Resources

Recognizing Communication Styles At Their Best and Worst

By Michael Wilkinson, CMF
Managing Director, Leadership Strategies, Inc.
 

(Adapted from The Secrets of Facilitation)

Professional facilitators often find it helpful to have a model for recognizing different communication styles.  People communicate differently and have different needs in a meeting.  By having a mental model of the different communication styles, as well as their needs and typical dysfunctions, you will be better able to prevent, detect and resolve dysfunctional behavior.

There are a number of models for understanding behavioral and communication styles, including Meyers-Briggs Type Indicators, Hermann Brain Dominance Indicators and DISC Communication Styles.  In our organization, we utilize the DISC Communication Styles from TTI Performance Systems, LTD to focus on communication styles.  We find that it is an insightful, yet simple, model that is easily understood, retained and applied by casual users of the information.

In the DISC model, there are four basic communication styles.  While all of us communicate across each of the four dimensions, we do so to varying degrees.  And for most of us, we tend to naturally communicate in one of the four styles most of the time.  Below is a very abbreviated summary of each of the styles.  The summary describes the styles when at their best and worst in a facilitation session, and additional prevention strategies to prevent dysfunction from occurring.

 

Hi-D Style

At Their Best

Driving for efficiency, participating, directing, making direct comments, giving end point first

At Their Worst

Alienating by being forceful, not letting people catch up, making snap decisions, killing creativity, unaware of what’s happening in the group

Prevention Strategies
  • Keep session fast paced, well planned
  • Lay out the process and the benefits
  • Get them on your side to go with the f

Hi-I Style

At Their Best

Participating, creative, talking, keeping energy up, cheer leading and supporting

At Their Worst

Don’t stop talking, don’t listen, don’t want to take time for important details, blue-skying, unrealistic

Prevention Strategies
  • Give lots of chances to talk
  • Enlist help for out of box thinking and getting others to speak
  • Have ground rules: keep discussions relevant, end point first, avoid bar discussio

Hi-S Style

At Their Best

Friendly, supportive, nodding, agreeing, paying attention, good listeners, tolerant, peace makers

At Their Worst

Going along with what they don’t believe, being the silent martyr, checking out, passive-aggressive actions in response to change

Prevention Strategies
  • Check for agreement
  • Use teams to avoid putting on the spot
  • Reinforce with praise

Hi-C Style

At Their Best

Looking at the details, constructive critiquing, identifying impacts of decision, keeping on task, providing reality check

At Their Worst

Bogging down in details, giving all the reasons why something won’t work, not allowing intuitive judgment, unrealistic expectations of quality

Prevention Strategies
  • Set expectation that more detailed analysis will be done outside of the session
  • Remind of the level of detail needed for each decision
  • Encourage praise first and seeking new solutions

 

To learn more about communication styles, check out our online course, DISC Online!  You can also learn more about facilitation techniques in our instructor-led course, The Effective Facilitator.  Click here for additional information.

 

Michael Wilkinson is the Managing Director of Leadership Strategies – The Facilitation Company, and a much sought after trainer, facilitator and speaker.  He is a Certified Master Facilitator and a Certified Professional Facilitator.  As a past president of the Southeast Association of Facilitators and a board member of the National Institute of Facilitation, Michael is a national leader in the facilitation industry.  You can get more tips from Michael’s book, The Secrets of Facilitation available on Amazon.com.  Or you can receive a signed copy from www.leadstrat.com//products-and-solutions.

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