Communication styles

MAS of MASTER
Map out other people’s comms styles
Relationship builder

Relater Socialiser

Optimise Focus on
the now the future

Thinker Director

Problem solver
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Map out other people’s comms styles
Directors...
● Readily accept challenges, with a laser focus
on getting the right results and achieving their
goals
● Feel at their best being in charge of other
people and of the situation
● Move at a fast pace (often by themselves),
whilst being very decisive
● Will ask for forgiveness, not permission, so as
to get the job done as quickly as possible
● Like to do many things at the same time
● Don't display emotions or get upset easily
“I need to be in charge so I can get us to the goal
quickly. Get on the bus or get out of the way.”
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Relaters...
● Value close, friendly and personal relationships
above everything else
● Are warm, supportive, loyal and reliable, so
build up incredible levels of trust
● Can be slow to make decisions to avoid conflict
or taking risks
● Always check how others feel before taking
action and making decisions
● Are risk-averse and need time to think through
and accept change
● Are great team players - they always share
responsibilities and follow through
“Our relationships are the most important
thing. Let’s check in with everyone first.”
Map out other people’s comms styles
Socialisers... Thinkers...
● Are dreamers who are really good at getting ● Are detail-oriented and logical, and love to
others excited about their vision create perfect processes
● Can influence people and build alliances to ● Take action only after doing research, making
accomplish their goals comparisons, determining risks and calculating
● Are friendly, enthusiastic, lively, warm and full margins of error
of positivity ● Aren't interested in shiny things - they'll always
● Can think on-the-fly to come up with choose function over form
spontaneous actions and decisions ● Work slowly and precisely (often alone), ideally
● Are very comfortable using their intuition, and in an organised and structured environment
are much less interested in facts ● Are good listeners, speak precisely and are in
● Work quickly and enthusiastically with others control of their emotions
(less so by themselves)

“What an amazing opportunity we have. We can “When important problems need solving, I need
easily do this and everyone will love it." the right data to make the right decisions.”

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Adjust your comms style accordingly
Meeting a director? As a priority, be
super-efficient and competent, and also...
1. Let them take control of the discussion
2. Be organised and prepared, and don't
waste a second of their time (don't
bother with personal chat)
3. Don't go into lots of detail - keep it
high-level and straight-to-the-point
4. Don't provide solutions - instead offer
options that are based on achieving their
goals
5. Use facts/data to back up your
arguments; never talk about feelings
6. Recognise their ideas and reassure them
of their ability to achieve results
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Meeting a relater? As a priority, be
non-threatening, truly sincere, and also...
1. Fully support their emotional needs, and be
interested in them as a person
2. Have a slow, reassuring manner and
constantly show that you're listening
3. Share your personal opinions and feelings
in a non-threatening way (don't push facts
or logic)
4. Always check thoroughly for
misunderstandings and/or unhappiness
5. Provide lots of reassurance around actions
incl. potential risks
6. Allow time to solicit opinions of others and
never back them into a corner
Adjust your comms style accordingly
Meeting a socialiser? As a priority, be very
interested in them, give compliments, and
also...
1. Get excited by their ideas and dreams,
and give them lots of recognition
2. Talk mostly about the big picture impact
3. Be social, enjoy your time with them and
don’t rush into getting down to business
4. Put all details and commitments in
writing, and be very direct about your
expectations of them
5. Use storytelling to put forward your
ideas, relating them back to their goals
6. Help them to look good in front of others
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Meeting a thinker? As a priority, be thorough,
well-prepared, patient, and also...
1. Take a considered approach and don't rush
them into decision-making
2. State pros and cons for suggestions, with
ways of overcoming the cons
3. Provide clear evidence of your solutions, and
then confirm these in writing
4. Gather all the data you need to support your
arguments and answer questions
5. Don't waste time with small talk - get down
to business as quickly as possible
6. Compliment them on their brain power and
their efficiency improvements
Suppress your negative behaviour
As a director, be careful of being...
● Dismissive and/or intimidating to
others when you feel they're not
helping achieve your goals
● Impatient when people can't keep up
with you (don’t view them as
incompetent - this is unfair)
● Blinkered to people's feelings/needs
(as you're so focused on the end goal)
● Stubborn with your opinion and
domineering in conversations
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As a relater, be careful of being...
● Unassertive and not getting an
outcome that works for you
● Overly-sensitive and spending too
much time checking other people's
opinions
● Intimidated by others so don't say
what you really think
● Overly-cautious to the point of
delaying decisions too much
Suppress your negative behaviour
As a socialiser, be careful of being...
● Preoccupied with looking good and
seeking approval (and losing focus on
the end goal)
● Disinterested in facts/data, to the
point of exaggerating the truth
● A disruption to others (as you don’t
like working alone and want to be the
centre of attention)
● Over-excitable when a calmer
approach can sometimes be better
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As a thinker, be careful of being...
● Disbelieving and skeptical of what
others say and the lofty ambitions
they might have
● Overly-critical due to perfectionist
tendencies and high expectations
● Overwhelmed with analysis
paralysis and unable to make a
decision
● Too focused on not being wrong, so
spending lots of time gathering data