Effective communication is key to effective relationships. So how can you ensure you’re using communication best practices? Follow the rainbow!
Have you ever wondered why:
- Some people work well together and others don’t?
- Some people are productive and fun to work with, while others seem (to you) unproductive and boring?
- The same person can do extremely well in one job and poorly in another?
- An employee with great education and experience has a hard time with a certain job?
- Some instructors, supervisors or employees are easier to understand and talk to than others?
The answers to these questions are connected to personality styles that dictate communication preferences. No one personality style or resulting communication preference is right or wrong; they are just different. We can learn to recognize and respect these preferences so we can better communicate, lead, coach, counsel, advise and engage people whose preferences differ from ours.
All relationships either succeed or fail based upon the level of effective communication.
To help, Troy University’s Continuing Education & Outreach team created a unique communication assessment, Color Dynamics, which focuses on understanding people’s varying communication preferences.
In addition to identifying communication preferences, Color Dynamics reveals some of the best practices for interacting with others based on these discovered preferences, as well as how to use individuals’ preferences in a team setting.
Color Dynamics points out where different preferences may collide, which preference has the greatest difficulty communicating with other preferences and how leaders can be proactive in anticipating some of the “bumps” the diversity can cause.
Finally, Color Dynamics offers practical solutions for those collisions and gives team members and team leaders the ability to become more effective communicators with all preferences.
Michael Jackson is a Professional Development Instructor and Consultant with Continuing Education & Outreach at Troy University. Contact TROY CE&O at 334-983-0005 or [email protected] to schedule the Color Dynamics assessment and training for your team.
