We all have different personality traits. Some people like to take their time making decisions by having a lot of conversation with others and doing a lot of research, whether it be for the desire to be 100% correct before moving, fear of disappointing others, or something else. Some people make decisions by moving fast and learning from mistakes without thinking about how it will affect others. While the latter sounds like someone who is a real jerk, there are pros and cons to every type of person. Let me explain.
Several months ago, we called on Hazel Walker (global networker, entrepreneur, book author) to explain the different personality types using the DiSC method. She also helped each of our team members understand their personality types, so we could all work together better.
Without getting into too many details, DiSC explains four primary personality types. When you have two people who have personalities that fall on opposite sides of the graph, it can cause a lot of frustration due to misunderstanding where the other is coming from.
Imagine you have someone who thrives on talking with others. They do a lot of their thinking out loud, and they need visual or verbal feedback from others to know what their next step should be. Now, what if someone on their team prefers to be reserved and do their thinking quietly while researching a particular topic? One person craves talking; the other craves silence. How do you work around this? The first step is understanding the other person isn’t attempting to get on your nerves.
Rocky, my co-founder, is a big talker. He likes to talk. A lot. I prefer to do research on my own and make fast decisions. For a while, I would get frustrated that he would always want to have a conversation (or conversations) before we made any semi-big decision. I would look at something and say, “I’ve researched this topic and this solution will work, so let’s move forward.” It wasn’t until I realized that the solutions I came up with may not be the best solution for everyone it would affect, and the best way for us to identify that is to have a conversation about it. Now we can benefit from my ability to make decisions and Rocky’s ability to make time for conversation.
My goal is to better understand and work with others who have personalities different from mine, rather than always defaulting to what I’m most comfortable with. If I were to always stay in my natural personality type (D), I would appear inconsiderate and uncaring to a lot of people. Once I became aware of this, I was able to adjust my decision-making process to spend more time talking with others to gather their feedback and thoughts. Each person and perspective brings something valuable to the table. You have to be willing to see it.
It’s great to make everyone happy, but working effectively with others is about a lot more than that. In order to really build something great (a company, specifically), you have to connect with others on a personal level. If someone doesn’t understand why they’re doing something, they can’t exactly do their best. And the best way to help someone understand something is to first see the world from their point of view.
I still have plenty of things to improve upon when it comes to understanding (just ask my wife). The important part is to acknowledge that and keep learning.