The Power of Understanding Personality Types: How to Harness Strengths and communicate with them for Greater Success
Has it ever happened to you that it is easier to talk to some people rather than others? That it is easier to communicate and also to be listened to? That no matter how hard we try it is almost impossible for us to establish communication with some people? And what if it is our boss and we need to explain a new idea? or if it is a professor at college? a teammate? or a relative perhaps? Have you ever wondered why this happens?
The theory of personality types developed by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung is a foundational concept in the study of psychology. Jung proposed that individuals could be divided into four distinct psychological types based on their preferred way of perceiving and judging the world. These four personality types are characterized by been Introverted, Thinking, Feeling, and Intuitive types of people and are often referred to collectively as the Jungian Typology. Each type is characterized by its own unique strengths and weaknesses. individualities of these types are likely to respond differently to various situations. Understanding these personality types can provide valuable insights about how people think, feel, and interact with each other, and how we should interact with them, as their perception of the world varies and so does the way of processing information given.
One of the most common ways of revealing people’s inclination to each personality type is with the DISC assessment Test. DiSC is an acronym that stands for the four main personality profiles described in the DiSC model: (D)ominance, (i)nfluence, (S)teadiness and ©onscientiousness, each of them related to one of Jung’s personality types:
- Introverted intuition (Blue or Conscientiousness)
- Extroverted intuition (Yellow or Influence)
- Introverted sensation (Green or Steadiness)
- Extroverted sensation (Red or Dominant)
Each type is characterized by a distinct way of seeing the world and processing information. Understanding Jung’s personality types can help you to better understand yourself and others. It will also help you to identify in which way each personality needs to be talked to,how to present your ideas in ways they´ll be more receptive. Each type is related to a color in order to make it easier to associate and relate to leadership styles (We have talked about Leadership styles in our previous article https://medium.com/@marinalourdesg/what-type-of-leader-are-you-2fa20a6debbb ).
No one is a single color. We have to keep in mind that these are tendencies and people have characteristics of more than one of these personalities, but usually they have a clear disposition to one of them.
1. Introverted Intuition (Blue): People with this personality type are driven by their inner world and intuitive understanding of the universe. People with this personality give special attention to organization and procedures. They are usually driven by their logic and analytics. They are also meticulous and cautious, they rely on verified data to make each decision.
2. Extroverted Intuition (Yellow): People with this personality type are drawn to the outside world and are driven by their curiosity and desire to explore new ideas. They tend to be excellent communicators and often prefer to take a big-picture approach to problem-solving, joy and optimism. People with this personality type are driven by their curiosity and desire to explore new ideas and they often approach life with an optimistic outlook.
3. Introverted Sensation (Green): People with this personality type are driven by their inner world and sense of certainty. They tend to be patient and prefer to take a step-by-step approach to problem-solving. Usually associated with balance and harmony. People with this personality type are driven by their inner world and sense of certainty, and they often strive to create balance and harmony in their lives. They tend to pay attention to others’ needs and give a great deal to create harmonious environments where everyone can feel necessary and cared for. They usually like to share and tend to encourage others
4. Extroverted Sensation (Red): People with this personality type are driven by the outside world and their desire to experience new sensations. They tend to be demanding, strong-willed and determined. People with this personality type are driven by the outside world and their desire to experience new sensations, and they often approach life with enthusiasm and passion. They usually like to be in leader positions, they like authority and to be followed. Sometimes they are truly competitive and might have a hard time coping with people who are not direct with intentions and clear ideas.
Here’s a graphic summary with some of the most distinctive features of each personality type:
How does each type of personality need to be addressed to have effective communication?
As I said before, not all people process information in the same way, so we need to keep in mind that some people will need us to be more direct, straight to the point, some others will need more time and not all the information at once, some will need more details, for others details will not be as important as we might think. In conclusion, every personality type will feel more comfortable with a certain way of addressing them and if we accomplish that, we’ll have more chances of having effective communication.
⇒ When talking to an Introverted Intuition type (Blue or Conscientiousness), it is important to be patient and allow them the time they need to process what you are saying. Be specific, give details. Follow an order to express ideas, don’t throw them all at once, remember their need for precision and detail. So provide them with the facts and figures they need to make an informed decision and be prepared to answer any questions they may have.Be prepared to be questioned, not necessarily because they are competing for authority, but because questions are part of Blue’s nature. They need to know.
⇒ When you talk to an extroverted intuition type (Yellow or Influence), it is important to be open to new ideas and concepts. They love to explore creative ways to give solutions to problems. They might be involved in fast speed conversations. Many ideas might be explored even at the same time. They’ll encourage others to share their insights, so be prepared to get energized and motivated during engaging conversations. Remember they are sociable and love to interact with others, so be sure to provide them with the opportunity to do so. Ask them questions, share stories, and encourage them to share their experiences.
⇒ If you are talking to an introverted sensation type (Green or Steadiness), it is important to be mindful about their need to keep a harmonious conversation. They’ll avoid confrontation, details won’t be as important as the consideration of everyone’s needs. Be patient. Allow them to express their feelings and concerns and express yours because they need to know how you feel as well. Present ideas as part of positive change.
⇒ When talking to an extroverted sensation type of person (Red or Dominant), keep in mind they like to hold authority, so they’ll like to be “in charge” of the conversation. Details and metrics are not important: you know how to do it, tell them so and do it. Don’t go around ideas. Be specific, “I need this, I want that” and avoid “wasting time” because that’s the way they’ll feel it. Remember they are strong-minded people so if they feel you are opposing their ideas or challenging their authority in any way you’ll probably get a big NO for answer. Present ideas not in opposition to but in addition to.
Communication is essential in all aspects of life, so being able to communicate in the most efficient way possible becomes one of the most desirable skills you can have. You can be the best in your field, you can love your partner, you can be a great friend but if you can’t communicate, relations will be resented and collaboration will be hard to achieve. I hope these tips on how to address the different personality types will ease communication and answer our initial questions. Now that you can identify if you are talking to a Red, Blue, Green or Yellow person you can adapt your strategy to pursue your goals and get the results you are looking for.
Next article we’ll be exploring the importance of knowing the differences in Leadership styles and the association with different Personality Types applied in modern organizations when the time comes to assemble and lead teams within a working environment (Team building process).
I hope this article was useful for you all! I would love to hear your opinion and feedback! Your input helps me to improve and ensure that my content is interesting and relevant to you. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, please share them in the comments below. Bye!
