Great leaders are distinguished by their ability to connect with people, provide positive influence, and inspire others into action. For some of us, these abilities come naturally, but even if they don’t, we all have the capability to further enhance and deepen our leadership skills through greater self-awareness.
Having adaptability can enable a leader to positively impact the performance of their people. Whilst exercising non-preferred behaviours takes practice and consistent focus, when leaders adapt their behaviours to the needs of their team, better relationships are formed. In order to adapt effectively, leaders mut first understand their preferred behaviours and the matrix of the DISC styles. This leads into knowing how and when to lead with elements of their natural style, or when they may need to adjust.
A relationship-centric focus makes individuals feel uniquely valued and is an essential foundation for every organisational model. Ultimately, business efficiency and success hinges on seeing people as a performance factor.
Understanding Your Natural Leadership Style
An individual’s leadership style is essentially the behaviours they most often and prefer to portray as a leader. When we refer to natural behaviour, we are referring to the behaviour likely to emerge when a leader is not consciously thinking about their approach, but is instead doing what they have always done. In short, a natural style is like being on autopilot, with minimal application and pure action.
An individual’s natural style may work well with one person, yet poorly with another. Therefore, it is important for leaders to become more aware of their natural tendencies, how this may affect their audience, and where they may need to adapt their behaviour.
Our personality influences our behaviour and as such has a direct impact on our leadership style. However, unlike personality which is relatively fixed, a leader’s style is a pattern of behaviour that can be changed or adapted depending on the situation or environment. This requires the individual to be aware of their behavioural style preferences and importantly, what behaviours will give them the results they need in a given situation. Fundamentally, behaviour is flexible, personality however, is not.
In leadership, one style does not fit all situations. Knowing our natural leadership style and when to adapt it, is critical to working effectively in various situations with different people.
An efficient and effective way for an individual to identify their leadership style is by undertaking the Team8 DISC Profile. The 12-minute online survey will generate a unique 40-page report which details an individual’s natural style; the way they prefer to communicate, their comfortable pace, how they build relationships, and approach problems. Importantly, the Team8 DISC Profile Report provides an insight into how someone is likely to behave under pressure and which environments they perform best in. It is important to note, the Team8 DISC Profile is a based on behaviour and is not a personality assessment. It as a useful tool that can be used individually or in a group, to improve fundamental aspects of leadership such as self-awareness and communication. Once we are aware of the way we naturally interact, we can begin to tailor our approach for different people and situations to achieve greater outcomes.
The Four Leadership Styles
The four leadership styles are reflected in the four unique DISC styles. These are, Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientious. Each DISC style brings their own approach to leadership in terms of pace, directness, and priorities. By better understanding the DISC Model, and most importantly, their own profile, leaders can exercise their strengths, whilst tailoring their leadership style to the needs of their team and environment.
The Dominance ‘D’ Style
A Dominance style leader is regarded as direct and decisive. They guide people with clear and concise instructions, monitoring, and correcting as progress is made. This individual requires high technical instruction but has low relationship and motivational needs. ‘D’ style leadership works well with people who are developing their skills and need direct instructions, like those learning a new position or entering a new industry entirely, and individuals who are motivated and enthusiastic.
The type of situation that often demands the use of ‘D’ style leadership, includes when vital information needs to be given urgently and clearly, where the environment requires high standards to be driven in line with a goal, or when time is limited and decisive action needs to be taken to problem solve.
The Influence ‘I’ Style
An Influence style leader delivers encouragement, brings energy, is highly interactive, and motivational. This individual requires low technical instruction and has high relationship and motivational needs. ‘I’ style leadership works well with those who have the skills and competency required for their role, but require support and encouragement to help them feel more confident about their performance.
Examples of situations where the ‘I’ style of leadership is effective are when energy and motivation are needed to drive positivity and productivity, or when morale is low, but skill levels are high.
The Steadiness ‘S’ Style
A Steady style leader uses two-way communication, listens well, will communicate indirectly, and encourage their team members to play an active role in the team. They guide people technically, while providing emotional support and valuing their connection with others. This individual requires high technical instruction and has high relationship and motivational needs.
The ‘S’ leadership style works well with those who have base level technical skills and require emotional support for any setbacks or challenges they may face in their learning and development.
The use of an ‘S’ leadership style is suited to situations where more collaboration is needed, time is not a constraint and there is no urgency, teamwork is required, one-on-one interactions, or when a sense of security and acceptance is needed.
The Conscientious ‘C’ Style
A Conscientious style leader creates a well-structured plan and environment, equipping the team with the necessary tools, logistics, and instructions to execute with minimal intervention. This individual requires low technical instruction and has low relationship and motivational needs. ‘C’ style leadership works well for individuals who are both technically proficient and confident in their own abilities.
‘C’ style leadership is appropriate when planning needs are high, explanation of a detailed and complicated situation is required, when things within a team are going well and leaders need to keep a well-organized flow, or when working with highly experienced people with strong technical and emotional standing.
Your Preferred Leadership Style and Making Adaptations
Whether a team is made up of people who competent and experienced, or developing and learning, exceptional leaders can adapt their leadership approach to accommodate for the different needs of others. Sometimes an environment may include a variety of experience levels and DISC styles, meaning a leader may need to exercise a range of adaptions.
When a leader can transition between the four leadership styles and adapt for the needs of others at the right time and place, leads to individuals in their team feeling valued, unique, and important, as they believe their leaders understands them.
