What DISC Behavioural Style is Your Customer?

It is common knowledge that people are one of the most important aspects of the overall performance of an organization.  Understanding of others, teamwork, communication, leveraging one’s strengths are obviously all vital elements that lead towards greater individual and organisational productivity.

So, what tools can be used to support further development of these important performance factors? Many organizations worldwide have experienced significant success in the application of DISC. In essence the 4 main styles in DISC are:

• D – Dominant people are direct and decisive
• I – Inspiring people like interact and have fun
• S – Steady people are sincere and supportive
• C – Conscientious people like precision and detail

Firstly, it is important not to “box” someone into one of the 4 styles. The reality is that people are a combination of several, or in most cases, all. For example, you might think a person has some “D” in them (as opposed to: they are a “D”).

When we look at comparing the styles we find that:

• The “D” and “I” types tend to be fast-paced, outgoing, competitive, and risk takers.
• The “C” and “S” types tend to be slower-paced, cooperative, reserved, and risk avoiders.
• The “D” and the “C” tend to be task-based, cautious in their relationships, cool, controlling, and calculating.
• The “I” and “S” tend to be people-based, relaxed, warm, supporting, and feeling.

We will now look at each of the 4 types in more detail.

So how do we identify the different styles in a person? One easy way is to casually ask them how their weekend went and what they did.

• The “D” may have worked a 7 day week
• The “I” may have socialised with his friends
• The “S” may have spent time with the family, and
• The “C” may have thought out his personal budget for the next 12 months.

There are in fact many other ways to use your intuition and analytical ability to determine this. It will also come with experience over time as you immerse yourself further into the understanding of DISC and play the “observer” role when either watching or interacting with people.

Related Topics:

• DISC personality types
• Understanding the 4 different personality types of your client, dominant, inspiring, steady and conscientious
• DISC assessment
• Understanding your client’s unsupportive traits, dislikes and biggest fears
• Psychological profiling
• DISC Accreditation