MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- One of the most important ways to be successful at home and at work is to understand the people around you and how their behaviors are different.
Camp Pendleton’s Marine Corps Family Team Building has been developing programs in order to further enhance communication skills and ways to cope with personality trait conflicts.
One of these programs offered through the MCFTB is a workshop called “Four Lenses Personality Workshop.”
“This program provides the opportunity to improve interpersonal skills as well as help you better communicate with others,” said Miguel Juarez, lifeskills program trainer, MCFTB. “[The workshop] fosters mutual understanding and acceptance with others.”
The program focuses on discovering the principles to help the participants empower them to improve aspects of every personal relationship in their lives.
Four Lenses is the prerequisite for an additional program entitled “Color My Kid” so the parent can first understand their own personality traits and then better understand their children’s behavior.
“Color My Kid” puts children in one of four color categories—blue, gold, green and orange. Parents decipher their child’s “color” by understanding the individual’s personality traits and temperaments.
“Normally a lot of our programs focus on communications amongst spouses,” said Meghan Jones, director, MCFTB. “Once the parents learn about their children’s behaviors in addition to their spouse, it makes it easier to understand the way children prefer to communicate.”
“Blue” children are typically gentle, kind daydreamers who do not respond well to physical punishment, while an “orange” child would be categorized as rowdy and rambunctious. A “gold” child would generally be the type who takes charge with other children, whereas a “green” child doesn’t usually interact very well socially.
“Once the parent finds out their child’s color, they can find out how to change their parenting style to match their child’s behavior,” said Juarez.
The class is mostly based on discussion amongst the groups so that the parents can teach others about their specific parenting styles. The class then discusses each individual’s roles in the family to open up communication.
“It’s important for families to have good communication about what they contribute to the family,” said Juarez. “It opens up the opportunity to discuss responsibilities and then the families can apply the topics at home.”
In addition to these two workshops, MCFTB also offers other programs such as Elder Care, Family Care Plan, “Who Moved My Cheese?” and many others.
The next scheduled Four Lenses class is for March 22 from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The next “Color My Kid” course is slated for March 29 from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
For additional information, call MCFTB at 760-725-9052. To register online for a future course visit www.mccscp.com/home/Family-Services/OnlineClassRegistration.aspx.