Inadaptability in leadership style can often result in frustration and inefficiency for both the leader and team. For example, if a natural ‘D’ style leader is exercising ‘D’ behaviours (fast paced, direct, and goal-focused) with a team who measure high in ‘S’ (slow paced, indirect, and relationship-focused) but has not yet built rapport or understanding with the team, this may need to disengagement. The pace conflict between the ‘S’ and ‘D’ styles will likely lead to frustration from the ‘D’ as ‘S’ style individuals naturally prefer to work at a slower pace. In return, the ‘S’ style team members will feel pressured and stressed, and as though their leader does not understand them or their needs. However, if the leader takes the time to adapt their behaviours and build rapport with their team members, a push for pace and directly may then work effectively due to a mutual understanding of needs that has already been established.
Rarely can a leader become effective at transitioning between the DISC styles without actively working on it. Put simply, the basis of switching leadership styles is underpinned by the idea of meeting the needs of a team and leading them in the way they require. There is no ‘best’ leadership style. However, some styles are more appropriate than others depending on the situations and people a leader is working with.
Factors That Influence the Choice of Leadership Style
There are two key factors to keep in mind when determining which style is most appropriate to apply as a leader.
Factor 1: The People
Considering the behavioural and communication preferences of the people a leader is working with is the first and most critical step to achieving more effective outcomes. The Team8 DISC Profile is a credible resource that can be used as an investment in any team or individual. After completing the DISC survey, it is important for leaders to familiarise themselves with the profiles of their people so that they can start to evaluate whether their current approach is appropriate, or if they may need to adapt.
The Team8 DISC Profile Reports also include valuable information on how to effectively communicate with different and similar styles. Not always will the same style as the people around you be the most effective response for every situation, which is why this too must be considered.
Factor 2: The Situation
The second factor to consider is the situation a leader is in. For example, is there an abundance of time or an approaching deadline? Do they have the ability to take people aside and discuss the possible actions or do they have to give direct and concise feedback to a group? All these factors will influence the choice of leadership style.
Using the Dominance ‘D’ Style: If time is limited, vital and concise information delivery is needed, potentially to a broader group, then the ‘D’ style (direct and goal-focused) approach is likely to deliver better outcomes.
Using the Influence ‘I’ Style: If a situation requires engagement or motivation with fast action to get the ball rolling, the ‘I’ style (direct and people-oriented) is likely most appropriate, as it presents positivity and energy with a unique way to inspire and connect, especially during periods of challenge or negativity.
Using the Steadiness ‘S’ Style: If time is not a constraint and there is room for personal conversation, the ‘S’ style (indirect and relationship-oriented) style may be useful. This style values one-on-one conversation, building long-term connections with others, and when utilised at the right time, will solidify relationships within the team and develop mutual understanding.
Using the Conscientious ‘C’ Style: The ‘C’ style (indirect and task-focused) is useful when the situation requires analysis and facts. This approach allows for detail orientation and problem solving and is commonly suited to environments with more experienced people, who have a higher skill or knowledge level on the activity they are performing.
One way to consider which approach is going to be most effective in a situation is to first weigh up the degree of relationship or task focus the situation and people within it require. Next, using the SBR Model, we can assess the Situation, choose the Behaviour (here’s where the leadership adaptation may come into play) that will give us the best Result, then Evaluate the Result and learn from the interaction.
Being a Dynamic Leader
Having a thorough understanding of the four leadership styles forms a foundation for effective leadership, and finding the appropriate style has a lot to do with reflecting on what the team of people ‘following’ their leader need and establishing an adaptive leadership skillset. Ultimately, a good leader will mentor their team in a space they’re comfortable with, but a great leader encourages their team to grow outside of their comfort zone and challenge their preferred skills. For example, a leader may have team members who are confident and enthusiastic but may lack technical focus. Therefore, it is important these members are also getting technical direction, as well as being encouraged to motivate others. Similarly, highly competent people do not require as much technical direction, but may need more emotional support if they lack confidence.
As the team of people a leader is mentoring are always learning and growing, it is important not to pigeonhole them into one style. Reflecting on how a team has developed from one month to the next, one year to the next, and then tailoring the leadership style to suit their current state, is the best way to ensure understanding and efficiency.
In larger teams it can be difficult to assess what each person requires and adapt accordingly, which is why it’s important to note that the onus is not always on the leader. This is why it’s important for not just the leader to have awareness of their own style and others, but also for their team to have the self-awareness and understanding too. Reciprocity is crucial to maintaining any relationship, and by understanding their leader and adjusting to meet them in the middle establishes trust between a leader and their team.
Ultimately, individuals and leaders within a team desire to feel understood, heard, and appreciated. By making themselves available to have reflective conversations, a leader will demonstrate the value they hold for their team and their unique contribution. Consequently, dedication to this practice will result in improved, authentic relationships that are built on a foundation of mutual understanding.
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
If you haven’t already taken the critical first step in your leadership journey and completed your Team8 DISC survey to generate a Team8 DISC Profile Report, now is the time to get started. Not only does the Team8 DISC Profile contain invaluable knowledge, but it opens the door to developing better self-awareness that will benefit both you and the team you are working with. At Team8 we pride ourselves on providing excellent service and support to help our clients be their very best. To find out more about how you can use DISC Profiling to get the results you want, be sure to reach out and contact us.
