The Right Tool(s) for the Job

Last time I referenced The Platinum Role with regards to communicating with our team members based on what they needed, rather than just how we’re wired to share a message. That’s critical for simply limiting the amount of misunderstanding we have on any given day, but it’s even more important when we’re working to earn engagement and buy-in from the folks we’re responsible for leading! When Cindy and I put together our lesson on Building Buy-In Around a Clear Mission & Vision, our intent was not only to challenge leaders to provide their team members with an understanding of how their daily tasks tied directly to the overall goals of the organization, but to do it in a way that connected with them on a personal level - based on their unique communication and behavioral style. Based on what I shared from the recent Bloomberg article, this matters more than I even realized!

When I put the outline together for working through this topic, I was planning to wrap it all up with specific practices we can apply as we provide clarity to our team members on why their engagement matters - tying that directly to their primary communication style. Having used the DISC Model of Human Behavior with teams across the country over the last several years, I’ve seen some definite patterns showing how the “personalities” referenced in the Bloomberg article not only influence happiness and success in various career paths, but I’ve also learned how we can use the results of an accurate DISC assessment to understand what tasks a given team member will be best equipped to do, on the good days and the bad, over the long haul. With all the time I’ve invested to learn that, and the resources I’ve worked through to find ways to apply that information with the teams we serve, we’ve been able to help deliver some great results. But I’ve also realized that everyone reading through their assessment results won’t be able to pull that same level of understanding; as simple as the tool is, the dots won’t always connect…

One of the great things I recognized through all that work directly with the DISC Model of Human Behavior was how it helped me come up with a practical way to approach emotional intelligence. Just like that helped me piece EQ together, I recently found something that will help me just as much with doing the same thing when helping leaders earn active engagement from the folks labeled as quiet quitters… 

I’ve studied Patrick Lencioni’s work for close to a decade. I think what I’ve enjoyed most is his way of weaving a lesson into a story that I can picture myself in. In many cases, I’ve even been able to tie his ideas to things I’ve experienced as we help teams develop their own leadership cultures. In his most recent book, The 6 Types of Working Genius, he explains (much like the Bloomberg article) that we’re all naturally wired for certain specific tasks. As I listened to it the first time through (at 2x speed on Audible), I tied nearly everything he shared back to my experience and understanding of DISC. I thought about how much energy it took for me to pay close attention to critical details when I was under high levels of stress. While I could still do it well, my DISC style blend explained why it was burning me out to do that long term.

Although that was as clear as it could be to me, I’d be wrong to assume it connects with everyone else the same way. I learned to read construction blueprints as a teenager. That foundation has helped me be fairly competent with any type of technical drawing or schematic ever since. Just like it’s not fair for me to assume that everyone else will be able to read a blueprint, I can’t expect everyone to look at things through the same lens I do with DISC. Rather than wrapping up this look at quiet quitting with how we can just communicate based on what each of our team members need, we’ll look at how we can use multiple tools together effectively to get even better results! I’ve heard it said that when all we have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. But from my first full time job as a carpenter, I knew I couldn’t be effective with just one tool in my pouch…