Using the DISC behavioral instrument to guide leadership and communication

AORN Journal, Nov, 2005 by Mary Kay Slowikowski

A true leader knows the keys for inspiring and influencing team members. If a leader can instill the desire to excel in team members, then the team as a whole will succeed.

A workforce primarily is characterized by its ability or inability to achieve results through positive interaction and cooperation. To be successful, a leader must learn how to communicate with coworkers and foster optimum teamwork. (1) This can be achieved in three steps: develop synergy, blend strengths, and enhance interpersonal skills. (1) To achieve these objectives, leaders must learn techniques to help them fine-tune their ability to communicate. These techniques include

* identifying and explaining the key elements of effective communication;

* learning to communicate with a variety of personality types;

* creating a positive climate conducive to harmony, teamwork, and Success;

* identifying other's psychological needs and learning how to deal with each person on a more productive level;

* minimizing potential conflict with others;

* learning how to tailor personality needs to specific habits;

* integrating work life with personal life;

* breaking cycles of frustration through powerful decision making; and

* staying focused on the path to heightened serenity. (1)

To be a successful team, team members also need to learn communication skills for dealing with various personality types. This allows team members to resolve internal and external conflicts. Conflict within the workplace can spiral out of control without communication. If the communication pipeline is not kept open, barriers to productivity increase exponentially. To prevent this implosion in the workplace, everyone should learn the different personality types and how to deal with each on a regular basis. With enhanced communication, the team can identify criteria to work together and eliminate communication breakdowns.

The workplace will become more productive when leaders learn how to achieve team compatibility. A good way to effectively blend different personalities is to administer a personality profile that helps explain why people act the way they do. In other words, find out what makes people tick and then use their strengths to enhance the team.

DISC INSTRUMENT

The DISC behavioral instrument is based on the work of psychologist William Moulton Marston, PhD/ Marston was interested in how people felt, behaved, and interacted with the world around them. (2) The DISC method is easy to administer and interpret. This instrument helps determine the different personality types (ie, Dominant, Influencer, Steady, Conscientious) of each person in the workplace.

DOMINANT. People with the dominant personality type tend to make quick decisions, are very results-oriented, are direct and straight-forward, and often display a high level of initiative and energy. To motivate a dominant person, a leader should foster that person's initiative by removing obstacles and giving the person freedom to act without interference.

Although dominant people are strong workers, a dominant person can cause conflict by being too blunt, restless, and impatient. Dominant people try to do everything, and they may act without knowing all the facts and without considering others' feelings. To further understand people with this personality type, team members can use the following role play exercise.

   Mike Link, a highly dominant person,
   asks you to come into his office. You
   know he is upset about the arrangements
   for his meeting this morning.
   The overhead projector's bulb burned
   out, there were not enough chairs in
   the meeting room, the reports copied
   for the meeting were out of order, and
   the refreshments arrived an hour late.
   As you enter Link's office, he gets
   right to the issue at hand by saying,
   "You have got to do something about
   improving the quality of your work,
   your dependability, and the way you
   communicate. What are you going to
   do to make these things better?" What
   would be the most efficient way to
   respond and communicate with Link?

To get through to Link, the team member should take into account the skills of influencing a person who has a dominant personality. First, he or she should be brief and get to the point quickly. This will grab Link's attention without alienating him. By being specific about the facts, one can communicate well with a dominant person.

INFLUENCER. The influencer is outgoing, persuasive, gregarious, and tends to be good at delegating. By influencing and persuading others, the influencer creates an environment for personal success. The best way to motivate an influencer is to create a social environment that includes constant interaction with people. In these circumstances, an influencer will demonstrate trust in others and spread enthusiasm throughout a team, creating a democratic relationship favorable for working conditions.

Certain situations, however, can emphasize the weaknesses of an influencer. For instance, the influencer is not very task-oriented and may not follow up on delegated jobs. The influencer's strength at building friendships can be exploited easily when he or she has to make unpleasant decisions. Instead of doing what is best for the job, the influencer procrastinates on decisions so as not to rock the boat. To consider the best way to deal with an influencer, team members can participate following role play.