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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLaura Wheat DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 Laura’s Highest Dimension Laura, your highest dimension(s) - based on your responses to your perceptions of the environment and the amount of control you feel you have in that environment - is Influence (i). Read the description of Influence and see how it fits with the way you see yourself. Influence (i) Laura, you are high in the Influence dimension. As a result, you are likely to be focused on shaping your environment by influencing or persuading others. Those who are strong in Influence (“high i’s”) seek contact with all types of people and enjoy making favorable impressions. They often look for opportunities to generate enthusiasm and gain popularity. People high in Influence accomplish goals through others, and social recognition is an important factor in that equation. Their decision-making style is more often than not based on “gut feel” rather than facts and figures. High i’s require freedom of expression and steer clear of too much detail or control. Outside of the workplace, high i’s typically enjoy participating in group activities where they can meet new people and cultivate a wide range of friendships. They pride themselves on their ability to articulate their ideas, and they enjoy engaging others in conversation. Being adept at dealing with people, high i’s can find complementary skills in those individuals who are better at dealing with tasks. People high in Influence have little difficulty pitching their ideas to others. But it’s helpful if they have others to help them support their proposals with facts and data, as well as to develop a systematic, logical approach that will help them stay on task and follow through once the project gets going. Those high in Influence should strive to set priorities and deadlines for themselves, and be firm in holding others accountable to shared deadlines. They also need to focus on making objective decisions. When managing others, high i’s are sometimes concerned about respecting others’ freedoms and may intentionally take a hands-off approach so that individuals have plenty of room to create. They may run the risk of being seen as unresponsive to their employees’ needs. It would benefit them to take a slightly more proactive approach and offer realistic feedback as needed. It’s unlikely that such an approach will adversely affect the good will already established. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 Laura’s Intensity Index Each of us has a set of strengths that make us unique and valuable, and we like to be acknowledged for our strengths, as well as feel effective in our environment. However, any strength, when used excessively or inappropriately, can be perceived as a weakness. Read over the highlighted words in the four columns below. These are the adjectives that describe High, Medium, and Low behavior for each dimension. Then turn the page to learn more about your Intensity Index and how you can become more aware of your potential strengths and weaknesses. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 On the next four pages are explanations of the words that indicate your level of intensity for each DiSC® dimension. D Dimension People with your score on the D Dimension may be generally described by the following adjectives. Circle those that you see as your strengths and highlight potential areas of challenge. Inquisitive: This trait is a strength when curiosity compels you to search for better answers or new methods. It will be seen as a weakness if your questioning becomes relentless and invasive. Self-assured: Your belief in your own abilities may propel you toward leadership positions. The confidence and certainty you exude can also inspire your colleagues to greater heights. Relying on this trait too much, however, can cause others to view you as arrogant or haughty. Competitive: Striving to be the best can lead to superior accomplishments and major successes. Your drive to be the victor may help you achieve much along the way, even if you fall short of your ultimate goal. This desire can become obsessive, though, if you only think about winning and pay no attention to the cost. Quick: Your agility in grasping complexities and forming opinions rapidly is an enviable talent that can help speed up an organization’s progress. The key is to temper your tendency to make fast decisions or you will be seen as reckless or oblivious to dangers. Self-reliant: Embracing this trait requires an affinity for independent thinking and a fondness for going it alone when necessary. These habits can produce effective solutions and hone leadership skills. On the other hand, excessive self-reliance can undo a team’s bonds and wreck camaraderie. Calculated risk-taker: Wild speculation is usually not for you. In taking calculated risks, you can help prevent disasters and minimize losses; however, the downside is that this tendency can stifle creativity and limit growth. Self-critical: This means that introspection often comes easily for you, and you’re not afraid to examine your flaws and shortcomings. Such analysis can yield helpful insights that benefit you and your organization. Take care, however, that you do not become overly critical of yourself and cease to participate, or worse yet, project your condemnation onto others. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 i Dimension People with your score on the i Dimension may be generally described by the following adjectives. Circle those that you see as your strengths and highlight potential areas of challenge. Enthusiastic: The energy and excitement you create when forming new relationships or starting new projects is almost contagious, often generating similar behavior in others. This is definitely a strength, as long as hard work and follow-through support your initial exuberance to bring a project to fruition. Gregarious: You are likely the kind of person who thrives on meeting new people and interacting with them. This is an asset in many situations, especially when others may be too shy to make the first move or start a conversation. It's important to remember, however, that being excessively sociable when there's work to be done can breed resentment in others. Persuasive: You may have a natural way of winning people over to your opinion. This can be very helpful in getting consensus and moving ahead toward a common goal. Just be careful not to overuse this trait and cause others to feel manipulated or duped. Impulsive: Many people may appreciate your spontaneity and willingness to fly by the seat of your pants, because it creates an opening for the improbable when the odds are against you. You'll know when you've acted too quickly or rashly, though, because others will disassociate from you. Emotional: You may generally feel things more acutely than a lot of people and be willing to talk openly about things, which can help others do the same. When overused, however, emotional candor can make others feel uncomfortable or even upset, because they may feel that their boundaries have been violated. