1. Personal Action Plan – Strategy # 001 Getting comfortable with broad ranged, uninstructed job description www.swp-extdisc.com1 Success with People

2. Lesson Objectives: At the end of this lesson 1.You should be able to identify some of the more common reasons for discomfort with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description. 2.You should have an appreciation of the behavioral style preferences that are most comfortable in a broad ranged, uninstructed work environment. 3.You should be able to identify effective strategies for becoming more comfortable with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description. www.swp-extdisc.com2 Success with People

3. 1. What causes discomfort in working with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description? I am more comfortable operating on the left side of the Extended DISC Diamond. I like to map out what I am going to be doing and to have a well defined plan of action. This allows me to go well prepared into virtually all situations. I am not exposed to too many surprises. www.swp-extdisc.com3 Success with People

4. 1. What causes discomfort in working with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description? When I am able to focus on a restricted number of tasks, I am not faced with the imminent risk of making mistakes. I like to give each task my undivided attention so that I can perform it to the best of my ability. I find that too often there is pressure to take on more tasks than can be managed comfortably. I think that I do not perform nearly as well in those circumstances as when I can focus on a specified range of tasks. www.swp-extdisc.com4 Success with People

5. 2. What styles are most comfortable with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description? I am very comfortable operating on the right side of the Extended DISC Diamond. I crave the freedom to chart my own course. I get a rush of excitement from dealing with the unexpected and take pride in my ability to think on my feet. I enjoy formulating solutions on the run and I feel less challenged when completing repetitive tasks. www.swp-extdisc.com5 Success with People

6. 2. What styles are most comfortable with a broad ranged, uninstructed job description? I do not fear making errors by extending myself. I figure that if I can constantly keep 3 or 4 extra things in play, I should not be concerned if one goes off track occasionally. I feel that if I operate at the limits, I somehow extend those limits and expand my capacity. www.swp-extdisc.com6 Success with People

7. How to make the transition 1.Release yourself from the thought that you are going to have to transform yourself into a new way of life with which you are uncomfortable. This is NOT about a permanent and consistent lifestyle change. You are only going to adopt this style as and when the situation demands it. You want to be prepared for those times and to be able to go through them with the minimum of discomfort. We can all perform outside of our comfort zones – it just takes a little more energy. www.swp-extdisc.com7 Success with People

8. How to make the transition 2. Prepare yourself mentally by considering yourself to be embarking on a career as a circus juggler. This is approach is designed to get you to address the critical issue of your being willing to accept making mistakes in the interest of increasing the number of tasks that you tackle at any point in time. You may be disappointed when an object falls to the ground but you continue in the knowledge that with practice you will get better. You keep the overriding goal in mind and you refuse to be deterred by occasional mishaps. www.swp-extdisc.com8 Success with People

9. How to make the transition 3. As with the circus juggler you recognize the fact that one of the objects will fall at some point. You learn that your act is not judged so much on the basis of whether odd objects fall. The lasting assessment relates to your capacity to attain great heights. The marvel of competently keeping large numbers of objects in play is what really counts. The key for you is that in the instances in which you are forced to juggle that you remain unflustered and perform as if you were born to these circumstances. www.swp-extdisc.com9 Success with People

10. How to make the transition 4. Consider another perspective. Imagine you have been asked to plan and implement a major event. That situation is not unlike high-level multi-tasking scenarios. Some activities will have to be performed with less than the level of care and attention that you would ideally like to give them. You are still responsible for them any way. Ignoring them may not be a real option. It may not be feasible to have your regular tasks reassigned. Some things that you normally do very well may not get your full attention. Your tradition of attentiveness and excellence in those areas may be threatened, if but for a brief while. www.swp-extdisc.com10 Success with People

11. How to make the transition 5. Another concrete example. You are in a program of study and you find yourself in a situation where you are scheduled to sit two exams on the same day. Work and others pressures have kept you from adequately preparing for one of the exams. The natural inclination may be to focus your attention on doing well on the one exam for you are fully prepared. You should reflect on the fact that the ‘Did Not Sit’ result you will get is intellectually dishonest and actually worse than ‘Fail’. In the real world, where opportunities may come only once, you may be better off working towards an 80% & 20% result as against a 100% & Did Not Sit one. www.swp-extdisc.com11 Success with People

12. How to make the transition 6.This goes to the core of the philosophy that drives a willingness to assume responsibility for a large portfolio. The focus is on the over- arching results. Not on the performance on a specific task. The accumulated impact is the deciding factor. Attaining a ‘failing grade’ in any one area may still make a significant contribution to achieving overall objectives. Error and failure take on new meaning in that context. www.swp-extdisc.com12 Success with People

13. How to make the transition 7. A core foundation for effectively dealing with situations demanding high-level multi-tasking is firstly accepting that you have been charged with the responsibility to keep multiple objects in the air. If you fail to competently propel them, they will fall. In this scenario, ‘one thing at a time and that done well’ is not an appropriate response. One trick is to recall that the juggler does in fact give his undivided attention to each individual object at different points in time, even for a split second. You have to devise a strategy that requires that you pay only enough attention to any one task as to keep it going until you can return to it. Getting the timing and rotation right comes with practice. www.swp-extdisc.com13 Success with People

14. Lesson exercise Application of lessons learned 1.Which behavioral styles are likely to be most comfortable working with a broad-ranged, uninstructed job description? D I S C 2.The willingness to accept some element of error is central to being comfortable with a broad-ranged, uninstructed job description. True False 3.Reflect on what you could learn from the circus juggler that could be applied to your situation. www.swp-extdisc.com14 Success with People