Facilitator guidance for organizations working with DISC or MBTi

 

 

Equine Assisted Learning at Ranch Day has very little to do with horses, horse behavior or horsemanship, and everything to do with people, human behavior, leadership, and team dynamics. Working with horses turns out to be an invaluable resource for team building and leadership development opportunities.

 

Success or failure of the exercise is not important. It is the time before, during, and after, surrounding the exercises that allow for specific opportunities to draw focus towards an organization's intended objectives. 

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If you plan on Co-Facilitating with us to guide your group, you will readily find tie-ins to your in-house curriculum, whether it's home-grown, the popular Myers Briggs or DISC, or another leadership, personality, or organizational development tool/method.

 

Although Ranch Day does not offer specific instruction on DISC or MBTi, many of the lessons are readily available for direct observation in our equine assisted exercises. If you are a practitioner you'll have the ability to tie-in qualities and characteristics that will directly relate to the dynamics seen in the challenges presented in Ranch Daye exercises.

 

If you are teaching DISC and MBTi to your groups consider instructing, or helping them, to select teams for Ranch Day challenges based on what they know about diverse personality types. Lessons often demonstrate different personalities in action, providing ample teachable moments.

 

Brush up on personality styles as they relate to leadership, problem solving, and group dynamics and be prepared to observe and experience many of the DISC and MBTi concepts while situations in the arena present themselves with opportunity for instruction.

 

We will offer insight and explanation on equine behavior; you can simply follow our cues to plug-in. For example; “Does a Lead Mare sound more like a high S or high D?" We will offer background on predator-prey dynamics, especially as they relate to non-verbal communication. Hint: Horses are all about Sensing, Feeling and Intuition.

 

Keep the following in mind for DISC and Meyers Briggs, and be prepared to instruct as opportunities unveil themselves. If you are teaching your groups to use these methods, you may offer the following as primer to the day’s activities.

 

 

 

DISC

 

Excerpts from Tiffany Cole,

Which DISC Personality Type is Most Suited to be a Leader?

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Article link https://www.discinsights.com/blog/disc-hiring/which-disc-personality-type-is-a-leader

 

 

Why a D Style Personality Makes a Great Leader

People with a D style personality don’t just like to be in charge, they need to be in charge. They are their most content and productive when given a leadership role, which makes sense considering their major strengths are making quick decisions, delegating tasks, creating action plans, and seeing the big picture. They are tough-minded, driven, demanding, and not afraid of confrontation. As a leader, a person with a D style personality is ambitious, forceful, commanding, fearless, and driven. They want results now, and as a result their leadership style is strong and direct.

 

Leaders with a D style personality command the respect of other through their confident, authoritative style. They are as demanding of others as they are of themselves. When they give direction, people tend to follow through without debate. Best of all, executives and managers with a type D personality are unflinching in the face of conflict, and are not afraid of dealing with difficult issues head-on.

 

 

Why an I Style Personality Makes a Great Leader

Whereas D Style leaders command the respect of others through their direct and demanding personalities, leaders with an I personality are extroverts that bring people together using their charm, charisma, and enthusiasm. They are the kind of leaders that people love to be around because of their magnetic personalities. I style leaders are great at communication and enjoy an interactive environment, making them masters of creating strong and cohesive teams.

 

I style leaders have boundless energy, genuinely enjoy the company of others, and are able to naturally motivate and inspire the people around them. They are likeable, easy to talk to, and are often able to diffuse conflict using their sharp sense of humor. They are also extremely persuasive, and their natural optimism makes the people around them believe that anything is possible.

 

 

Why an S Style Personality Makes a Great Leader

S style leaders are collaborative, considerate, and communicative. They place great value on the overall cohesiveness of the group, and prioritize creating a respectful, positive, mutually beneficial environment.  S style leaders are very attentive to the needs and wellbeing of others. They are good listeners that are inclusive of other people’s ideas, and are excellent at mediating conflict in a stressful environment.

 

S leaders are calm, patient, and relaxed. They tend to put everyone at ease, and are seen by others as dependable and supportive. If a cooperative and harmonious environment is what you’re looking to create, there’s no better leader than a S personality.

 

 

Why a C Style Personality Makes a Great Leader

Leaders with a C style personality are methodical and organized. They use their natural strengths in analysis and planning to look at problems from all sides, and put a great deal of thought into calculating any course of action. Perfectionists at heart, they hold everyone that works for them to high standards of excellence.

