Are Personality Clashes Affecting Productivity & Teamwork in Your Organization?

Productivity and teamwork are critical to the success of every organization, but often personality clashes among employees, supervisors and managers can have a negative effect on the team. Everyone has a personality - some stronger than others - and sometimes clashing personalities grow into major disruptions.

"I've tried to talk to him about it but he just doesn't listen!"

Why don't people just learn to work out their differences? It's not that they haven't tried, but since their personalities are radically different, their attempts to communicate often backfire. After a while, they give up, and the relationship deteriorates into indifference, a cold war or ongoing battles.

Working with Difficult People

Next time you're in a bookstore (or on the Amazon.com website), check out the books on "working with difficult people." With so many books on the subject, it's clear that there are a lot of difficult people in the workplace. But the real difficulty is the fact that most people don't have the skills to deal effectively with personality differences. The people are not the problem. The real problem is a lack of people skills.

Diversity and Teamwork

The best teams are made up of people with diverse skills, backgrounds and experiences. If the members of the team have strong people skills, the team will be greater than the sum of its parts. But the synergy principle doesn't apply to teams where the members are unable to develop mutual understanding, trust and respect.

Training Your Team to Understand & Appreciate the Differences in Behavioral Styles

Our DISC training workshops and seminars are designed to give your team members the tools and people skills they need to understand and appreciate the differences in the people they work with. We prefer to use the term Behavioral Styles rather than personalities to describe the behavioral differences in people. We train team members to work together effectively in spite of their behavioral-style differences.

DISC: A Model for Understanding Behavioral Styles

The DISC Behavioral Style Model was developed by William Moulton Marston, Ph.D., more than 75 years ago, and has become one of the most widely-used models for understanding the behavioral differences in people. We use the DISC model in our workshops and seminars because it is easy to understand, and it keeps our workshops from falling into the death-by-complexity trap. When the model is too complex, workshop participants tend to get lost in the model, and training loses its effectiveness.

The DISC model is comprised of four primary behavioral styles: D, I, S and C. Each style is very different, and each style comes with built-in conflict toward each of the other styles. Which style is best? The model doesn't focus on good or bad. What is good is the ability to understand, communicate with and appreciate someone whose style is different from yours. That is the focus of the DISC model and of our training workshops and seminars.

Personalized DISC Assessments:
An Objective Assessment of Your Behavioral Style

When engaged in interpersonal conflict, most people give themselves credit for having the best motives, the best intentions, and for generally being right. At the same time, they often tend to negatively judge the other person's intentions and motives, and to see the other person as wrong. These assessments of self and of others are highly subjective, and tend to be distorted by perceptual filters.

Our training workshops and seminars provide objectivity through the DISC model itself, and through the DISC assessments we use as an integral component of the training. Prior to the workshop, each participant receives a 20-page assessment, providing an amazingly accurate and objective view of her/his behavioral style and communication habits.

The assessments help to remove the perceptual filters so each member of your team can see herself/himself more clearly. By understanding each of the four styles in the DISC model and by identifying your style, as well as the styles of the people you work with, your ability to avoid and move beyond personality clashes is greatly enhanced.

The Four Primary Behavioral Styles Dominance Style (Driver) Task-oriented extrovert. Color: Red - Puts on the heat, may be quick to anger. Direct, blunt, gets right to the bottom line. Competitive, decisive, demanding, aggressive, forceful, results-oriented, strong-willed, self-starter, daring, determined, ambitious, energetic, impatient, authoritative, visionary, hard-charging, confrontational, risk-taker, fighter, controlling, abrupt, goal-oriented, bold, independent. D's like variety, challenge, new opportunities, making their own decisions, being in charge, change, freedom, working with little or no supervision, going straight to the bottom line. D's don't like being questioned or challenged, can't-do attitudes, routine tasks, appearing weak or soft, beating around the bush.   Influence Style (Socializer) People-oriented extrovert. Color: Yellow - Optimistic, friendly, spreads sunshine to others. Expressive, persuasive, emotional, good mixer, outgoing, confident, personable, sociable, talkative, manipulating, self-promoting, good negotiator, likeable, people-oriented, passionate, fun-loving, creative, active, spontaneous, open-minded, energetic. I's like talking, brainstorming, recognition, positive feedback, frequent interaction with people, a fun work environment, activity, socializing, quick decisions & action. I's don't like negative people, picky people, tedious work, disapproval from others, lots of details, working alone, inflexibility, rules & restrictions.   Supportive Style (Relater) People-oriented introvert. Color: Green - Provides stability & support to the rest of the team. Steady, sincere, friendly, relaxed, understanding, predictable, amiable, passive, complacent, supporting, stabilizing, patient, team-oriented, helpful, consistent, cooperative, empathic, reasonable, loyal, organized, non-confrontational, reliable, even-tempered, polite, calm, methodical, sensitive, moderate, humble, quiet, unassuming. S's like being appreciated, clearly defined responsibilities, job security, an orderly, predictable work environment, harmony, personal privacy. S's don't like change, lack of management support, aggressive & pushy people, competition, conflict, confrontation, pressure, disorganization, deadlines.   Compliance Style (Analyzer) Task-oriented introvert. Color: Blue - Cool, unemotional and analytical. Conscientious, precise, cautious, structured, systematic, diplomatic, conforming, exacting, conservative, perfectionistic, detail-oriented, critical, judgmental, task-oriented, accurate, restrained, methodical, evasive, solitary, observant, courteous, careful, orderly, focused, defensive, busness-like. C's like to work alone without distractions & interruptions, low-risk decisions, the time & resources to do the job right, facts, logic, objectivity, adherence to rules, procedures & standards. C's don't like dealing with emotionally-charged issues, sloppiness, carelessness, small-talk, mandatory socializing, projects with unpredictable outcomes, changing rules & expectations.

