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We’ve all heard of the Golden Rule, but in business, The Platinum Rule is even more important. Dr. Tony Alessandra asserts that The Platinum Rule, “Treat others the way they want to be treated,” recognizes what drives people is varied. You can’t control others, but you can control your actions. By shifting your behavior, you can have more productive relationships with different people. Most employees fall into one of four behavioral stereotypes, and your approach for communicating with each of them should be different. Let’s take a look.
Their Primary Focus: Results
Your Goal: Demonstrate Competence and Efficiency
When communicating with someone who is fast paced, decisive, dominant, strong-willed, goal-oriented, and ambitious:
Avoid:
Their Primary Focus: Interactions
Your Goal: Demonstrate an Interest In What’s Important to Them
When communicating with someone who is charming, enthusiastic, persuasive, magnetic, optimistic, talkative, and political:
Avoid:
Their Primary Focus: Data
Your Goal: Demonstrate Preparedness and Thoroughness
When communicating with someone who is neat, compliant, thoughtful, introverted, reserved, and self-controlled:
Avoid:
Dealing With The Relater
Their Primary Focus: Nurturing Relationships
Your Goal: Demonstrate Warmth and Sincerity
When communicating with someone who is slower-paced, warm, feeling-oriented, steady, modest, and patient:
Avoid:
About the Author:
Heidi Souerwine, CMP, is the Content Manager of ASAP and manages content strategy for ASAP and its portfolio of products, including the APC, EA Summit, EA Ignite, and PACE. Prior to moving to Maine and joining the ASAP team in 2017, she spent 15 years in Washington, DC managing training and events from 10 – 10,000 attendees for international membership associations, non-profits, and the federal government. Heidi is passionate about needs-based program development, purposeful event design, and cultivating active community and engagement.
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