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Have you ever felt like you're speaking a different language than some colleagues? In this insightful episode, DISC Certified Trainer and Resilience Coach Julie South provides a framework for understanding diverse communication styles through the lens of personality types.
Using the research-backed DISC model, Julie breaks down the tell-tale verbal and non-verbal cues that indicate if someone is an "Assertive Executor," "Enthusiastic Collaborator," "Cooperative Stabiliser," or "Analytical Problem Solver."
From direct body language and concise phrases to warm gestures and personal stories, you'll learn to quickly identify each unique style.
By developing this personality awareness and emotional intelligence, you can build faster rapport with teammates, better relate to clients when proposing treatment plans, and ultimately improve team dynamics and workplace culture.
Recognising these cues allows you to adapt your communication approach for more effective collaboration.
Julie provides actionable tips for employers to incorporate this training, like creating team "cheat sheets" on personality cues and hosting workshops with DISC experts. For employees, she challenges you to increase your emotional intelligence by observing colleagues' styles and being more aware of your own.
Don't miss this invaluable opportunity to crack the communication code at your clinic!
Strengthening these skills will lead to more cohesive teamwork, stronger bonds, increased employee engagement and retention, and an exceptional workplace culture that makes your clinic shine.
Three Key Takeaways:
- Learn the research-backed DISC model for recognising personality styles through verbal and non-verbal cues
- Develop emotional intelligence to adapt your communication approach and build better rapport
- Implement personality training through team workshops, cheat sheets, and new hire onboarding
About DISC-Flow®
DISC is a research-backed and science-based personality profiling tool used to understand our behaviours, communication styles, and work preferences. It’s about understanding what makes you – and the people you work with – tick.
Julie South is a DISC Flow® Certified Trainer, who describes DISC-Flow® profiling as being like having a cheat sheet to better understand yourself and other people. When you know this, it helps you play to your personality strengths, work better in teams, and communicate better.
If you’re keen to find out what your personal DISC type is, what type of leader you are, or what your clinic’s team composition looks like, then get in touch with Julie to find out what's involved.
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Julie South [00:00:04]:
Have you ever wondered why certain colleagues resonate with and get your communication style while others don't? Could your words and maybe your body language be giving away more about your personality than you realize? Welcome to the Vet Staff podcast, where veterinary professionals can top up their resilience tank, get their heads screwed on straight, and and get excited about going to work on Monday mornings again. This is episode 89 and I'm your show host, Julie south, certified trainer and resilience coach. The Vet staff podcast is powered by Vet Staff Limited, the recruitment agency on a mission to help vet clinics recognise, retain and recruit their dream teams. We show clinics, vets and nurses how to crack the communication code that's unique to them. So resilience skyrockets and people want to join and stay. You can find back copies of the Vetstaff podcast@vetstaffpodcast.com last week we introduced the five C's framework of team dynamics and the Delta Leadership development program. We talked about the real cost of staff turnover and how understanding these costs can help you prioritise strategies to reduce churn and improve team dynamics. If you missed that episode, then I recommend you go back and have a listen.
Julie South [00:01:46]:
Vetstaffpodcast.com today we're diving into how our words and our body language reveals our personality style. When we recognise these cues, it helps us communicate better with our colleagues. This in turn means better team dynamics. Let's start first with nonverbal cues to help you recognize different personality types. Now, because I'm a disc certified trainer, I'm using the disc model, which is research based and science backed to make those easier for you. We've given them different labels. So, for example, the assertive executor. You'll recognize assertive executors, which on the disc profile, they are the dominance type.
Julie South [00:02:43]:
These are the people that have strong, forceful body language, who aren't afraid of making direct eye contact. Their handshakes are firm, their posture is straight and upright, they move quickly and they make sharp, purposeful gestures. They exude confidence, even if and even when they might not be feeling that way. Then we have the enthusiastic collaborators. These are the people who influence. They are great at influencing. These types use a lot of hand gestures. They have lively, dynamic body language.
Julie South [00:03:23]:
They're warm and friendly, often leaning in and maintaining eye contact with high energy and high enthusiasm. They're the people who are usually fun to be around. Then we have the cooperative stabilizers, the steadies. You'll recognize them because of their relaxed body language. They have slower movements and more reserved gestures. They have a gentle, welcoming smile and moderate eye contact, and they value physical proximity. Then finally, we have the analytical problem solvers, the compliance people. They're the ones who exhibit measured and deliberate movements.
Julie South [00:04:07]:
Minimal gestures. They maintain a more rigid posture. They often display a reserved demeanor with less emotional expression. Okay, so now let's move on to their verbal cues, the words they use. When we really listen to the words used, it means that we can better relate to other people and we will recognize the flavour of the words that they use that go with their personality type. We'll be able to do this better. Now let's have a look at different how the different personality types communicate. The assertive executors.
