Personality Matters: Strategies for Motivation and Management

On this episode of the Dr. Don Connections Podcast, host Sarah  sits down with Dr. Don Gilbert to delve deeper into understanding personalities in the workplace. Building on previous discussions about personality types and their relevance in hiring, they explore how to effectively motivate, communicate with, and manage each personality type - Lion, Beaver, Golden Retriever, Chameleon, and Otter. From identifying what drives each type to navigating conflicts, Dr. Don offers insightful strategies for employers and managers. Tune in for valuable insights into understanding and leveraging diverse personalities in the workplace.

For more information check out our website at www.drdoncoaching.com or www.newlife-counseling.com

Transcript

Sarah:
Welcome back to Dr. Don Connections Podcast. I'm your host today. My name is Sarah and I am in-studio today with Dr. Don Gilbert. And we are so excited to talk to you.

Dr. Don:
Yes, we we're going to talk a little bit more about personalities. I'm really excited.

Sarah:
So in our last two podcasts, we talked a little bit about the different personality types and tests, and then we talked a little bit about matching personality strengths when you're hiring for the job description. Can you just remind us for a second what those five personality types are from the tests that you developed?

Dr. Don:
Yes. So the names of them are Lion, which is a powerful person, the beaver, which is a producer. The Golden Retriever, which is the pleaser and the chameleon, which is the peacemaker and the otter, which is the playful person. And those are the five. And they're I would I would say their personality a word that really helps you understand. So the Beaver and the Lion are task oriented, whereas the Golden Retriever and Otter are people oriented and the chameleon can be both.

Sarah:
Thank you. What motivates each personality type? And as an employer and a manager in leadership, how do you motivate them?

Dr. Don:
Well, understanding what it is that they're seeking, you know, what are they looking for in terms of the environment or the job that they are trying to accomplish that you want them to work through and work on. And, you know, understanding what actually motivates them is really a very, very important thing.

So when you look at the golden retriever, for instance, they're really looking for approval. And so one of the ways that you can motivate them is to make sure that you are giving words of appreciation and approval.

If they are an otter, they are really looking for attention. And in some ways they're looking to connect with people. And so you have to give them opportunities to do that. So, you know, whether that's having a time where there is a social, for instance, and creating a time for socializing.

The chameleon, rather is the person who really is looking for acceptance. They want to know that you accept them for who they are. They're very susceptible to criticism, and so they're looking for acceptance. And they're really looking to create an environment that is everybody gets along.

Then the lion is looking for accolades. They're looking for say, you know, yeah, you did a great job and they really want to be able to have something that they can build. You know, like lion builds a kingdom, for instance. They have many different things that they are responsible for and they really like to know that what they're doing makes a difference and they give them accolades.

Whereas the beaver needs assurance, they need to be assured that they are valued and that what they are doing is really helping the company and that the job they're doing is good and they're really looking for the space to produce and work on their own give them a project and don't tell them how to do it, but let them do it the way that they would naturally work to do. And so those are the ways that you are looking to figure out what motivates them. And motivation is really important when you go to communicate with them.

Sarah:
Can you give me an example of how you would motivate any of the personality types? Let's say, for example, an Otter,  how would you motivate them to produce more or to improve in their position?

Dr. Don:
Great. So basically the name of the game for an otter is play. And so they really work to play. if you really want them to be motivated, then you give them goals that they can achieve and then you give them things that they can enjoy and have fun with. And so that's really how you motivate them. So if they're in sales, you know, you basically say, if you do this and that, then you'll make more money or, you'll get a trip to Cancun, for instance. So they will work their tails off to have fun. That's really how you motivate an otter.

Sarah:
What about a golden retriever?
 
Dr. Don:
Golden retriever. They're just so helpful and everything that they do. You just say thank you and you give them approval over and over and over and over again- everything they do, even the littlest things. You let them know how much they're appreciated, and giving them that approval will motivate them and make them incredibly loyal to you.

Sarah:
What about a beaver?

Dr. Don:
Oh, beavers are fun. I am not one. Beavers are fun because they are very, very tied in to producing. They can be perfectionistic about their job. But I like to say this, that lions build businesses and beavers run them. Beavers basically make everything that the lion envisioned, make it better, make it work. And they do the task very, very detailed oriented, give them a task and get out of their way. That's what I would tell you. Give them a task and then give them assurance that no matter how many mistakes they made, it's not how much mistakes they make. It's the improvements and what we learn and how you create something that's better from the mistakes. So you just give them assurance that it's okay to make a mistake. We'll just learn from it and make it better. Give them a task. Get out of their way.

