Overview of personality types

- Have you ever been in a situation where you sensed you were getting the same old pitch that's been used on just about everyone who came before you? It doesn't feel good when you're dealing with someone who doesn't see you as an individual but just another phone call or potential customer. We're going to break that cycle by teaching you how to identify personality types so you can communicate with people in a way that makes them feel like individuals. In other words, they'll feel important. Personality types is a big subject and it can be daunting. For example, Myers-Briggs is one of the best known personality assessments but it has 16 personality types. I don't know about you, but trying to remember 16 would be tough. Compound that by trying to figure out who you're dealing with in the moment and it can be overwhelming. In the fast paced world of selling, you need something that's easy to remember and quick to use so you understand who you're dealing with. I like to use the acronym DEAL when talking about how to deal with different personality types. Because it's easy to remember and use. There are two basic questions you'll want to answer for each person you meet. First, is the person you're interacting with more focused on getting things done? That is, are they task-oriented? Or are they more focused on relationships? A relationship-oriented individual. Second, does the person like to be in control of situations? That is, are they control-oriented or is their focus more on self-control? They're a self-oriented individual. With those two questions in mind, imagine a four quadrant box. Above the line are people who are task-oriented and below the line are those who are more relationship-oriented. On the right side are people who like to be in control of situations and on the left, are people who are more focused on self-control. Now, let's deal with the four personality types. In the upper right is someone who's all about getting the job done. They like to be in charge, we'll call that person a driver. In the lower right is someone who also likes to be in control but they're more focused on people and relationships than just getting things done. We call this person an expressive. Moving to the lower left, we have someone who is also relationship-focused, but they're not about controlling others or situations. They're more focused on self-control. These are amiables. Finally, in the upper left, we have another personality that is task-focused, they don't care so much about being in charge. Rather, they're about self-control. We call these folks logicals. DEAL is all about understanding whether the person you're interacting with is a driver, expressive, amiable, or logical. I encourage you to start practicing this skill. See if you can quickly identify people so you're in a better position to deal with them as individuals.