How the Four Personality Styles Affect How You Communicate

At LeaderGov we frame much of our local government workshops and online training around the four major personality styles as defined by DiSC.  DiSC is the worlds most popular personality profiling program and is used by over 1,000,000 people per year.

The DiSC model includes styles called Driver, Inspiring, Supporter and Cautious.   Each style has inherent positive qualities and challenges in how they communicate.  In our workshops we help local government leaders learn their styles (or take the assessment) so that they can know their own style (strengths and weaknesses) and also learn how to approach other styles for maximum effectiveness.

Which style are you and how do you sometimes see yourself communicating in ineffective ways?

• The Driver Style:  This person is results-oriented and highly focused on the end goal.   Their communications can be blunt and to the point and sometimes be misunderstood as aggressive. They may tend to talk over others and not listen or they may not be sensitive to the listener. Drive styles need to consider how others perceive their message and may need to reframe their communication so all parties can best receive it.
• The Inspiring Style: This is a highly sociable and outgoing person who loves to talk and is generally very positive. However, they may sometimes withhold details in communication and avoid saying hard things.  Because they move fast, they may skip over necessary details. Influencers love to talk and do not sometimes take the time to put details in writing for the team.
• The Supporter Style: This personality style is very humble and tactful and loves to support others’ and the organizations’ goals. However, they sometimes do not speak up and communicate what’s on their mind as they tent to not want to offend others or come across as harsh. So, they pull back on their communications and don’t communicate effectively or sometimes at all.

• The Cautious Style: This personality style is driven by quality, process, attention to detail and order. However sometimes they may over communicate, or only communicate what’s wrong in their message or be overly negative.  They may struggle to be positive or inspirational. Because they so value process and detail, their communication can come across as hard and difficult to follow.

In our workshop on “Effective Communication in Local Government” we help local government leaders and employees learn the basics of effective communication and begin to modify their communication so it’s better understood.  If your City, County or Agency wants to be a part of LeaderGov’s monthly workshops and online trainings on topics like this, feel free to contact us at leadergov.com or via email at [email protected]