Julie South [00:04:49]:
They are direct, concise. They are interested in action and results. You will hear them say things like phrases like, let's get this done, what's the bottom line? And we should move forward on this plan. They like to keep things moving, the enthusiastic collaborators, the influence people. They are enthusiastic and optimistic, and they often tell personal stories, have personal anecdotes for them. Common phrases include, this is going to be great because they are so people, people oriented and they are people, and they are high energy. They'll say things like, let's brainstorm some ideas and everyone's going to love this, even when they might not. But to them it's all about the people and being positive.
Julie South [00:05:42]:
Then we have the cooperative stabilizers, the steadies. These are the supportive and the patient types on your team. They focus on collaboration and consistency. They say things like, how can I help you with that? And they also say something like, let's make sure everyone is comfortable with this. And then lastly we have the analytical problem solvers, the compliance people. These are the ones who are detail oriented and precise. They often reference data or standards. Typical phrases for them include things like, according to the latest research, and let's review the protocol step by step.
Julie South [00:06:29]:
Now, when you watch out and listen for and then recognize these verbal and nonverbal cues, it means that you're able to build faster rapport and better relate to the people that you work with. In a clinical setting, this doesn't just mean your peers and your colleagues, it doesn't just mean the vets and the nurses that you work with. It can include, and should include and does include your clients as well. Because when you understand this, it could be the difference between a client taking up your treatment plan or not. Now, all of that is all well and good, right? Lots of theory, but what does it mean in the real world? And how can this, all of that stuff make a difference at your clinic? Here are some actionable steps that you can take away from today's episode. If you are an employer or you're a leader at your team, so maybe HR manager, practice manager. You're one of the directors. You're the head vet, lead vet, head nurse.
Julie South [00:07:43]:
Develop a communication write up a communication cheat sheet based on what we've talked about here that outlines common nonverbal and verbal cues for each of the different people, the personality types that we've just talked about in your clinic. And then set up a team workshop or a meeting to talk about the communication that takes place in your clinic from this perspective. And or second takeaway that you can put into place is host a communication workshop where you bring in an expert who can provide deeper insights into the nonverbal and verbal cues, preferably using disc, so that your team can benefit as a whole. Now, if this is something that you'd be interested in, then please get in touch with us at Vetstaff because it is something, definitely something that we can facilitate for you. So Teametstaff dot co dot NZ is the email address and or third thing that you could do as an employer. Incorporate communication training into your onboarding process for all new hires. So that means that you ensure that team members are aware of the importance of recognizing nonverbal and verbal skills and then provide them with the tools and the resources to develop these skills from the get go at your clinic. This is something that vet staff has started doing for the clinics and the vets and the nurses that we are working with now to help them find their next dream job or to expand their dream team.
Julie South [00:09:27]:
What this means is that every new hire through us, through vet staff, is we automatically include disc personality profiling before they start at their new clinic to help them get great communication skills and to kick off everything perfectly at their new clinic. Now, if you are an employee, think about how you communicate your communication style and observe and listen and look out for and watch out for the verbals and the non verbal communication cues that your colleagues and your workmates are using. When I was going through the different types of phraseology and the verbal non communication skills, the nonverbal skills, which did you relate to most or which ones did you think, yeah, that's me, or that's whatever. That's whoever. So how about your colleagues? What did you recognize in each of them? And then hone those work on developing those further next week. So stay tuned because next week we're going to dive into connection and collaboration. We're going to be exploring, building trust, strengthening team bonds and creating strong connections through great leadership. So stay tuned.
Julie South [00:10:51]:
Hit that follow button wherever you are listening to your this podcast right now at your your audio platform of choice. If you'd like to know more about transforming the communication at your clinic and or developing exceptional leaders, please get in touch with us as soon as possible because you can never start too soon with leadership. I'm sure you know leaders are trained, most of them are not born. This means that you owe it to your team and your clinic to make sure that your leaders are trained and developed as leaders. With Vetstaff's Delta leadership program. Your leadership team will discover their unique personality styles. They'll learn how to adapt their approach and be great leaders and apply the personality and behaviour insights to become better coaches, better mentors, better givers of feedback. They'll be more relaxed when they're having those difficult conversations because they'll understand more and it will lead them to an enviable, unable to be copied great clinic culture.
Julie South [00:12:11]:
This means that the clinic down the road won't be able to copy what you're doing. If you're interested in that, then send an email Teametstaff dot co dot NZ we have a limited number of special deal pilot places left. This is Julie south signing off and inviting you to go out there and be the most fantabulous, resilient, powerful version of you you can be. The Vet staff podcast is proudly powered by vetclinicjobs.com comma, the new and innovative global Job board reimagining veterinary recruitment connecting veterinary professionals with clinics that shine online Vetclinicjobs.com is your go to resource for finding the perfect career opportunities and helping vet clinics power up their employer branding game. Visit vetclinicjobs.com today to find vet clinics that shine online so veterinary professionals can find them. Vetclinicjobs.com.