Managing A High I: Dangers Part 1

Submitted by mauzenne on Sun, 11/28/2010 - 16:16.
in

This guidance describes how to manage a High I direct based on some natural tendencies and weaknesses.

Having a High I on your team makes almost everything more fun. High I's are exciting to be around, generally, openly communicative, quick with ideas, and contribute to team ideas and efforts. A High I with even just a bit of experience will always know someone somewhere in the firm - or even externally - who can get something special done. They're always owed favors.

And we'd bet they know how to tweet and text better than anyone else, too.

So, let's all have nothing but I's on our teams, right?

Nooooooooooooo! There will be brainstorming sessions, margarita parties, and inspirational offsites, and no accomplishments. ;-)

Just like the rest of the four major behavioral profiles in the DiSC behavioral instrument we favor and teach, High I's cause their share of headaches. Maybe more in today's technical world. We'd be willing to bet that most of the Tylenol sold in London's Tech East End or California's Silicon Valley is bought by High C managers of High I directs.


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Submitted by jhowse on Thu, 02/24/2011 - 21:30.

Reporting to a High I

I have a boss who displays all the classic attributes of a High I.  Being a High C it drives me nuts.  I probably drive him nuts too with my 1,000 questions.  I would love to hear from those of you who have successfully worked with a High I boss.

I have listened to the casts about managing your boss.  I think I have a good handle on his goals.  It is the how that I struggle with.  I have also recently listened to the cast about making decisions effective.  This last cast really hit the nail on the head for me about what is driving me crazy.  Lots of ideas to be implemented but it falls away from there.  The who is going to do what by when gets lost in a kind of fog.  When talk of implementation plans is mentioned it gets glossed over or deferred.  Each department manager is more or less left to work out what they need to do to implement the ideas. 

Mostly we work it out.  Things slip through though.  It also puts a lot of pressure on frontline staff when things comes up that do not fit neatly into someone's area of responsibility.  Things get left to the last minute.  Vague deadlines get deferred.  Dedicated staff sort things out but I can see their frustration at times.

Any advice on this would be much appreciated.

John