As leaders, one of the most challenging aspects of our roles is navigating personality clashes within our teams.
We perceive the world differently, value different things, and have differing expectations for our interactions with others.
When we see behavior in others we don’t understand, we often assume sinister intentions and poor character, instead of trying to understand the circumstances in their environment that may influence their choices. We’re quick to judge, easily triggered into defensive postures, and we wonder why our collaborative work is plagued with decreased productivity, inefficiency, and feelings of frustration.
While good leaders know how to manage themselves and others when personality and working style conflicts arise, great leaders know how to leverage our individual differences into team strengths. Here’s how they do it.
Step One. Know the Personality Types of Everyone on the Team
Whether it’s MBTI, DiSC, Insights Discovery, Enneagram, or any other personality assessment platform, evaluate the team to identify differences in working style preferences and values. These tools create a common language to understand our communication preferences, expectations, and contributions, while decreasing the likelihood that we will incorrectly assume character deficits for behaviors we don’t understand. When we understand the unique contributions of each team member, we can foster a more inclusive and empathetic work environment where everyone feels valued for what they bring to the table instead of being chastised for our differences.
Step Two: Allocate Responsibilities Based on Strengths
Now that we know what to expect from our colleagues based on their personalities, we’re armed with the information we need to allocate collaborative responsibility based on individual strengths. Assign information gathering and data evaluation to the analysts, planning and road mapping to the planners, building support and gaining buy-in to the relationship people, and monitoring results to the process people. If we know our team and understand their strengths, we can create conditions for them to shine instead of getting frustrated by misaligned expectations.
Step Three: Facilitate Open Dialog About How Things Are Going
Instead of sticking to a singular meeting format focused on tactical execution updates, establish separate and regular team meetings where members can openly discuss their working styles, preferences, and any challenges they face. Team members should be encouraged to share feedback on what’s not working for them and advocate for more support from fellow team members without fear of judgment. These meetings are designed to foster communication about how things are going, encourage flexibility in how we work with each other, and facilitate problem-solving around frustrations before they escalate into conflict.
Step Four: Foster a Culture of Flexibility and Adaptability
Now that we know our strengths, have responsibilities aligned with our strengths, and communicate regularly about how things are going, it’s time to learn to flex. We feel stagnant when we’re locked into what we do well instead of being challenged to evolve our skills beyond what feels comfortable. Encourage team members to step outside their usual roles and responsibilities periodically. This can be done through job rotation, cross-training, or temporary project assignments. By experiencing different roles, team members can develop a greater appreciation for each other's work and become more adaptable. This flexibility can also help the team quickly adjust to changing circumstances and leverage their diverse strengths more effectively.
While personality clashes are an inevitable consequence of working with others, they do not have to devolve workplace collaboration to the point of diminished productivity and engagement. By understanding the basics of personality differences and introducing a collaborative system that works, leaders can transform working style frustrations into sources of strength. The key is not to just get through it and manage conflict along the way, but to strategically leverage our collective differences to create better outcomes.
It took me years to stop being frustrated with certain members of my team and challenge myself to see the benefits in their seemingly contrary approach. If these strategies can help a strong, fiery red, dominating personality like me to effectively navigate personality challenges on teams, they will also help you to lead your diverse team toward successful outcomes. It’s not always easy, but it is certainly worth the effort. You’ve got this.
Danielle Terranova is the voice behind Leadership Lessons with Danielle.
She has been an executive coach since 2015 and owner of Terranova Consulting, LLC since 2019.
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