How to manage different personalities – The theory behind it

The DISC model: The renowned DISC model categorizes people into four different types of personality. It has only taken its present form the last year, but it has appeared in human culture long before Christ in ancient Greece. Back then, people were divided into phlegmatic, sanguine, choleric, and melancholic. The person who came up with that theory was Hippocrates, a physician and a doctor at the time. The listing was made based on the body’s primary fluids that affect the patient’s health, and the intention of the theory was to heal common diseases of the population. In eastern philosophy, a raw interpretation of these characters was made using the elements of nature; air, water, fire, and earth. As time went by, the model has evolved and is now used mostly as a psychological test in an effort to categorize personalities. It is commonly taught in management seminars to pass the information on how to handle people. Sometimes, it is used by big companies to help them manage their human resources. The four types of personality you will meet in an office are based on the DISC model. ”The sex and the city”, the popular tv-series, based the four women’s characters in the Disc model. Read the article below and see if you can recognize them.

How it works

The model considers there are two verticals. The vertical represents how social you are. On the bottom, we have the introverts. As we move to the top extrovert personalities appear. The horizontal line is an indicator of how people face the environment. Another way to look at this axis is to divide people into those who are fast-paced and those who are moderate-paced. At the right part, we have those who face their surrounding environment as an intruder, and they focus on targets. At the left part, we have those who feel friendly and calm about their external world and are people-oriented. So, according to the model, we have four types of people. On the top left, we have D, Dominants. At the top right, we have the I type, which stands for Inspiring. Moving clockwise to the bottom right, we have the Supportive ones. In the end, the bottom left is where we have those who are Cautious. Most of the time, people have elements from all parts of the DISC pie. Depending on the circumstances, they adopt behaviors that are more useful for a particular condition. Let’s see how each one of them is.

The Dominant

• Who are they: Firm, strong-willed, forceful, direct, and results-oriented
• What do they fear: The greatest fear for this kind of person is the fear of failure. The importance of their lives hides in success.
• How will you recognize him: They always dressed carefully in accordance with the occasion they are about to be present.
• What is their job: They usually have leading positions as they can manage stress, and they are pretty ambitious.

The Inspiring

• Who are they: Outgoing, enthusiastic, optimistic, lively, high-spirited
• What do they fear: They are afraid of criticism and rejection. Their primary purpose in life is to be accepted.
• How will you recognize him: They are probably messy. Their clothing is really colorful but not carefully combined.
• What is their job: These people are commonly artists

The Supportive

• Who are they: Even-tempered, tactful, humble, patient, accommodating
• What do they fear: This time, we probably talk about people who are afraid of loneliness, and they will do anything to reassure human companionship.
• How will you recognize him: They are grounded and more quiet. They like casual outfits, usually in brown or pastel colors.
• What is their job: Employees and people who avoid taking risks are likely to be found in this category. They enjoy security, and low-profile positions are perfect for them.

The Cautious

• Who are they: Analytical, precise, systematic, private, reserved.
• What do they fear: They cannot stand disorder, and they like things to be tidy
• How will you recognize him: They are super clean. They avoid eccentric choices, and they probably wear conservative clothing.
• What is their job: Commonly, people who belong in this category will thrive as scientists and philosophers.

Written by Anna Siampani.