The Playful and Influencing communicator is one that is warm, fun and engaging. These guys are all about relationship and having fun. If you know someone with this style they can range from warm and friendly to zany and full of life, the life of the party.
This style does not care so much for organisation, rules, processes, work – it is simply not colourful or fun enough. As you can imagine, if you work with this style and don’t understand them, you could be having some frustrations. These guys are very good at motivating and energising people to do the work, not necessarily doing the work themselves.
I am surrounded by the playful and influencing style, I think it is because I am so driven and full of order and work that I need help to lighten up. My son is a high “I” and he will often grab me when I am in the middle of working just to tell me a joke or get me to watch a silly cartoon. He brings so much laughter into my life.
As you may imagine if I am focused and trying to get work done I can get quite frustrated with his attempts at humour. However, I have since grown to appreciate the colour and life that he brings to our relationship, without his humour breaks it would be all work and no play!
When this style is understood they make such great friends and teammates, when misunderstood they can seem selfish and self-centred. Like all of the styles we need to understand the differences and work on how we can best unite to bring out the best in all of us. We all bring something special and unique to the work and home environments.
If you are a Playful and Influencing communicator and are struggling, checkout our resources page or contact us with your specific questions. If your team is struggling to understand you, or you are having trouble learning how to give difficult feedback or deal with conflict then check out our resources. Perhaps you have these skills, but your team may need to learn skills such as assertive communication, giving succinct messages and dealing effectively with conflict. For training to learn more about your style, your strengths and how to get the most out of your workplace and relationships visit www.teamology.com.au
Until next time, Care, Connect and be a Courageous Communicator. Let’s change the world we live in one conversation at a time.