Sarah:
And how about that lion?

Dr. Don:
Well the lions kind of unique. Because it depends upon, I think, their value system. So when I looked for lions in my company, I would look for someone who has my values because it's really important, because if you have a lion that doesn't have your values you're going to be in trouble because you're going to have conflict. Right? So what I do is I figure out what they really do well at. And I want to create a project and I want to give them a vision for what I would like to see the project and then I want to listen to them and say, what would you envision? How would you do this? How would you go about this? I would listen to them really well, and then I would give them some parameters and give them some freedom within the parameters to go create it.

Sarah:
And last but not least, the chameleon.

Dr. Don:
The chameleon, my favorite. chameleons really don't like to be micromanaged at all. You give them freedom to have relationships and a task and make sure that you give them some freedom and space to be able to figure out how to do the job. They will become very creative about how to create the job and get it done. They will work with people really, really well. They will work alone well, but they really like to sit down and brainstorm with people. And in that brainstorming they will figure and come up with all kinds of creative ways to create and do something and sometimes do it better than anybody else could have envisioned, but you just get out of their way and you give them acceptance for who they are because, they're really adaptable and flexible and yet the same time, very creative.

Sarah:
The next question I have is, how do you communicate best with these individuals? Because they're all clearly motivated by different things. So I would assume that you need to communicate with each of them in a very unique way. So how would you do that?

Dr. Don:
Sure. So, a golden retriever, what they seek is support. They want to know that everything that they're doing, the thing, you support them in it and you give them the support they need. You give them the tools that they need so they can do their job.

For an otter, they're seeking stimulation. So if they're bored, you're going to have a problem with your otter. So you have to give them things that will stimulate them and give them interest. And again, it has to be about having fun.

Whereas a chameleon really is looking for serenity, they're looking for a peaceful environment. They do not like a lot of conflict. They like to work in an environment that is kind of a peace. And so sometimes lions can create and beavers can create tension in the workplace because they're focused on the task and not on relationship. And so really that chameleon is looking for serenity.

Whereas the lion is looking to exert their strengths in a way that hopefully, as you have envisioned it, will actually create something better for the company and create something bigger for the company.

Where the beaver, they're looking for security. They want to know that what they have to do will give them security in the future. That's what motivates them.

And so if I'm communicating with them, I am using those concepts to communicate in the language of what motivates them. And so I'm going to change my words, I'm going to change my tone, and I'm going to change my approach and communication because I understand what motivates them.

Sarah:
I have one last question for you today, and that's about conflict. How does conflict affect the way you communicate? Do they approach conflict differently?

Dr. Don:
Oh, for sure. For sure. A lion, for instance, likes to win. winning at all costs is really a lion that doesn't have the right values. And so there are times when a lion needs to win. they're looking to come out on top is, as it were, where a beaver If there's conflict, they tend to withdraw in quietness. And so when you're seeing a lion that's maybe pushing and trying to get their way and being somewhat argumentative, then understand that there's something about what's going on, that they really feel that there's a need to win.  And then the beaver is looking at that and saying, you know, I'm done. I don't want to have anything to do with this conflict, so I'm going to withdraw.

Whereas the chameleon is always going to step in and try to find a way to get everybody to compromise. They're going to come up with different ideas about let's look at both sides. And I think we can come up with a compromise that works for everybody. So it's mutually beneficial.

So the otter, they're just going to pursue whatever it is that they think's going to create the most fun and give them the most stimulation. So that's what they're going to do. They're going to pursue something in conflict. They want to they want to figure it out, get it down, get it out of the way so they can go out and have fun.

The golden retriever is going to yield. If there's too much push or too much conflict, they're just going to give in to the one that is probably pushing the most or the loudest And so they don't really like conflict either and they don't really want to risk their relationship for the task. They would rather give in to the relationship and make the relationship better rather than, basically say, you know, I think we need to do it this way and this would be the best way to approach it.  So those are the things that we have to understand about conflict and the different personalities.

Sarah:
Thank you so much for all of that information about personalities and about how to manage these different personalities. If you are interested in learning more about these personalities in this five quadrant personality test that Dr. Don has developed, you can reach out to us on our website and we would be happy to talk with you about it. Thank you again for your time and we look forward to talk to you next time.

Dr. Don:
Thanks for listening.