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 S Dimension People with your score on the S Dimension may be generally described by the following adjectives. Circle those that you see as your strengths and highlight potential areas of challenge. Critical: You may embrace a take-no-prisoners attitude, which serves you and your organization well when brutal honesty is the only way to keep things on track or to filter out misguided projects. However, you should take care that your criticism isn’t insensitive to others. Discontented: Feeling discontented can be the impetus for seeking great accomplishments or impressive results. Too much of this element, though, can lead others to see you as merely negative. Fidgety: Multitasking goes hand-in hand with a fidgety nature. This trait can come in handy when balancing many different projects. The downside is that such a predisposition can cause trouble when focusing on one issue at a time. Impetuous: This means that you often decide quickly on a course of action. In a work setting, such decisiveness is welcome when confronting tough issues. However, it can backfire if you make a decision too quickly or before you have all the information you need. Restless: Looking for new challenges and searching for fresh concepts are positive aspects of restlessness. The quest for new horizons can benefit an entire team by keeping projects exciting. Still, in its extreme form, a restless nature can lead you to feelings of unhappiness or bitterness. Change-oriented: Avoiding the pitfalls of stagnation necessitates employing this skill, which keeps you always on the lookout for novel ideas and innovative solutions. But take care that you do not become so change-oriented that you dismiss the positive aspects of tradition. Fault-finding: When you uncover errors or identify flaws that others may have missed, you are using this trait to its fullest, most positive potential. The flip side is that you run the risk of becoming nitpicky or cynical, which can keep others from sharing ideas or work with you. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 C Dimension People with your score on the C Dimension may be generally described by the following adjectives. Circle those that you see as your strengths and highlight potential areas of challenge. Persistent: This means that you usually work hard toward a goal until your expected results are achieved. It is a strength when daunting projects appear, because you may succeed where others would fail. Still, a person who is too persistent sometimes crosses over into obstinate or foolishly stubborn. Independent: To be free of peer pressure or groupthink is a positive trait. You may embrace individualistic thinking to make the best decisions that you can. The danger is that you could get so caught up in yourself that you stiff-arm legitimate feedback or ideas. Rigid: Holding yourself and others to high standards is an admirable skill. This is especially true whenever a quality outcome is a necessity, not a luxury. However, if you shun flexibility, you may create animosity with others and miss opportunities for process improvement. Firm: A set of unshakable principles can be the base for quality work. By refusing to budge from vital ideals, you may inspire others to meet your high standards. But an unyielding stance can also produce friction and allow innovation to wallow. Stubborn: When confronted with barriers, you may often display a tenacious zeal for sticking to your plans. Your persistence can greatly increase the odds of success in complex projects. A refusal to make any compromises, however, can be counterproductive when it keeps the job from completion. Arbitrary: This trait is a strength when you use it to keep your colleagues on their toes and encourage their creativity. It becomes a weakness if you are so unpredictable that others avoid your input. Rebellious: To dismiss conventional thinking may often appeal to you. By ignoring traditional barriers, you may cultivate fresh ideas and breakthrough approaches. But problems can arise if your rebellion becomes a knee-jerk reaction in every situation. DiSC Profile – Laura Wheat Town Council Planning Retreat – May 30, 2014 Laura’s Motivation As a Promoter, Laura, you are likely to be gregarious and extroverted. These traits probably help you to develop friendships easily, and you tend to look forward to meeting new people. You are usually willing to accept others as they are. As a result, you are likely to have considerable influence on those around you, and you may enjoy offering favors and opportunities to friends or colleagues. You probably want to be popular, and you likely seek the approval of others. Therefore, you are unlikely to antagonize or bait others on purpose. You tend to be verbally skilled, and you probably use these talents to lavish praise freely. For you, the point most likely is to make people feel comfortable and get them to think of you as a friend. You are usually able to adapt to almost any social setting. However, you probably still seek favorable environments where you can use your people skills to the fullest. Insights for Laura Time management can sometimes be a significant challenge for you. To further complicate matters, you probably become more disorganized and careless if you are put under pressure. Even when confronted with serious problems, your sense of urgency sometimes may not kick in. It may therefore benefit you to focus on accomplishing tasks on time with a solid degree of accuracy. You may want to remind yourself of the necessity of closing the deal or finishing the project. You could also improve your efficiency by setting a time limit on social conversation or discussion about a project. The fear of injury to your self-worth is probably a chief concern of yours. You most likely do not want to damage or lose your social standing. This may be one reason that you tend to overuse praise and optimism. You may leap to a favorable conclusion or assume the best- case scenario without taking all the facts into consideration. To minimize the likelihood of a negative outcome, you perhaps should strive to become more objective. Gaining increased control of your emotions could possibly help as well. You may sometimes have trouble following through on your promises. This is probably not due to dishonesty on your part. Instead, you may often lose track of important deadlines or details. Therefore, it may be beneficial for you to devote more energy to backing up what you say. One way to do this is to seek coaching and direction that will lead you toward solid results in your work. Laura, you tend to be a friendly and articulate person who most likely gets impressive results through a vast network of contacts.