Directive (D)

Overview
Recovery. Applying known theories and systems or equations to recover previously undiscovered solutions or problems. This is a reductive approach using predominantly critique, judgement and argument. The style of a person highly loyal to an organization.

Your thinking style
You like to do things by following step by step procedures. You prefer to follow rules, regulations and policies. You prefer to either experience things yourself or you will follow the guidelines of experts. You may be seen by other people as conservative. You are precise, practical, consistent and persistent. You look for reliability and quality. You are very punctual and dependable. You prefer to work on one project at a time without interruptions. You organize your projects, step by step, before you begin them. You generally learn best by applying accepted theories and attaining skills through practice. Your favourite questions start with “HOW…?”

Your creative style
When you are working on a challenge you generally…

• apply formulas
• verify data
• use procedures
• are systematic
• are evaluative
• are directly useful

Your communication style
You are very specific when you talk and write. You are very orderly and exacting. You generally can remember and use code numbers, model or serial numbers (rarely having to look them up to verify your accuracy), and you use exact dimensions not about’s. You usually can quote policies, procedures, or experts. You rarely show emotion in your voice unless your accuracy is challenged, then you will get very firm or simply tell the other person they are wrong and stop listening to them. You are easily frustrated by people who are vague and too creative.

Your leadership style
Director. Directives schedule, plan, detail all work to be done. Excellent at reaching specific deadlines and targets. Rely on logic and traditional ways of solving problems. Believe in following rules, policies and guidelines. Divide up work and distribute it according to skills of each person. Minimize risk by keeping people on track aimed at a specific target. Focus is on completion on time according to organisational standards.

If our style matches the people we are leading generally we work well together. If our style contrasts it may cause a range of problems. For example, if your style tends to be mostly Directive, and you are working with …

• People who prefer Intuitive: experience and research show that you will have difficulty up to about 75% of the time. Directives will prefer to plan and organise everything before you start. Intuitives will prefer to jump in and experiment and generate many, many ideas, while the Directives simply want one correct, dependable answer.
• People who prefer Negotiative: experience and research show you will have difficulty up to 50% of the time. You will usually disagree and possibly argue over changing things that already work well, especially if the Negotiatives cannot back up their ideas with facts and have no specific proven plans to follow. Directives prefer to plan ahead and know what to expect to happen with an almost 100% chance of success.
• People who prefer Meditative: experience and research show you will have difficulty up to about 25% of the time. You will usually disagree and possibly argue over changing things that already work well, and that the Directive-oriented people are comfortable with.

Leaders will be more productive (efficient and effective both) when they adapt, adjust or modify their style to their followers’ individual styles rather than trying to cause all their followers to change to the leader’s.

Your basic needs