DISC Training Workshops:
Like Learning a New Language

Our DISC training workshops provide the members of your team with a new vocabulary for describing the differences in people. I's and C's are very different. They think differently, they communicate differently, they behave differently, and they often experience style conflict.

When you understand that the conflicts you have with your boss are the natural result of the differences in your styles, you can begin to describe the situation differently. Your boss isn't a jerk; she's a C. And her behavior is very understandable in the context of the DISC model. And the reason you can't seem to get through to her is because you are treating her as though she were an I and she is treating you like a C.

A Tool for Behavioral Change

The Language of DISC is a tool that leads to behavioral change. When we clearly see the differences between D's, I's, S's and C's, we stop treating people the same way. We change the way we communicate with people based on their style; and in the process, the behavior of everyone involved changes. DISC is a tool that builds mutual understanding, communication, teamwork, trust and respect among team members.

Relationship Management Training

Effective teamwork requires relationship-building. Managers, supervisors and employees all need to take more responsibility in building and managing their relationships. DISC training is relationship management training. It's about taking the leadership role in resolving conflict and transforming working relationships into partnerships. By scheduling a DISC training workshop for your team, you will enable each team member to become a more effective relationship manager.

How Do You Define the Team?

This depends on where you would like to see more teamwork. The team can be defined as a group of people in the same department who work together every day. The team can also be defined as people from different functional areas who need to see themselves as part of the same team. The team can even stretch beyond the boundries of your organization to include your clients and customers. A DISC training workshop or a series of workshops can include everyone in your organization as well as your external partners.

"It's Not That Bad Here...
We're a Pretty Good Team"

Don't wait to schedule a DISC training workshop until communication and teamwork become a significant problem. If they are a problem, by all means, contact us immediately, so we can schedule a workshop right away. But no matter how good your team may be, communication & teamwork can always be improved. When you schedule a DISC training workshop for your team, it sends all the right signals. Enable your team to move from good to great!

Practical, Real-World, Results-Oriented Training Workshops

Our DISC training workshops are not abstract, conceptual time-wasters. Every one of our workshops is conducted by Roger Reece, a seasoned business manager with an MBA and over 25 years of corporate management experience, as well as more than 10 years of people-skills training & consulting experience. Roger's training style is clear, direct, down-to-earth and highly interactive.

He keeps everyone in the room actively engaged in the learning process. The focus is on behavioral change and a call to personal growth and action. Group activities, role-play sessions, frank discussions and ongoing personal action plans are integrated into each DISC training workshop. For key managers, supervisors or employees, Roger is also available to extend the value of the workshop with one-on-one or small group coaching.

A Customized Training Workshop,
Tailored to Meet the Needs of Your Group

We customize our workshops and seminars to meet the needs of our clients. Contact us for more information about our training programs. We will answer your questions and send you more specific information, including pricing, in an email. Then if you're interested, we will schedule a time for Roger Reece to call you and discuss your group, your objectives, and the options we can offer you in terms of workshop format and content. After the call, we will email you a detailed outline and agenda for a customized workshop for your group.

An Investment in the Success of Your Team

Your people are your most valuable resource. A DISC training workshop for your team will result in improvements in morale, teamwork, relationships, communication and productivity. Invest in the success of your team. Contact us today and let's get the ball rolling.