MCode vs The Fascinate Test
Standing out and captivating others is important, but it's only one piece of the puzzle. To build high-performance cultures and deeply engaged teams, organizations must go beyond external perceptions and uncover the intrinsic motivations that drive fulfillment, productivity, and long-term success.
The MCode assessment was a game-changer for me. I found out I'm a Driver in my work style and personality, and honestly, it explains so much! It's helped me play to my strengths and get things done more effectively. If you're curious about your own work style, give MCode a try.
The "why" behind performance
The Fascinate Test highlights how individuals are perceived and how they can influence others, but it doesn't uncover the deeper drivers of engagement and productivity. MCode goes beyond external traits, revealing the intrinsic motivations that energize individuals and fuel their best work. These insights allow organizations to align roles, tasks, and responsibilities with what matters most to each person, creating a foundation for fulfillment and high performance.
MCode explains why certain tasks are energizing or draining, helping leaders create job alignment that maximizes productivity.
Organizations that use MCode hire people who aren't just skilled but are also deeply motivated by the work they do.
Engage employees deeply
While the Fascinate assessment can help individuals improve communication and personal branding, it doesn't provide the tools to address disengagement or dissatisfaction in the workplace. MCode empowers leaders to understand what makes their employees tick, allowing them to design meaningful roles and offer personalized growth opportunities. This results in higher engagement, greater job satisfaction, and stronger team loyalty.
Employees who feel their work aligns with their core motivations are happier, more engaged, and more productive.
MCode provides leaders with actionable insights to tailor assignments, recognition, and development plans to what drives each individual.
Build high-performing teams
Sally Hogshead's Fascinate Test focuses on helping individuals stand out and captivate others, but MCode equips teams to work cohesively by uncovering the Motivations behind each member's contributions. By using MCode, leaders can strategically assign roles that play to team members' strengths, reduce conflict, and improve collaboration. This alignment builds stronger teams and reduces voluntary attrition by ensuring all employees feel valued and fulfilled.
MCode identifies the motivational dynamics of a team, helping leaders address gaps and maximize strengths.
When employees feel understood and their roles align with their motivations, they are more likely to stay, perform, and thrive.
Motivation vs. Perception
The Motivation Code assessment ranks an individual's 32 Motivations and maps them across 8 Motivational Dimensions — Achiever, Driver, Influencer, Learner, Optimizer, Orchestrator, Relator, and Visionary. An individual's most prominent Motivations and Dimensions reveal what energizes them.
From 7 Fascination Advantages — Innovation, Passion, Power, Prestige, Trust, Mystique, and Alert — The Fascinate Test identifies an individual's primary and secondary advantages, which reveal which of 49 different personality archetypes they best align with.
Internal vs. External
MCode uncovers intrinsic motivations and what drives individuals to perform, thrive, and find fulfillment. It identifies the "why" behind behavior, focusing on internal drivers like satisfaction, energy, and interest.
The Fascinate Test: The Fascinate Test reveals how others perceive an individual, offering insights into external traits and communication styles that make someone memorable and influential.
Performance vs. Influence
MCode emphasizes aligning intrinsic motivations with roles to enhance performance, productivity, and satisfaction, making it ideal for personal growth, employee engagement, and team building.
The Fascinate Test: The Fascinate Test helps individuals refine how they captivate others, improving communication, influence, and personal branding, particularly in client-facing, leadership, and marketing roles.
MCode vs Fascinate Features Comparison
The MCode Assessment and The Fascinate Test reflect two distinct approaches to assessing individuals at their best. MCode is all about intrinsic motivation, offering insights into what drives engagement, productivity, performance, and fulfillment. The Fascinate Test is all about external perception, helping individuals and teams refine their personal and corporate brands to stand out and influence others.
Focuses on uncovering intrinsic motivations — what energizes and drives individuals to perform at their best. Understanding a person's motivations enables alignment with roles and tasks that light them up.
Focuses on personal branding and external perception. Understanding what makes a person uniquely fascinating creates differentiation and enhances influence and communication.
A stacked ranking of 32 core Motivations mapped to 8 Motivational Dimensions. An individual's most prominent Dimension is their MCode.
49 personality archetypes powered by 7 Fascination Advantages. A primary and secondary Advantage pairing determines your archetype.
Based on the System for Motivated Abilities (SIMA), developed by Art Miller in the 1950s. Initially used as a qualitative, interview-based method with high-stakes clients like NASA. Technology brought the assessment online, improving scalability and consistency. Unified under the Motivation Code brand in the 2020s.
