It is often a significant challenge to lead and communicate with a diverse group of employees. If you are like many managers, it might feel natural to try to relate to everyone in the same way. You use your personal gauge of what is respectful, logical and constructive to determine how to manage your employees. When dealing with a sensitive situation involving an employee, for example, you may consider how you as an individual would like it to be addressed and then act accordingly.

This is a well-intentioned and reasonable approach to management, but unfortunately, it doesn’t take into account the many different personality types that exist in your workplace. The “Golden Rule”– treat others the way you would like to be treated– is far less effective than the “Platinum Rule” — treat others the way they would like to be treated.

A Fast, Accurate Online Personality Test

If you have no idea how your employees want to be treated, you are not alone. It would be close to impossible to figure out the intricacies of each person’s behavior style without any assistance. Thankfully, the DISC assessment, an online personality test developed by a Harvard psychologist, takes all the guessing out of this process. DISC is an acronym that represents each of the four behavior styles:

• Dominance — associated with power and assertiveness
• Influence — associated with social interaction and communication
• Steadiness — associated with stability, sensitivity and patience
• Conscientiousness — associated with structure, accuracy and organization

In just a few minutes, the DISC online personality test outlines the behavior style tendencies of each person on your team. The personalized evaluation maps out which behavior style strengths your employees lean toward and which they struggle with. It gives specific advice for how managers should relate to different employees to best fit with their personality types. It  also gives suggestions for how employees can work to improve their style weaknesses and build stronger relationships with colleagues.

How do you think the “Platinum Rule” applies to your own workplace? Add your comments below.

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