This week we continue with the second component of the Wow Factor: Competence, being good at what we do.
Last week we suggested that understanding human behavior and personalities is a competency that will benefit everyone looking to deliver the Wow Factor and introduced the DISC model as a simple and effective method. You’ll want to read that post if you haven’t already in order to understand this one.
This week we begin to take a closer look at each personality type, starting with the D or Dominant personality. A person’s answers to the two questions we looked at last week will reveal their primary personality type in one of four quadrants:
The D type is the task-oriented/outgoing quadrant.
Common traits of a D-type
Only about 10% of the population are in this outgoing, task-oriented group. The D-types are dominant, driven “doers”. They are the natural-born leaders. They want to own things, run things and–above all else–get things done!
Because of this, a D-type may skip saying “hello”, get right to the point, and do it while talking loud and fast. They will likely state their opinions as fact and can be aggressive and defensive if challenged.
They will often appear impatient and may look at their phone or even answer it mid-conversation. However, they will usually maintain steady eye contact if they are interested. A D-type will also use a lot of gestures.
A D-type relishes a challenge. They like to win and will proudly display evidence of prior winning (awards, trophies, etc) whenever possible.
If you are not a D-type
If your primary personality type is any of the other three types, here are some helpful things to keep in mind when dealing with someone who is a D-type:
- emphasize opportunities & solutions
- give them choices
- look at the bottom line
- get to the point… they don’t want to hear about the details
If you are a D-type
If your primary personality type is D, here are some helpful things to keep in mind when dealing with the other 90% of the population:
- slow down a little (use less aggressive body language, softer tones & slower speech.)
- give people time to process & think
- people are important (making them feel truly valued will ultimately give the best results!)
- relaxation is not a crime
- ask more questions & listen
This post is just skimming the surface of this personality type and the practical takeaways of understanding the D-type whether it is yourself, your spouse, a boss, coworkers, friends or clients.
I teach full-day Wow Factor workshops for organizations from coast-to-coast where we dive into this content much more thoroughly. If you would like to find out how I can come alongside your team and help them understand each other and communicate on a higher level, please reach out to me, either at alan@alanbracken.com or call me directly at 423-863-6257.
You can also click the discovery report link in the sidebar to the right to get your own DISC discovery report. Understanding yourself better than ever before is a great place to start developing your competence in the critical subject of understanding human behavior!
Next week we will learn more about the I: Inspiring personality type!