 

Leaders with a C personality are excellent at enforcing deadlines, creating schedules, and are sticklers for accuracy. Through demonstrating an example of thoughtful, calculated problem solving, they inspire the people around them to think decisions through carefully and to examine problems from all possible angles.

 

 

 

Meyers Briggs

 

Excerpts from Heidi Priebe “How You’ll Do Everything Based On Your Personality Type”

Article link http://bestthenews.com/article/privilege-inherent-each-myers-briggs-personality-type-tue-03222016-1809.html

 

The Privilege That Is Inherent To Each Myers-Briggs Personality Type

 

ENFP and ENTP:

The ability to fathom a plethora of different solutions to any given problem.

 

Being a type that leads with extroverted intuition means that you are naturally able to tap into the wide scope of possibilities that exist in your external environment. While other types may get stuck in stagnancy and lack the ability to see a way out of the ruts that they get stuck in, you are naturally creative and adaptable. You can usually think of approximately fifty solutions to any given problem, which means you never stay helpless for long.

 

INTJ and INFJ:

The ability to envision and consider multiple opposing points of view simultaneously.

 

Being a type that leads with introverted intuition means that you are naturally able to see and consider various different viewpoints simultaneously. While other types may struggle to understand things that are outside the scope of what they’ve been taught or what they believe, you are naturally adept at seeing where others are coming from and understanding how all different points of view all fit into a bigger picture. You can effortlessly consider multiple various perspectives and understand what’s behind them, which gives you the leg up on making the best of all possible decisions.

 

ESFJ and ENFJ:

The ability to naturally understand the needs of a group and connect with others.

 

Being a type that leads with extroverted feeling means that you are naturally able to pick up on how others are feeling and what needs to be done in order to maintain interpersonal harmony. While many types struggle to relate to and work cohesively alongside others, this skill comes naturally to you. You are able to communicate effectively with those around you and understand how your actions have the potential to affect others. This makes you an excellent coworker, a reliable friend or family member and a natural leader in almost any situation.

 

ESFP and ESTP:

The ability to think on your feet and react quickly and effectively to changing circumstances.

 

Being a type that leads with extroverted sensing means that you are naturally in tune with your environment and the possibilities that are immediately present within it. While other types require extensive amounts of time to mull things over before reacting to a change in circumstance, you are always quick to re-evaluate, pick out the best of all options that are available to you and directly pursue it. More often than not, you’re busy getting ahead while others are at home deliberating over their options.

 

ISFP and INFP:

The ability to deeply understand the underlying causes and motivations behind human behavior.

 

Being a type that leads with introverted feeling means that you are able to understand emotional processes on a deep and intuitive level. While others are struggling to make sense of the seemingly illogical human behavior that drives relationships, politics, economics and just about everything else human beings engage in, you are able to take a step back and put yourself in others shoes with terrifying accuracy and clarity. Your understanding of the human condition is as impressive as it is effortless and it allows you to understand the truths and intricacies of the world in the ways that logic cannot explain.

 

 

ESTJ and ENTJ:

The ability to clearly identify the most beneficial solution to a given problem and how to implement it.

 

Being a type that leads with extroverted thinking means that you are ceaselessly focused on results – and you are able to clearly evaluate various courses of action based on their potential outcomes. While other types are caught up in trying to decipher how they feel or which goals will launch them down which paths, you are able to quickly pinpoint which actions will lead to the results that you want. This regularly puts you ahead of the game in terms of productivity and progression.

 

INTP and ISTP:

The ability to pinpoint shortcuts that exist within systems and understand how you can manipulate those systems to your advantage.

 

Being a type that leads with introverted thinking means that you are constantly looking at the bigger picture of how things logically work in relation to one another. Consequently, you are also able to quickly pick up on potential shortcuts or hacks that exist within just about any logical system. While other types are busy plugging away at jobs and situations that are barely benefiting them, you are able to quickly see how you can manipulate a system to your advantage, and achieve maximum results with minimum effort.

 

ISTJ and ISFJ:

The ability to naturally maintain your focus and work steadily towards goals.

 

Being a type that leads with introverted sensing means that you feel comfortable maintaining a routine that optimizes your productivity and moves you steadily toward your goals. While other types are growing restless and flaking halfway through projects or relationships, you aren’t afraid to stick it out to get to what matters. You find comfort in commitment and security, which means you naturally attract quality in every area of your life.

 

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The bottom-line in the horse’s world is that is doesn’t matter what style of personality a leader brings, what matters to the prey animal is that it is authentic and transparent: that there is congruence between the outward intention, and the internal emotion.  We will discuss this in some depth, but this is a cornerstone concept in equine assisted activities.

 

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