Playing Well With Others: Understanding Your Team's Personality Styles

In a perfect world, all of your team members instantly know the best way to work and communicate with each other. Everyone simply gets along.

In the real workplace, though, not so much. Fortunately, you can build a winning team who like, respect and communicate with each other and their leaders by learning the four distinct behavioral styles used in the DISC personality assessment test.

Dave covers the DISC test extensively at EntreLeadership Master Series and believes it is so important that everyone who goes through the interview process for his company is required to take the test. It gives insight into how people make decisions and what their tendencies are. As a tool, it helps Dave's leaders understand if a candidate's style fits with the job and the team they'll join.

The DISC breaks down personality into four categories. They are:

Decisiveness

D's Style: For these steamrollers, getting the job done is the most important thing. Never mind minor details or possible hurt feelings. As long as the end goal is achieved, they're good.
Why We Like Them: They're our problem solvers and will keep the company moving along.

Interactive

I's Style: The people's people, they are outgoing and the life of the party. They're also expressive, impulsive and persuasive and can lose focus easily.
Why We Like Them: They're creative and fun to be around.

Stabilizing

S's Style: The ultimate team player, they're unbelievably loyal, steady and concerned about how everyone feels. They'll run from conflict and can sometimes be slow to make a decision.
Why We Like Them: They're patient, make great teachers or coaches and are devoted to the team and the company.

Cautious

C's Style: The perfect job for a C? Anything with more rules than you can shake a bureaucrat at. They love them, as well as details and procedures.
Why We Like Them: They have some of the highest quality-control interests of any of the styles.

Keep in mind that DISC is not a magical test that will guarantee success, and your team members never fit into just one personality category. It is, however, a great indicator of a good fit for hiring or how to communicate with your team. If you are a high D, for example, don't hire a high S as your assistant. She'll freak out every day. Give a high C a system to set up, and that team member will be over the moon. Simply remember to treat the personalities accordingly, set up processes to reflect them, and you are on your way to creating a culture of communication and teamwork that breeds success.

For over 25 years, Dave has grown his company to a national winning brand with more than 900 team members who have impacted millions of lives. His company has been named one of the “Best Places to Work in Nashville” eleven times. EntreLeadership is how he’s done it and how you can do it too. Get your copy of the book now!