Am I the Problem at Work: the common denominator test
Is it me, this one relationship, a hard stretch, or the place, and what do I do this week?
What you get
- Your score out of 100
- Which of the 4 results you land on
- Scores across Pattern, Feedback, Friction and Ownership
- Your strongest dimension and your gap, and where to start
This test looks for patterns in how you experience work. It is not a clinical instrument and it does not diagnose anything. If you are being harassed, bullied or discriminated against, this test does not apply to you and the answer is not you; talk to HR, an employment lawyer or a therapist. If work is affecting your health, see a doctor.
This test looks for patterns in how you experience work. It is not a clinical instrument and it does not diagnose anything. If you are being harassed, bullied or discriminated against, this test does not apply to you and the answer is not you; talk to HR, an employment lawyer or a therapist. If work is affecting your health, see a doctor.
Your next move
If you do not manage people
Your full result says which reading the evidence supports and gives you one thing to do this week. For most readings it starts with two colleagues and one question.
If you manage people
If you manage people, your team is asking this question about you. The 360 lite asks three to five of them and shows the gap, and the leader burnout test separates a heavy stretch from the wrong seat.
Email me this result
Optional. Your score is already on screen. Enter your details and a copy of this result, your score, your level and your four dimension scores, is sent to you.
Done. Your result is on its way.
Related tools
The four results
Every completed run lands on one of these pages, with your own scores drawn from the link the tool gives you. Each one is readable without taking the tool.
- The PatternThe same friction follows you across jobs. That part is yours.
- The PlaceLittle points at you. On this evidence, it is not you.
- The PairYou and this manager, together. The fix is between you.
- The SeasonMixed evidence, a hard stretch. A season, not a verdict.
How to tell if you are the problem at work, and when the answer is no
It is a fair question, and a hard one to answer from the inside. Four checks make it answerable, and each one is scored in this test.
- Pattern. Has the same friction come up with more than one manager, or in more than one job? If it follows you, part of it is yours.
- Feedback. When you are told you are wrong, do you explain first or ask first? Can you name something you changed because someone told you to?
- Friction. Do you say you disagree after a decision is made? A disagreement that is never allowed to end becomes the relationship.
- Ownership. What did you try before you decided it was them?
When the answer is no. If colleagues keep leaving or keep describing the same problem, if the friction started with a new manager and nowhere else, or if you are being harassed, bullied or discriminated against, the evidence points away from you. This test says so plainly when it does.
How this differs
Search for am I the problem and the quizzes you find are about relationships, not work. This one is about work, and it scores twelve things you can check rather than how you feel about yourself. It is built to give any of four answers, including a plain it is not you, and it asks one optional question at the end, how two colleagues would score you, because the gap between your view and theirs is where self awareness is tested.
It is not a version of any psychological instrument and it does not diagnose anything. It is built by a leadership coaching firm, which is why every result also has a view for the reader who manages people.
What happens to your responses
Your score, your result and your dimension scores are shown on screen without an email address. An anonymous copy of the score and the dimension scores, with no name, email or free text, joins the aggregate statistics for this tool, which are published only when a cut has at least 30 completions. Email is optional. Only if you ask for the result by email is it written to your contact record, and only then. The full rules are on the methodology page.
If you need support now
This page is not a crisis service and nobody reads your answers. If you are thinking about harming yourself or you are in danger, reach a person today. In the US, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or text HOME to 741741 to reach Crisis Text Line.
In the UK and Ireland, call Samaritans on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258. Anywhere else, call your local emergency number. If work is affecting your sleep or your health, see a doctor. A coach is not the right first call for that, and neither is a quiz.
If this is a legal matter
Harassment and discrimination at work are legal questions, and a quiz cannot answer them. In the US, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission explains what the law covers and how to file a charge at eeoc.gov. In the UK, ACAS gives free, impartial advice at acas.org.uk. An employment lawyer can tell you what applies to you. Nothing on this page is legal advice.
Common questions
Am I the problem at work, or is it my boss?
It depends on four things this test checks: whether the same friction has followed you across jobs, what you do with feedback, how disagreements with this manager end, and what you tried before deciding. It can answer that part of it is you, that it is the pairing, that it is a temporary season, or that it is not you.
How do I know if I am difficult to work with?
Ask two colleagues who have seen you work for a year one question each: what is one thing I do that makes working with me harder than it needs to be? Say thank you and nothing else. If both name the same thing, or it matches criticism you heard in an earlier job, that is the habit to work on.
Should I take this if I am being bullied or harassed?
No. If you are being harassed, bullied or discriminated against, this test does not apply to you and the answer is not you. Talk to HR, an employment lawyer or a therapist. In the US the EEOC, and in the UK ACAS, explain what the law covers.
What is the question at the end about?
It asks whether two colleagues would score you higher or lower than you scored yourself. It is optional and anonymous. Your answer joins the aggregate as a number, nothing else, and it shows how far people expect others to see them differently.
Will anyone see my answers?
No. Nothing you enter is sent to anyone. An anonymous copy of the scores, with no name, email or free text, joins the aggregate statistics.
Related tools
- Boss Pattern Test: what kind of boss do you have4 min. Is it my boss, and what do I do about it on Monday?
- Toxic Workplace Test: the place, the boss or the week4 min. Is it the place, the boss, or the week, and what exactly is missing?
- Blind Spot 360 Lite4 min. How does my team actually see me, and where is the gap?
- Leader Burnout Test: burned out or wrong seat4 min. Am I burned out, not cut out for this, or in a bad environment?
- Conflict Style Assessment4 min. How do I handle conflict, and which conversation am I dodging?
- Leadership Style Quiz12 min. How you exercise authority.
The numbers behind this tool
Aggregate results are published at Am I the Problem Statistics: Self View Versus Colleagues once a cut reaches 30 completions, under the Workplace Reality Index methodology. It is part of the Workplace Reality Index, which is kept separate from the leader indexes. More free tools are at the tools shelf.