On day two of our ‘7 Pillars of Management’ course, we explored the DISC Personality and Behavioural Styles Framework. Remember, DISC stands for Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Compliance.
There are many personality tests, but DISC is my favourite. It’s easy to understand and use. Quickly, it gives you insights into your behaviour, management style, and helps you understand your team, including your direct reports.
Firstly, it’s key to know your dominant behaviour style. This shows your strengths and potential challenges as a manager and leader. Also, knowing that your team members usually show one of these four main styles helps you understand their actions and motivations.
Let’s recap the four DISC styles:
‘D’ stands for Dominance.
Dominant people are task-focused and assertive. They’re often natural leaders, focused on getting tasks done and achieving goals, sometimes more than building relationships.
‘I’ is for Influence.
Influential individuals are people-focused and assertive. They’re often the motivators in a team, focusing on relationships and stimulating activities. They value being liked and recognised, often more than task completion.
‘S’ represents Steadiness.
Steady people are people-focused but less assertive. Seen as dedicated workers, they prefer teamwork and are the ultimate team players. They put others’ needs first, often avoiding conflict.
‘C’ for Compliance.
Compliant individuals are task-focused and less assertive. They’re the knowledge experts, focusing on data and systems rather than emotional conversations.
In summary, each style has strengths and challenges. Improving your emotional intelligence involves understanding your personality style, its benefits, and drawbacks. You might already see areas for improvement. Dominant and Compliant individuals could benefit from connecting more emotionally, while Influential and Steady people might need to focus more on tasks, not just relationships.
Understanding different personalities, including your own, and using this knowledge can greatly improve your emotional intelligence, making you a more effective manager and leader.
