High assertiveness, high expressiveness

The Socializer Communication Style

Socializers are both expressive and assertive. They are motivational people: fast-paced, direct, highly expressive, persuasive, and comfortable being at or near the centre of attention.

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Key points

Socializers can inspire and motivate others.
They are idea people who dream big and look for connections between ideas.
They look for new ways to do things.
They find it easy to begin new tasks and projects.
They often have a wide variety of interests.
They like involvement, visibility, rewards and recognition.
They enjoy working with others and often prefer it to working alone.
They can be very persuasive, sometimes with limited information.
They tend to react spontaneously.
They like to keep options open and are reluctant to close options too soon.
They tend to be risk takers and often decide from gut feeling.
They remain poised when put on the spot and respond quickly.
They may initiate physical contact such as handshakes, backslaps or hugs.

In conversations

Use a wide vocal range with more force, volume and a quick pace.
Be clear, persuasive and fast-paced, sometimes lacking detail.
Use questions that are less focused and more free-flowing.
Focus on making the other person feel good about the interaction.
Tell stories or anecdotes to make a point.
Share opinions and feelings easily.
Use an informal approach, often using first names regardless of status.
Use feeling words without hesitation.
Say it once and then add personal examples rather than repeating details.
Talk about themselves, sometimes at their own expense.
Digress to tell a good story or explore an interesting idea.
Get excited and go off on tangents around new ideas or applications.

Things to watch out for

May be less time conscious than other styles and rush to meet deadlines.
May not be sensitive to the time constraints or sensitivities of other styles.
May personally take on too many tasks and projects.
May get bored by repetitive work and take shortcuts.
May not pay enough attention to details.
May keep a workspace others see as cluttered or disorganized.
May become impatient with slower-paced people or people who focus narrowly on details.

Adapting behaviours

Slow your pace and be less assertive or direct.
Identify the other person's needs early and stay focused on them.
Be less personally revealing and offer more detail on the topic.
Ask more closed-ended questions to verify your understanding.
Pay attention to how much others value their time.
Verify your understanding of the other person's message more frequently.
Involve the other person with open-ended questions.
Make a greater effort to listen to how the other person responds.
Remember some styles have less need to socialize and want specific details quickly.
Recognize that some styles can become irritated when the conversation goes off track.

Adapting Socializers

Pay more attention to details, facts and processes than other Socializers.
Are more results-oriented and like to complete tasks and projects themselves.
Involve others while maintaining the leadership position.
Speak less emphatically and make more qualified statements.
Are more tuned in to others' feelings and give criticism diplomatically.
Judge others based on accomplishments or contributions to the goal.
Are more time conscious and likely to pay attention to important deadlines.
Look for creative ways to meet their goals.