communication skills

What is DISC?

The talk about the importance of Emotional Intelligence is especially important these days, and with it the talk about the DISC Method. However, DISC has been around since 400 BC when Hippocrates laid the foundations for it.

More detailed information about DISC personality styles came to us in 1928. A book called “Emotions of normal people” by William Moulton Marston came to light and brough us the basis that we use to this day.

So, what is DISC anyway? In short: something that will change your life. DISC Assessment looks at a person’s behaviour in different life situations, what we do, how we speak, and everything that goes along with it. We can see our unique mix of personality styles divided into 4: D, I, S and C by looking at this observable behaviour.

Once you find out what personality style is yours, we will know how do we react in different situations and why. DISC model is not concentrated only on one aspect of life. It gives answers about how we communicate in the workplace, with our spouses, children, parents, friends…

Most important part of personality styles is finding out not just what style is yours, but also what are the traits of people around you. That will allow you to adapt your communication so that others can receive it in a better day, and they can be heard and better understand. Communication is after all a two way street.

In order to effectively improve your communication, these are the fundamentals that need to be followed:

Understand yourself!
If you don’t know who you are, you can’t go out trying to interpret anybody else.

2. Understand others.
You need to be able to read people effectively and use DISC powers for good.

3. Adapt your style to the style of others to better communicate and build relationships.
Maybe you have the knowledge, but the other person doesn’t. So, it is our responsibility to be able to adapt and share the knowledge.

The first step to acquiring knowledge is a short assessment. It takes around 10 minutes, and it is by far the easiest test you have ever done. It has no right or wrong answers, and it brings you clarifications of your behavior, as well as directions of what to be mindful of. This stuff will improve your life. Because the higher your E.I. is, the better relationships you will have, your communication will be better, and life, in general, will be so much better. Take the test HERE.
If you would like to find out more about DISC, I have answered some of the most common questions I get asked and summarized it all in the FAQ.

By Alex Swire-Clark

Why Is Communication Regarded as Difficult and Complex

Each person on this planet gives and receives information in completely unique way. The reason for it is that we all have a specific lens that we look through and that lens determines how we see life. Harsh truth is this: until you learn how to expand that lens, you won’t be able to communicate with people as effectively as you could, and your relationships are going to suffer as a result.

The key to good communication is to understand what drives people to do what they do and say what they say, and why do people communicate verbally in a way they do?

Communication style of every person depends on their personality style.

High D personality style will communicate very directly, and they are going to say things in a very few words. These people like to move fast and talk fast so you can expect them to give you a short answer to a question and answer exactly what you asked and nothing more or less Also, a high D personality type is going to interrupt you if you start to tell a tale and talk a lot. Remember: they are not trying to be mean, but their brain is just full of questions and news ideas and they must say what is on their mind as soon as it comes there.

If a person from your environment likes to talk with their hands, they are probably a high I personality style. These people are very emotional and excited about everything. They have high energy and want to express themselves any way they can. That means you can expect a lot of emojis in their text messages and emails. Also, they suffer from shiny object syndrome, so they get distracted very easily and extremely fast. Remember that they are not trying to annoy you, they are just wired that way and they need you to snap them out of excitement and pull their focus back about the conversation.

Your co-worker or a friend who doesn’t say much and does so softly when they do is probably a high S personality style. This behavior comes from their lack of willingness to rock the boat or to create conflict. These people are afraid that they will offend someone if they speak their mind and you can expect them to give up on their wishes to please others.

Being cautious in communication is also the biggest trait of a high C personality style. You can recognize them through their monotone tone of voice and lack of emotions. Their expression is never too low nor too high. But don’t get fooled; high C’s are buzzing in the background. Their mind is full of questions and that’s why they communicate the way they do because they need to process all the information carefully to say the right thing, at the right time, and to the right people.

Did you recognize yourself in any of these descriptions? Take notice that without self and social awareness, we can not communicate effectively.

The starting point is to understand yourself and your personality style. That will help you know how and why you communicate and how you can communicate with other personality styles.

You can find out more about different personality styles on my YouTube channel or on my Podcast, and if you want to take that first step towards better communication today: check the DISC assessment in the Store.

By Alex Swire-Clark

The Inspiring High I Personality Style

Throughout our lives, we all knew people in our school, family, neighbourhood or workplace who somehow always had almost all attention on them, and they seemed to attract it in such a natural way. They are little bundles of joy and people feel great in their company. Those people were probably a member of 25 to 30 percent of the population that gladly call themselves high I.

I’s are definitely okay with their personality. They adore being in the spotlight and just having fun all the time. To recognize a high I you should look for these characteristics:

INSPIRING: Those who can be described as a high I inspire other people and do so easily. One of the best examples of this type of behaviour is Martin Luther King Jr. A person who inspired a whole nation to do what it should have done a long time before him. And how did he do it? By having the next trait of a high I:

INFLUENCING: I’s are naturally talented in finding ways to link to people, to get others to see things their way. Every I have a unique way of showing you new angles from which you can see a problem that lies before you, and they are persuasive like no other personality.

IMPRESSIONABLE: High I love everything! Meaning, the last meal they just had is the best meal they EVER had. At least that’s what they feel at the moment, even though the feeling will disappear and be replaced with awe for another shiny object of admiration before they take that last bite.

INTERACTIVE: Engaging with others is something I’s really love. They feed off an audience so it’s common to find them among comedians (think of Robin Williams who was a perfect high I example: loves to have fun, inspired people and loved performing.)

IMPRESSIVE: When a high I’s communicate, you will notice them. Big gestures, crazy outfits, that’s their style (think Old School Elthon John). Their style of communication also makes them crazy if you isolate them. The more people you put around them, the better!

While all of these characteristics are admirable for most of us, it is not uncommon to describe a high I as illogical. And that’s where you need to be careful. High I’s do things their way and yes, sometimes they will go to the grocery store with a list of 7 things and come back with only 5, and they will have no explanation about what happened. However, it is important to understand they are easily distracted and can’t help it. The world is full of wonders and they are here to notice all of them, so in an amazing world we live in it’s illogical to expect a high I do not notice and get distracted.

It is also important that even if you feel as if you could have done a better job at a task that was given to a high I to remember that they feel the need to be liked. Regardless of the area of life where you meet a high I, if you tell them that a task could have been done in a better way, they will take it personally.

An approach that will keep them happy (and we all need them to be happy because I’s create happiness wherever they go and love to share it) is to acknowledge them. Whether that’s when they enter the room or when they are describing how they are dealing with a task. “That’s a good idea, excellent job” etc. are short sentences that will give them the boost they need and it will make them contribute more and more in a positive way.

High I entertain us and inspire us, they are bigger than life. But it is not always easy to keep up with their energy. To understand it better, you can listen to my podcast HERE where Liz Parker, certified behavioural analyst, Strategic growth consultant, and job benchmarking wiz joined me. The best part? We are both high I personalities so who better to explain what goes through high I thoughts all day long.

For more info about different DISC personality types, you can check my YouTube channel HERE or find your style right HERE.

By Alex Swire-Clark

How Can High I Styles Avoid Conflict At Work?

How do High I styles avoid conflict at work? By getting their party on of course!! Check out this week’s podcast to find out more and help your High I styles be successful!!

communication skills

Concise Adult Version