Picture this. You’re communicating with a work colleague, or client, and you hit a wall. They seem off. Their emails are short and curt. You haven’t spoken with them before, and you don’t understand what you’ve done to offend them.
Plot twist, you haven’t.
Everyone is unique. People like different music genres. They have different hobbies. Different tastes, styles, interests and preferences. Einstein famously stated that ‘the person who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd’. Embracing our differences is important, as they are our ‘superpowers’. After all, it’s these differences that make the world a wonderfully diverse place.
Yet, when differences arise at work, they can be met with tension, conflict and stress.
Much like people have personal preferences, the same can be applied to work contexts. Let’s face it, chances are you wouldn’t invite Goodluck, a Diamond Platnumz fanatic, to your Lady Jaydee concert on Friday night. You know he probably wouldn’t like it.
So then, why would you ask the usually quiet Mercy to contribute out loud in a companywide meeting? Or not involve sociable and outgoing Kheri in the team catch up call? Or, expect the short-answered, straight talking Steve to engage in chit-chat?
How do you manage these contrasting personalities within your team, and ensure that everyone feels valued? How do you ensure that your team communicates and operates effectively?
A simple and efficient way to manage different personalities across your team is using the Insights Discovery methodology.
Understanding the Insights Discovery Methodology
The methodology is based on Carl Jung’s work. Carl Jung was a renown Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who travelled extensively, including to East Africa in 1925-1926, in his desire to better understand how people are wired. Based on the Jungian psychology and decades of research, Insights Discovery presented a straight-forward, four-colour model, which enables individuals to see their unique mix of ‘Colour Energies’: Fiery Red, Sunshine Yellow, Earth Green and Cool Blue.
Everyone has every colour energy within them, but they prefer, or are more comfortable with, some over others. These are the ones you’ll recognise in them most often. It is this unique mix that determines how and why people behave the way they do. In other words, their superpower. The Insights Discovery personality assessment reveals your Colour Energies as well as your strengths, how you add value to the team etc. The assessment has been taken by 7+ million people globally.
This provides an insight into how you and your colleagues work, and enables an easily understood ‘language of colour’ that can be adopted in the team, unifying team members in whatever way your organisation works.
How can I make the Colour Energies work for me?
Intrigued about what your unique colour mix is? Understanding your own preferences through self-awareness can enhance your team. Feel free to reach out to Judith, our Certified Coach, on info@lumen-ea.com
