How do you typically communicate with others? Are you naturally productive on your own or do you need motivation from others? Do you often question things or follow the directions you’re given?
The answers to these questions point toward your behavioral style. Some people call it personality, but behavioral style differs itself from personality because it is essentially a pattern of habits or behaviors that can be readily observed. It’s how you handle tasks and interact with other people.
Your behavioral style can have a significant impact on productivity and how well you work with others. On the path to ONE Thing greatness the relationships you build often determine your level of success. Understanding your own behavioral style will help you make adjustments to others so that personality differences don’t stand in the way of your ONE Thing.
Common Behavioral Types
Most people don’t fit squarely into any one behavioral style. That said, many people tend to exhibit one style more than others. The four behavioral styles below are based on psychologist David Merrill’s behavior dimension of assertiveness and responsiveness. The common behavioral types include:
Analytical/Thinker/Compliance
If this is your behavior style you’ll spend the extra time needed to get something done exactly right. This persistence and penchant for thorough research helps you solve difficult problems. Just don’t get bogged down in the details or procrastinate coming to a decision.
Assertive/Responsive Dimension: Less and Less
Driver/Director/Dominance
Talk about getting down to business. If this is your behavioral style, results are often the end goal. You don’t waste time second-guessing yourself, and once you make a decision you start to implement it almost immediately. Your time management is probably great, but make sure you’re not running others over to get where you’re going.
Assertive/Responsive Dimension: More and Less
Expressive/Socializer/Influencer
If something is in its infancy, people in this behavioral style are the ones that can envision what it’s going to ultimately be and everything that’s needed to get there. You see the big picture and know the right people to help out along the way. But don’t let your vision cloud the facts and sound judgment.
Assertive/Responsive Dimension: More and More
Amiable/Relator/Steadiness
If you’re in the amiable category you’re probably a great support system and mediator. When others can’t agree or see eye-to-eye you’re able to get everyone on the same page. There’s a natural inclination to help others, but it shouldn’t be done at your own expense. Learning to say no may be the hardest, but best, habit to form.
Assertive/Responsive Dimension: Less and More
Using Your Behavioral Style for ONE Thing Success
The more in tune your ONE Thing is with your behavioral style, the more likely you are to reach big goals. This is because behavioral style clues you into:
- What types of scenarios and environments you are most productive in.
- When you are most productive.
- How to communicate more effectively.
- Your natural interpersonal weaknesses and strengths.
- What triggers stress and tension.
- How you’re likely to handle stress and tension.
- What influences the decisions you make.
- How you handle conflicts with others.
Knowing your behavior style makes it easier to surround yourself with the right people at the right times. If you aren’t very direct but you’re great at research, you can find the right director to be your negotiating partner. Great at directing but a little too stern to market your new business to strangers? Hire a socializer to help generate interest.
It’s just as important to understand and adjust to the behavioral styles of others if you want to reach your ONE Thing. From mentors to vendors to spouses, no one reaches their biggest goals alone. Communication is one of the most critical factors of behavioral style. The more effective your communication is the easier it is to build good working relationships and get things done.
When people are unable to adapt to each other’s behavioral styles things unravel quickly. One or both individuals has to be willing to do what authors Robert Bolton and Dorothy Grover Bolton call style flex. This is when you understand your behavior style and the style of the other person, and you select habits or actions to modify. It’s a compromise on behavior so that you butt heads less and get more done.
Original Source: http://www.the1thing.com/applying-the-one-thing/the-one-thing-and-your-behavioral-style/