In the previous posts we looked at the development level of your team members, the skills they possessed, their level of trust and their leel of accountability. In this post, and the next two, we are going to move beyond those and look at something we may not be as familiar with and that is their behaviours. If we can understand a person’s past behaviours, then we can predict how they will act going forward. It is all down to their repetitive behaviours.
The first study of behaviours was in 400BC
In 400 BC Hippocrates (famous for the Hippocratic oath of doctors) was studying the repetitive behaviours of the people around him. What surprised him most was that it was irrespective of their social standing and level of learning. What he didn’t realise was that in most cases we were born that way and that the human race needed a variety of people with different behaviours to achieve a good team. You may have heard the phrase “Opposites attract”. What is meant by that, is that the different behaviours are opposite to each other, making a good team. We fill in each other’s weaknesses and offer our strengths. Infact, the smallest balanced team can be as little as two people.
Being a medical man, Hippocrates thought that there had to be something in the body that caused the difference (he did not know that it could be written into our DNA) and as he had identified four behaviours, and there are four liquids in the body, it must be our composition of those liquids that determines our behaviours. As a result, he named the four types “black bile, yellow bile, phlegm, and blood”. I must admit I wouldn’t want to be called a “black bile” type. It was a good start, but the reality was that it had nothing to do with the liquids in the body.
In 190 AD Galen another famous medical man took the work of Hippocrates and developed it further, renaming the four behaviours “Melancholic, Choleric, Phlegmatic and Sanguine”. These formed the basis for modern day study on behaviours and NASA put a lot of investment into it to help them build perfect teams for the space missions. As part of this work they gave them the modern description of “Dominant, Extrovert, Patient, and Conformist”. Words you have probably heard used before.
We cannot treat everyone the same
It is crucial to understand the differences between the behaviours people are born with and how they think, communicate, make decision, and are motivated and demotivated if you hope to lead them.
Let’s start by looking at the key characteristics of each behaviour to understand how different they are.
At first view you can see that the detailed people are the conformists and therefore if you had a task that required a lot of detail work then they would be the ideal candidate for the task. Conversely if you need someone to get everyone excited about a project then the extrovert is the person to add to your team. It is not an exaggeration to say that getting those two in reverse could have serious complications for the task and the Fun Day.
As a leader we must ensure that we don’t demotivate a member of our team, as it is harder to motivate them from that position. Therefore:
- For the Dominant, try not to come across as exercising control over them, or not letting them have the opportunity to be involved, and definitely don’t micro manage or put too many controls, or weigh them down with too much detail.
- For the Extrovert, they will need to know that they are liked and have your respect. They must be given enough opportunity to participate and do not lose their trust, if you agree to something you need to follow it through.
- For the Patient, make sure you do not put too much pressure on them at the last minute, they need time to plan, and hate sudden changes. You must be clear on expectations and they will be demotivated if there is not harmony in the team.
- For the Conformist, don’t be too aggressive or pushy. Ensure you give them sufficient detail and they must know you are supporting their decision-making process. They will need support if you are changing traditional systems.
In the next issue post we will look at the keys to the best communication with each behaviour, how to interact with them and what is their unique motivators. Equally we will look at how they can adapt their behaviours to deal with certain circumstances.
To read this series from the beginning click here
To read the next part on behaviours and leadership click here