Understanding Behavioural Styles
Understanding behavioural styles is key to improving communication, reducing conflict, and driving team productivity. But what do we mean by behavioural styles, and how can we determine what they are?
A behavioural style is the language of observable behaviour. Our primary style can tell us a great deal about how we are motivated, the environment we prefer, and what our fears are. It also dictates how we communicate and how we like others to communicate with us.
In the course of your daily routine, you interact with and see a variety of personality styles. As you observe your colleagues, friends, and family, you’ll see different personalities unfold, although you may wonder how to quantify the different styles.
Measuring them is possible with DISC, a personality assessment tool that measures the one visible factor that is externally demonstrated – BEHAVIOUR.
The identified ranges of behaviours are set within four scales of Dominance, Influence, Stability, and Conscientious (D I S, C.) DISC assessment enables easy identification of individuals’ primary DISC behavioural styles. By understanding behaviours, you can immediately start to learn something about everyone you meet.
Think about people you know
Have you met someone who is patient, a good listener and great team player, quite resistant to change, reliable and can be ‘slow’ to respond?
These traits are typical of the S behavioural style.
Why are behavioural styles important?
-Helps you become a better communicator
It is difficult to get along with people you don’t understand. You can easily misinterpret actions or words and get frustrated. Once you understand the differences in personality styles, you find the key to unlocking better communication.
-Helps you resolve or prevent conflicts
Some behavioural styles naturally clash. However, when you understand why someone did or said something, you are less likely to react negatively. An awareness of another’s underlying motivations can allow you to diffuse problems before they even start.
-Helps you build more productive teams
Building a team of people with a similar behavioural style may suffocate creativity, which thrives on different ideas being brought to the table. However, a team of strongly different personalities will also kill creativity unless you understand them and can manage them positively.
Helps you gain credibility and positively influence others
By understanding behavioural styles, you can learn how to blend with different personalities, flexing your own style to gain credibility and influence.
