One + October 2010 - (Page 78)

Robert Klein tried to engage the members of his dissertation committee in introductory repartee—only to ﬁnd himself in awkward monologue. Crickets. Klein is a (F)eeler and (P)erceiver; the committee was comprised of (T)hinkers and (J)udgers. His Myers-Briggs psychometric type directly contradicted theirs. And these Harvard University hardliners were in no mood for small talk. The next time, he was prepared. He presented the data and his conclusions and asked what the committee thought. After the meeting, Klein’s advisor said he looked forward to the next discussion. And that’s how Klein started to build rapport. TJs hold nearly 70 percent of managerial roles and an even higher percentage of CEO positions, says Hile Rutledge of business (weaknesses). But what if she isn’t cold? She cares. She’s just objective and acts and reacts quickly. “There are beneﬁts to every personality type,” Rutledge says. “Don’t just assume that your boss doesn’t care. Put resentment aside and understand that your boss’ objectivity and fairness have helped the team in the long term. Your current crisis is simply you paying for beneﬁts you’ve already received.” STEP 2: ENGAGE Ixnay personal appeals. Ask your boss what she needs. TJs see some Myers-Briggs types as weak, so you need to explain how you do your best work. Rutledge says there are some managers who can hear this nicely, and others who cannot. With some, it is the only way to approach the situation. Allow for multiple paths to your goal and honest discussion about how to interact. You should also communicate using your boss’ preferences. ORDER BY JESSIE STATES PERSONALITY consultancy Otto Kroeger Associates. TJs are also objective decision makers who seek to control outcomes through highly organized environments. As an FP, Klein (now a professor at Western New England College and certiﬁed Myers-Briggs master practitioner) values emotional connections. But, he needed to speak TJ analytics in order to facilitate a relationship with his dissertation team. This same struggle plays out in every workplace every day as workers try to build connections with leaders whose personal and professional needs can vary so greatly from their own. People struggle to convey their ideas and worth because they don’t necessarily speak the same language as their superiors. And they don’t even know they should try. No time like the present. “If you have a problem and need to engage with your boss, you will have a better chance of being heard if you can translate into TJ language,” Rutledge says. “Nothing will turn off a TJ more than you complaining about him or her being ‘mean.’” Be objective, frame your argument on fairness, history and production and show that your conclusions are the most logical. For Ts, life is a series of questions to solve, so present decisions in objective and analytic ways. Don’t pitch values or intuition. Klein had 45 seconds to sell a project to his (E)xtrovert, (S)ensor and TJ provost. The professor wanted all ﬁrst-year students at Western New England to take his trademarked Myers-Briggs typing tool. But his boss was busy greeting parents and discussing academic scholarship. “I approached him and presented the facts: Students in leadership courses are already taking the assessment,” Klein says. “Then I suggested the next step—we expand the program—and concluded with my intended outcomes. I gave him a sound bite that focused on the way he likes to hear data, without speculation. The result: He liked the idea and has agreed to meet later.” Remember that leaders—no matter the type—are busy people and like to be efﬁcient. Approach them with key words, Klein says. When presenting, keep an eye on the time, present the facts, get to the point, share your conclusions and see if they agree. If necessary, ask what you can ﬁne-tune in order to make your argument stronger. You’ll get what you want and form better relationships at the same time. STEP 1: EVALUATE Identify why you face challenges in your dealings with leadership. Discern whether or not you can mend the connections alone. Rutledge says liabilities can be strengths that are misapplied or misunderstood. You perceive your boss as cold and uncaring TAKE THE ASSESSMENT Dr. Robert Klein of Western New England College has developed a tool to help individuals objectively assess their skills and gain insights into how to be a better team member. You can purchase the Klein Group Instrument online at www.capt.org. 78 one+ 10.10 http://www.capt.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of One + October 2010

One + October 2010
Contents
Energy of Many
Impressions
Design Thinking
Agenda
Thoughts+Leaders
SPIN Zone
Overheard
SoundOff
Signs of the Times
Focus
Top Spots
Connections
Irrelevant
Kill Your Résumé
Exceed Expectations
Live in Person
Snack Attack
Skin Deep
Playing God?
Gooooooal!
Untangling the Value of Social Media
Local Favor
Personality Order
Datascape Architect
Thriving Exhibits
Your Community
Making a Difference
Until We Meet Again

One + October 2010