The DISC I personality, or as some say the High I Style, love social situations, friendship, and communicating. They fear being excluded or ignored.
People with High I scores influence others through talking and activity and tend to be emotional. They are described as:
- Convincing
- Magnetic
- Political
- Enthusiastic
- Persuasive
- Warm
- Demonstrative
- Trusting
- Optimistic
Whereas those with Low I scores influence more by data and facts, and not with feelings. They are described as reflective, factual, calculating, skeptical, logical, suspicious, matter of fact, pessimistic, and critical.
“Let Me Entertain You” A chatty, expressive, fun-loving optimist, the ‘I’ Style likes to ride the crest of ideas, causes, or projects that come, one after another, like waves. The “bright, shiny objects syndrome” could also be connected with I’s, for they are so open, they want to do it all!
Long on ideas, but sometimes short on follow-through, the High ‘I’ Influence Style leads by dealing with others in an up-beat way. Fast-paced, energetic, and outgoing, the optimistic ‘I’s innate belief is: “If I can show you that I like you, you’ll follow me.”
High ‘I’s love people and thrive on being where the action is. They strive to build a network of friends and admirers who will appreciate his or her flair for fun and creativity. Highly intuitive, the ‘I’s come up with lots of ideas – some practical, some not. But they do seek admiration and acceptance.
The Greatest Asset of DISC I Personality
Fun to Be Around: Enthusiastic, playful and persuasive, ‘I’s show their feelings openly and frequently. I’s are very expressive and highly intuitive.
What’s the Greatest Limitation of the I Style?
Being Disorganized: High ‘I’ Styles sometimes have a short attention span, especially when stressed out. Lack of stimulation may lead to big decisions being made based on scant data.
I’s love ideas but hate putting them into practice, often starting projects but being unable or unwilling to finish them.
The Greatest Fear of I Personality
Not Being Liked: High ‘I’ Styles crave approval more than achievement; they are emotional and people-focused in their decision-making.
They see themselves as “big picture” people, and thus prefer to avoid lots of specifics. Planning and follow-through aren’t enough fun to be high priorities unless “S” is their secondary strength.
Deep down, ‘I’s love companionship – and recognition from those companions! So remember to call them by name and acknowledge their contributions publicly!
Great Careers for DISC I Personality
I’s do well in public relations, sales, entertainment – and make great cruise ship social directors! An Influencing High ‘I’ style’s favorite subject of course is… themselves and they make good teachers in areas of their passion.
To achieve greater balance and behavioral flexibility, ‘I’s need to: control their time and emotions; develop a more objective mindset; spend more time checking, verifying, specifying and organizing; develop more of a task-focus; and take a more logical approach to projects and issues.
All About I’s – The “Influencing Socializer”
Keyword = Influence: relating to and dealing with people
Style: High I = Enthusiastic, self-promoting, sociable.
Moderate I = Poised, confident, reflective.
Low I = Controlled, pessimistic, withdrawn.
Differing from the more reactive nature of the D, they tend to be optimistic, seeing most situations as potentially favorable. Less socially-oriented personalities can find the High I’s need to relate to and impress others difficult to understand.
High I’s Goal: People involvement, recognition.
High I’s Fears: Rejection, loss of social approval.
Emotional Expression: Optimism (and trust of people).
High I = Optimistic.
Low I = Cautious approach to trusting people.
Overview of High I’s: The I (Influencing) style is the second factor described by a DISC graph. The communicative and socially confident style of those with high Influencing factors is often offset by a rather impulsive and sometimes irrational approach to life.
Persons with high I energy seek to meet their needs by establishing alliances with others, persuading them to cooperate and work together to accomplish their desired results.
High in ego strength, they are similar to the D’s highly verbal nature, but High I’s tend to be more tactful and sensitive to others’ feelings. Strongly outgoing and people-oriented, they value relationships and usually make friends easily in any situation.
I’s love to entertain and appreciate gourmet foods and restaurants. At home, they have all the latest kitchen gadgets, even if they don’t use them.
They are the people that fancy packaging was designed for! Oriented to fashion and style, they love the freedom of movement. Their workspace is stimulating, personal, friendly, (and cluttered!)
Their best work may be done on the golf course, in a bar, or at coffee – any setting that has a social flavor. They can generally put people at ease quickly because of their own need to be valued.
More emotional than the other styles, their faces reflect what is going on inside of them. They put forth the best body image of all the patterns because they love “looking good.”
DISC I personality’s greatest dislike is “loss of prestige or social approval”, so providing the motivational climate they need means showing them lots of personal attention.
Achieve acceptance by being “playful” and stimulating while admiring and acknowledging them. High I’s are irritated by boredom and routine and they love making spontaneous decisions.
Talk about them publicly in a positive way or don’t talk about them at all, for they fear the loss of social approval.
