It was like lighting a match with a blowtorch. One person made a statement about
“those people,” and the whole room exploded—some in agreement; others in righteous
indignation!
Suddenly we weren’t a team any more; we were a room full of shocked, embarrassed,
prickly individuals. The room fell silent, but we were all fired up! At that moment the
road back to team unity seemed impossible, but we made it and now we’re stronger
than ever. That’s because team bonding with DiSC can kindle fires you don’t want to
extinguish.
In the interest of non-disclosure
Please note here that I’m not going to reveal whether we were talking about millennials
and Baby Boomers, or gays and straights, or blacks and whites, or Republicans and
Democrats. I’m not being coy here, it’s just that the specific bias doesn’t matter at this
point. What matters is the pain and disruption it caused.
It felt like we’d all been dropped into a steaming cauldron of venom. And I was
mortified because I didn’t realize that my colleagues felt the way they did. Had I been
naive all these years? Were we all just wearing masks to hide our real hearts?
Eventually, I was too discouraged to be offended.
But there was too much at stake for us to just storm out of the room. I mean, we were
all pretty fired up, but none of us wanted to be fired. Besides, a few of us had built
relationships we didn’t want to lose over this!
Some brave soul finally broke the silence by “suggesting” that maybe there was
nothing wrong with this group or that group. Another brave heart added: “Maybe
what’s wrong is our chronic, even compulsive need to pigeonhole people. First, we
strip them down to a few snarky cliches and stereotypes; that way we know how and
where to aim our biased behaviors and remarks. How else can we justify our rejection
of “those people” and feel okay about ourselves, right?” This time the silence was
deafening—full of downcast eyes, clenched fists, frantic thoughts, and conflicting
emotions. As for me, I could feel a tension headache simmering.
If I hear that one more time….
…you’ll scream, right? I’ll bet you feel that way right about now because everybody is
talking and writing about the need to treat people like individuals and not lump them
into generic groups, and blah blah blah.
Well, go ahead and scream, because….
…the fact is that it’s true. We’re all human and we all have shortcomings—some pretty
irritating ones, in fact. But by now we should have learned that when we lump people
together so we can distance ourselves from “those people,” we all receive the lumps.
Those lumps equate to the pain, heartache, and trauma that come from discrimination,
rejection, and hatred. All of that hostility and enmity will eventually boomerang and get
dumped right back on each of us. Just check your forehead.
Albert Einstein said that “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and
expecting a different result.” He was a theoretical physicist, so he could definitely relate
to “crazy” when he saw it. [Sorry, I just couldn’t resist the pun.]
Maybe once and for all it’s time to do something different so that our results will be
different. But how and what? The answer is simple: DiSC!
Team bonding with DiSC
You know those team activities your boss announces and you immediately plan a sick
day? Well DiSC ain’t that! DiSC can be a game changer if you’re willing to put in the
work and change.
Yes, that’s right. There are things about each of us that need to be changed, improved,
or discarded and DiSC personality profile discovery is the place to start. And yes, it
takes some work, but DiSC makes it painless and the results are always worth the
effort.
Dominant, Influential, Supportive, and Conscientious. Like a lucky 4-leaf clover, these
are the 4 amazing personality types we each have to a greater or lesser degree. They
are not pigeonholes designed to stereotype or typecast us. Instead, they help us
understand who we are, how we behave, and why we do what we do. Each DiSC
profile training session opens a window into our true selves.
For instance, insight into your most Dominant coworker may reveal a truly wonderful
person who just cares more loudly and forcefully than you do. And that Supportive
bean-counter who barely says “good morning”. Maybe they’ve been through too much
personal pain, to open up to anyone anymore. Imagine how great it would feel if you
could begin to understand them better and make them feel safe talking with you.
Self-awareness promotes team bonding
And speaking of you, DiSC can make you more self-aware and self-accepting. Those
so-called character flaws of yours may be embarrassing, but they don’t have to be
permanent. DiSC will provide a safe way for you to learn about yourself without
judgment, defensiveness, or shame.
It can open your mind to the possibility of becoming a better you. And what you can’t
seem to change, you can learn to live with. As you learn to accept yourself, warts and
all, it becomes easier to cut others some slack. Trust me, I know!
Understanding each others’ personality traits and behavioral quirks can make us less
socially unacceptable and more humane. It’s our humanity—naked, raw, vulnerable,
exposed—that we all have in common; and this commonality can be the cornerstone in
relationship building. Team bonding with DiSC can kindle a fire in your team’s heart
you won’t ever want to extinguish.