Presentation Skills: D-style

As explained in the previous article in this series, adapting the message of a presentation is crucial to make sure that it resonates with the audience. We’ve already discussed some general tips on how to analyse the people you are talking to, but in the next articles we will discuss in more detail which specific strategies you can use for specific communication styles.

For the categorization of different communication styles I’ll refer to the DISC model which uses two axis to create four quadrants and their corresponding communication styles. The first axis is the task-oriented versus people-oriented axis, the second one differentiates between extraversion and introversion. The four styles are the following:

·         Dominant: task-oriented and extraverted

·         Influence: people-oriented and extraverted

·         Stable: people-oriented and introverted

·         Conscientious: task-oriented and introverted

The first style that will be discussed in more detail is the D-style. People who have a high D-style can be described as competitive, demanding and initiative-taking. They think and act fast-paced and can act decisively. This is mainly how you can detect a person with a high D-style.

When you have your general presentation ready, you might already want to shorten it when you know you’ll be presenting it to a person with a high D-style, because they don’t want to hear all the small details. However, don’t forget about them because your counterpart might ask you a question about a specific detail and he or she will want to get a quick but correct answer.

Next, be prepared to be interrupted and challenged because the dominant side of your counterpart will let you know that they already know things you are going to say and they don’t need to hear them again. You should also make sure you can back up your claims with data and figures when asked for them.

The main question you need to answer in your presentation for a person with high D-style is ‘what’. What are the results, what are the action steps, what are the pros and cons, etc… These people are very result driven, so they will tend to focus on the results of whatever you are trying to tell or sell them. This is where you can really convince them, by not beating around the bush and precisely and concisely answering these questions.

Hopefully the information discussed above will give you more confidence in adapting a presentation for people with high D-style in the future. In the coming articles we will further discuss other styles within the DISC framework! If in the meantime you would like to learn more about us, don’t hesitate to take a look at our website and our offers, among which is a workshop about presentation skills and DISC styles!