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We had a lot of fun at the recent Bira High Street Conference, determining whether our independent retail colleagues felt they were more Fiery Fred than Sunshine Sally. We were of course introducing attendees to Insights Discovery – the behaviour profiling tool we use at the OSS Foundation school. Although we only used a snapshot activity, instead of the full questionnaire which generates a 26 page report, the majority of members instantly recognised themselves in the traits…. and recognised their colleagues and family too!
What we found really intriguing was the number of business colleagues who’d never explored their ‘preferences’ together before…
Colleagues or families who’d worked together for 10 years or more but who hadn’t considered communication styles or each other’s decision making approach. Comments like ‘maybe that’s why we get on so well together!’ and ‘that explains why we get so much stuff done’ were real ‘light bulb moments’ for many.
We believe self-awareness (and the often linked emotional intelligence) is such a vital skill to develop a fully rounded individual, who can successfully lead, collaborate and support others. Insights Discovery is the tool we use to start that journey with Foundation school delegates – the simplicity of 4 colours in order, and the quirkiness of Earthy Ed, Cool Chris, Sunshine Sally and Fiery Fred make it accessible and memorable – often the key challenge with any form of psychometric analysis.
But knowing yourself is only step 1 on the journey… once we know more about ourselves, we have to practise working outside of preference, and working with others of diverse preferences, to ensure we have maximum impact and effect. Practise, practise, practise!
We’re looking forward to supporting the Oxford Summer School Foundation delegates between 28 July and 1 August as they start this exciting journey. If you’d like to find out more about Insights Discovery, contact me on 07763 959293, or via michaela@leading-edge.co
