Persuasion and Team Building
In conducting research about personality styles, I came across an interesting article about avian representations of DISC profiles. Since May 31 of every year is World Parrot Day and constructing buyer persona profiles is important in marketing, operations, and sales, I thought it fitting to further explore this topic.
Deciphering DISC
DISC is an acronym used to characterize four types of personalities. The D stands for Dominance. I stands for Influence. The S is for Steadiness. The C is for Conscientiousness. The DISC assessment of individuals is used to help build groups, resolve conflicts, develop leaders, improve sales training, hire the right talent, establish persuasive communications, and cultivate better relationships among customer, employee, shareholder, and vendor constituencies. Credit goes to William Moulton Marston for discovering a link between people’s perception of their power and their personality style. Notably, this attorney, author, and psychologist created the Wonder Woman character in the early 1940’s and is known for, influenced by his wife Elizabeth Holloway, designing an early version of the lie detector.
Bird Words
How does the foregoing relate to birds you might ask?
The replacement of traditional DISC personality profile names with the newer version of Doves, Eagles, Owls, and Parrots is the 2012 brainchild of Merrick Rosenberg. According to his published story, this CEO of Take Flight Learning, a New Jersey based training company, recognized the need to simplify categories. What was his solution? Add levity. Make the process and the interpretation of results fun and memorable. Now, instead of thinking of D personality types, think of Eagles as leaders who can soar above the fray, visualizing an organization’s future at a high-level. Eagles crave the freedom to conquer challenges. Parrots are the sociable I’s who love to exchange ideas, motivate colleagues, and flex their creativity muscles. Doves or S personalities keep the peace in a unit with their calm demeanor and willingness to help others. The C personalities, depicted as Owls, are inquisitive, detail-focused, and disciplined planners. If you are interested in identifying with “birds” of a similar feather, you can take TFL’s personality assessment for a modest fee. They even offer a version for children.
Building Teams With DISC
Proponents of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator should know how it differs from the DISC assessment tool. DISC is shorter with roughly thirty questions compared to ninety questions for MBTI. The MBTI gives each test taker a four-letter code from sixteen possibilities. My score, like Jamie Dimon and Steve Ballmer, is ESTJ for Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging. The DISC uses four types for sorting. As Dr. Tony Alessandra, founder and chairman of Assessments24x7, explains, the MBTI test is more inward looking and is aimed to assist individuals increase their self-awareness. In contrast, the DISC test estimates how someone’s personality is likely to translate into being a cohesive member of a team.
The good news is that managers have a variety of devices and techniques at their disposal to increase productivity and boost worker morale. An excellent starting point is assessing the personality attributes of your current team members. Persuading buyers, investors, and potential employees to work with your company is much easier when your existing team works well together, has a unity of purpose, and agrees on your unique value proposition.
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Susan Mangiero
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