Where you shine
- People trust you with things they wouldn't say elsewhere.
- You spot friction before it becomes a fight.
- You make newcomers and quiet voices part of the room.
One of six patterns
Room Reader
Read the room first, then choose the words.
Six patterns, named in plain words for how a person works. No pattern is better than another; each is one way good work gets done.
You read the room and adjust to it. You'd rather talk than type, bring people along than push through, and you choose your words with care.
WHERE A PATTERN SITS
Six spokes, one per pattern. The longer the spoke, the more you're like that pattern. The longest is yours.
A spoke with no length means those two pull opposite ways.
Room Reader
Read the room first, then choose the words.
One letter per measure: the side of the middle, not how far.
- QuickTempoDeliberate
- HeadlineContextFull picture
- Talk it outChannelWrite it down
- Move, then loop inDecidingAlign, then move
- StraightCandorGentle
Where a Room Reader typically sits. Yours will be your own.
SHINE AND COST
What it can cost the people around you
- The hard thing goes unsaid, or gets said to someone other than the person.
- You can be talked into consensus when the team needed a call.
- Live-only communication leaves no record, and decisions get re-made.
WENDY'S REPORT
Wendy's report
You know exactly what's wrong and who it's wrong with, and you've told almost everyone except them. That's the pattern, and it's costing you more than the awkward conversation would. Say it once, plainly, to the person, this week. You're better at this than you think, because you already know how it will land.
HOW TO WORK WITH ONE
How to work with a Room Reader
- Mind the tone. Open with what's working. If they've gone quiet, ask directly.
- Tell them before the decision lands, not after.
- Pick up the phone when it's more than three messages.
Ask them: Is there something you've been holding back because of how it might come across?
THE OTHER FIVE
The other five
Straight Talker
Say it plainly, move, fix it as you go.
Connector
Send it now, keep it warm, keep everything moving.
Planner
Get the whole picture, agree the plan, then move.
Steady Hand
Get it right, write it down, say it straight.
Mapmaker
Get everyone talking and draw the whole picture.
IS THIS YOU?
Is this you?
Only your own answers can say. The report is free and takes about 9 minutes.