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One of the most interesting concepts I came across when I was doing the research for my book SustainABLE has been the idea that people, generally speaking, fall within four character categories.
While it is ridiculous to think that the 8+ billion people walking on this planet can be split into four categories, this is an interesting concept that can be useful when planning a sustainability conversation.
If you have done your stint in corporate, you might have done a test called DISC.
DISC stands for Dominant, Influencing, Steady and Cautious (which are usually identified by the colours red, yellow, green and blue).
🔴 Dominant (red) people are those driven, a-types who look at results and facts and can't stand small talk.
🟡 Influencing (yellow) people are those who catalyse others, and are the life and soul of the party but get bored by details and data.
🟢 Steady (green) people are amiable, reflective people who care about others (and the environment) and might be a little introverted.
🔵 Cautious (blue) people are the data-driven, fact-driven introverted who hide behind a spreadsheet very happily.
In order to use this information for your next conversation, think about someone you work with often.
Which category do you think they most obviously fall into?
And you, which one of these reflects you the most?
Once you have established that, think about the sort of communication that would make the most impact on that specific category.
Unless you flex your tone, content and style to suit your audience, capturing their attention and getting to your desired outcomes will be very difficult.
As an example, Dominant people need facts and results, not lengthy emails or talking about niceties. You might want to talk with them about the return on investment of sustainability.
Steady people love a story and a more human touch in their communications.
Download this PDF (an abstract from my book) and see how you can flex the way you speak about sustainability to people in line with their personality, not your own communication style.
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