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For Today: Content poll, new referral prizes, and Business Chemistry

“Become addicted to constant and never-ending self-improvement.”

  - Anthony J. D’Angelo

But first, a poll ⬇️

The referral link below will be at the bottom of every edition going forward. It will show how many people have subscribed using your unique share link and how close you are to receiving your next referral gift.

We’re giving away T-shirts and 20% discounts right now, but next week we’re adding some slick glass and bamboo water bottles for just 4 referrals.

What is Business Chemistry, and why should I care?

Business Chemistry is a personality assessment widely used by Deloitte Consulting. It’s based on extensive research, and it’s proven to be extremely useful over several years. Think of it as a Myers Briggs personality assessment with very clear business applications and no acronyms to memorize.

There are four types of people, or traits, in Business Chemistry: Pioneers, Drivers, Guardians, and Integrators. Let’s run through them:

Pioneers: Pioneers are your big-idea people. They love to set ambitious goals and think in terms of the art of the possible. Think Steve Jobs.

Drivers: These are the people on your team who just want to get it done. End the meeting early, make a decision, stop talking, and execute.

Guardians: These people love the details. They have endless spreadsheets, and they’re all perfectly organized. God bless them.

Integrators: These are your “people” people. They know that business is all about trust, and they’re good at building relationships.

It’s easy for a Driver to think that Integrators aren’t focused, or for Guardians to think that Pioneers are impractical, but you wouldn’t want a whole company full of people who only love the details, would you? Who would see the big picture? This framework helps us realize how and why we speak different languages at times, and why we need well-balanced teams that know how to complement each other.

Of course no one fits into one of these boxes absolutely, but these terms give us a helpful language to think about our own work styles and the work styles of others. For example, if you’re going into a sales meeting, you really want to know if your prospective client is a Driver or an Integrator. That will change your entire approach.

Similarly, leaders need to dynamically adjust the way they communicate based on who they’re speaking to. You might be juggling 15 projects, but you need to meet people where they are. Take the time to chat with an integrator before getting down to business, and don’t stress a Guardian out by listing off what-if scenarios without knowing any of the specifics. If we heighten both our self-awareness and understanding of others, then we can improve our communication and deliver better outcomes.

Interestingly, people’s dominant traits tent to change over time. For example, someone who’s very detail-oriented (Guardian) may be forced to move faster than they want to as they step into a leadership role. As much as they feel the need to perfect the spreadsheets, they’ll have to make tradeoffs with multiple project deadlines fast-approaching. For these reasons, people tend to develop a more driver-dominated work style when they become managers.

There’s another interesting phenomenon here, though: As managers move up into executive leadership roles, they tend to adopt more Pioneer and Integrator-centric approaches to their work. The people running the company at the highest levels need to slow down, think long-term, and carefully analyze strategic decisions. They also have to let go of the details and trust others to manage them while they set the course, build relationships with critical clients, and unify the company. This is not to say that one work styles is right or wrong, but there are certain times and situations when one is more effective than another.

Although one of these work styles may have made you a rock star at one point in your career, remember that you will probably have to evolve your approach over time.

The full Business Chemistry assessment isn’t publicly available, but you can take the free 20-question quiz to find out your business chemistry or better understand someone else’s by clicking below. If you’re taking this to assess your own work style, just say you know the person well when it asks. Hopefully that’s true…

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This course covers the proven six-step job search process below, including expert tips, insights, and worksheets for each section:

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• LinkedIn Profile

• interview Prep

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Lastly, if you're interested in 1:1 coaching, find a time for us to connect here:

https://calendly.com/d/djn-w98-pks

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