Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone saw the world the way that we do or did things the way that we do? Every time that I bring this question up, it is met with the same answer…. “Yeah, the world would be perfect then!” Of course, it would be, and the flip side to that answer is that while it might be perfect, it would be an extremely boring type of perfection! Our differences are part of what makes this world dynamic and exciting. Too many leaders though operate from a place where the expectation is that everyone else understands them, and that their people do things their way. This is far from productive.
As leaders, we are paid to facilitate the best communication possible on our teams, with our clients and our internal customers. To do this effectively, we must understand how people operate and in Sandler we leverage DISC to do so. DISC is a foundational theory on personality types and divides humans up into 4 categories:
D (Dominant), I (Influencer), S (Steady Relator) and C (Compliant). All of us have a primary style and with that comes certain ways that we take in the world and how we interact or communicate with the world around us. You can get a sense of it by the descriptors above, however, by studying each style and their nuances, we can be better equipped to facilitate great communication.
In the Sandler “Bonding & Rapport” step of the selling system, we talk about the importance of “matching & mirroring”. This concept is simply understanding the person in front of you and matching their style. We know that by doing this the individual will sense a degree of ‘likeness’ and with that comes more open and effective communication.
As leaders, we must facilitate the best communication with those on our teams and those around us. We also must help our teams understand how to better communicate with others around them. By better understanding how our people are wired and teaching them the same, we can facilitate the best communication all around.
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