Who are you working with? Who are you managing? Who are you being managed by?
Who are your clients?
How to recognise, understand and influence them!
Two questions will give you a broadbrush stroke as to the type of personality you are or are working with or dealing with. You can ask them or from observation gain an idea of the personality type. Once you know then it is a question of communicating in the other person’s language style rather than your preferred style. Tough but it’s the truth.
DISCovery is based on Dr Robert Rohm’s work to be found in his book Positive Personality Profiles. A great read. He writes accessibly with excellent examples. Recognise aspects of oneself with shock!
Why do some people…?
- See a glass and say it’s half empty…
- See the same glass and say it’s half full…
- Say ‘You’ve got the wrong-size glass’…
- Say ‘I don’t care. I’m not washing it!’
Why is it that some people…?
- Are very task orientated
- Are more people-orientated
- Are so outgoing and fast-paced
- Are reserved and slower paced
Why are some people…?
- Dominant, direct, driving, demanding, determined, decisive, doers
- Inspirational, influencing, inducing, impressive, interactive, interesting
- Submissive, stable, steady, sentimental, shy, status-quo specialists
- Cautious, competent, careful, concerned, calculating, contemplative
There are 4 basic personality types or temperaments. Our own distinct personality style is created from the complex way these traits blend.
Remember that there are at least 4 primary points of view on any topic. If one presents one’s own view, there is only a 10-35% chance of hitting the target audience.
However, if one plans to respond to the basic needs of all 4 it can significantly increase the level of productivity regarding communication and understanding.
The key is to ‘adjust my style to work with your style’. We all have a preferred style, our default.
When we ask are we more outgoing or more reserved … are we more people orientated or more fact orientated we need to remember that it is at that moment and the operative word is ‘more’. More on this in Part 2.
Download the whistle-stop version to know yourself and others