At work: They work at a fast and spontaneous pace, with a habit of being inattentive to detail and generally disorganized, unless they want to impress someone. Then they’ll quickly stuff everything in a drawer or out of sight in an attempt to “look good.”
Unfortunately, in a work setting, it is usually impossible for others to retrieve anything from the High Is’ desks or files. But they know “it’s around here somewhere!” One over-use of the high I’s natural optimism about people:
Trusting people indiscriminately. They are also situational listeners – hearing only those things that support their own points of views or what they hope and want to have happen. They may receive several “taps” on the shoulder before learning to be more cautious.
How to Sell to the I Style
Stress how the product will enhance their status or approval from others, and the ‘people-appeal’. Drop a few names of well-known people who also use it.
Be casual and friendly, answering “who” questions. Speak at a rapid pace, be enthusiastic and show feelings. Provide a motivational climate by giving them a sense of security, smile, be flexible with them, and support their ideas.
Respond to their concerns by being empathetic and talking about other people’s successes using the product or service. Gain Commitment by using an upbeat approach, encouraging them to take action. Follow up with actions that will save them effort and complications.
The Value That DISC I Personality Adds to a Team
One of the DISC I personality’s strengths is optimism and the ability to motivate others. In sales, they easily open doors. (Note: If they have a lot of D they can also close sales easily).
Having the “gift of gab,” they can make great speakers, sales promoters and customer service representatives.
NB: If the I’s also have strong S tendencies, they will love to counsel and coach others as they are sensitive to others’ feelings and good at tuning in to what is wrong.
What makes a High I less effective?
The flip side of their optimism and verbal skills is that they may act impulsively, using their heart over their mind. They tend to operate at high trust levels which may have the effect of being unrealistic in appraising people.
Their inattentiveness to detail can make trouble for them. Their desktop and personal space may appear highly disorganized to neater types, but they can always find what they need and know just where they left it.
Gosh I bet by now you are either starting to see yourself as a High I or have thought of someone you know! Team them up with a C to create a clean space. Learn self- satisfaction and capitalize on their networking ability.
THE “I” STYLE = Influence (How we influence people)
Emotional Expression: Optimistic and trusts people.
Fears: Loss of social approval.
What works about High I’s:
- Enthusiastic
- Loves people
- Open – willing to share feelings
- Good communicator
- Wants to be liked and be included
- Optimistic
- Can move spontaneously / fast
The limitations others observe: May have difficulty staying focused and can talk too much – about themselves. They can be disorganized – they need to ‘look good’, and they fear not being liked/may be easily led. I’s may seem too cheerful or out of touch, with others seeing them as rather impulsive and undisciplined.
Affirmative statements to empower a High I
- “I like your enthusiasm about life!”
- “I can count on you to express your thoughts, opinions and ideas.”
- “You are such a positive person!”
- “You certainly love to participate in everything that is going on!”
- “You join in on things quickly.”
- “You have a unique ability to motivate people.”
- “You seem to like people and want everyone to like you.”
- “You have a lot of creative ideas.”
What motivates High I’s?
Comfort and convenience in their physical environment is very important to them. They look forward to opportunities to take charge and interact daily with a lot a people.
They like to be given the big picture first, so they know how to relate to the situation. I’s have strong ego strength, love to share their enthusiasm and have a strong need to “talk” things over.
They take a leadership role by virtue of their verbal nature and enrolling charisma.
Give them support staff to delegate technical details and repetitive activities to. Giving them “social time out” or acknowledging them with flowers, music, or things of beauty will help them recharge their batteries.
Stress indicators for High I?
Under pressure, High I’s may become sarcastic and superficial, making emotional attacks on others and their ideas. They also may indicate their stress by condemning, putting down, discrediting, or telling people how they “feel” about them – in sarcastic or inappropriate ways.
Since their greatest fear is loss of social approval, it is important to give them constructive feedback on their work privately without attacking them personally. They are usually tuned in to their physical needs and emotions. They, too, need to be encouraged to pace themselves.
The LOW I
LOW I’s Motivational environment: Low I’s need an environment which provides control of emotions, facts and examples, time to react, opportunity to work alone and think, or schedule activities.
LOW I’s on a team: The emotional scale moves from the high I’s “optimism about people” to a low I’s “pessimistic view of people” upon first meeting. When they know they can trust people, they warm up. They influence people in a reserved and cautious manner.
Interpretation Tip for I Style
We are born with access to all of these styles in us, but our life and family environment and situations shape the styles that give us our most successful results. Study this information I’m sharing with you and actively watch and notice people’s observable behavior as it will get you started on the road to developing your People-literacy skills.
If you’d like to apply DISC to become a more effective leader, get a copy of the DISCovering My Leadership Style Report.