Created by Sally Hogshead, based on research into how personality traits capture attention and influence perception. Launched in 2010 alongside her book FASCINATE. Refined to include 7 Fascination Advantages and 49 archetypes. Rebranded as the Fascination Advantage System in 2012.
Grounded in over 60 years of empirical science, integrating research from behavioral psychology, narrative psychology, and human motivation. Draws on decades of studies into high performance and the qualitative analysis of millions of achievement stories.
Rooted in branding, communications, and neuromarketing research. Combines proprietary Kelton Global research with Sally Hogshead's exploration into how brands and people communicate. Highlights how personality traits act as triggers for fascination.
Share four personal achievement stories and respond to prompts about those experiences by ranking your level of satisfaction on a 1-10 scale. Results are available in a $19 Lite Report or a $79 Premium Report.
Complete a 28-question self-assessment survey based on branding principles. Rank how much statements feel like "not me" or "totally me." The $79 Personal Report reveals how the world sees you and provides guidance on how to impress and influence effectively.
Results are fairly consistent because they are based on real, lived experiences and the emotions tied to them. While results may vary slightly if different stories are used, an individual's core motivations remain consistent over time.
Consistency can vary due to its reliance on self-reported answers. Responses may change depending on mood, current circumstances, or how individuals wish to be perceived at the time of taking the test.
Results uncover a person's core motivations and abilities, revealing what fuels their thoughts, decisions, and actions. Highlights what drives satisfaction and fulfillment, what energizes and drains them, and what they need to succeed in any environment.
Results include a "Fascination Advantage" profile identifying primary and secondary advantages, highlighting top strengths and unique personality traits that captivate and influence others. Focused on external perception and personal branding.
Focuses on motivation and energy, revealing how they influence productivity, performance, fulfillment, and job satisfaction. Used for personal growth, hiring and job fit, employee engagement, talent development, employee retention, team building, and leadership development.
Emphasizes personality and communication, exploring how they shape your ability to stand out, influence, and impress. Used for personal branding, corporate branding, communication training, relationship building, and leadership development.
Discover what drives you. MCode reveals the "why" behind your actions, helping you uncover what motivates your thoughts, decisions, and behaviors. It shows what energizes and drains you, how you are naturally wired for success, and the unique value you contribute to any team.
Discover how to fascinate others. Fascinate reveals how others see you and centers around your personal brand and external perception. It helps you discover how to captivate and influence others, improve communication skills, and strengthen your personal brand.
Individuals may feel pressure to select stories that cast them in the best light rather than authentically reflecting their most fulfilling experiences. Some people may struggle to decide which stories to share.
Individuals might answer questions based on how they want to be perceived rather than how they are actually perceived, leading to results that reflect aspirational traits rather than genuine strengths. People can game the system.
MCode taught me how to communicate the value I contribute and what I need to succeed in an organization, which helped me stand out and differentiate myself in interviews! The result? I not only got the summer internship I wanted but also landed my dream post-grad job — and I haven't even started my senior year yet!
A Fascinate Test alternative?
Rather than asking, "Should I use the Fascinate Test," or "Is there a better alternative to the Fascinate Test," consider asking how using both assessment tools can help you better understand yourself and who you are at your best.
When organizations combine the power of the MCode assessment and the Fascinate Test, they gain a comprehensive understanding of their people — both what drives them from within and how they captivate others. Together, these tools can create a workplace culture that fosters deep self-awareness, aligns intrinsic motivations with roles, and equips individuals to communicate and influence effectively.
Strategic application of strengths
MCode reveals the types of roles and tasks an individual will naturally excel at. The Fascinate Test complements this by demonstrating how to position and communicate expertise to maximize influence, collaboration, and impact.
Personalized leadership development
MCode equips leaders to understand what motivates their team members. The Fascinate Test shows how team members' unique strengths can be communicated to others. This combination helps leaders foster understanding and empowerment.
Enhanced branding and communication
MCode identifies the Motivations that fuel performance and fulfillment, while The Fascinate Test highlights personality traits that make individuals stand out. Together, they ensure communication style aligns with core Motivations.
Better collaboration and teamwork
MCode uncovers natural competitive advantages by identifying motivated abilities. The Fascinate Test shows how to articulate contributions and value in a way that resonates with leaders, colleagues, and clients.
Improved workplace dynamics
Using both assessments shows people why they make decisions and act as they do, and how others perceive their decisions and actions. Both perspectives help teams understand each other and build stronger relationships.
Discover your MCode!
See what truly motivates you and experience work at its best.