FOUR

Influence

The test of leadership is not to put greatness into humanity, but to elicit it, for the greatness is already there.

—James Buchanan

One of the most dangerous things that can happen with personality assessments is entitlement. People learn about their strongest type or style, embrace it, and then hide behind it. They begin to act as if their personality entitles them to act in a certain way without accountability. Here’s what entitlement sounds like:

“I’m an extrovert so don’t be offended by what I say.”

“As a High-D, I’m competitive. If you can’t hunt with the big dogs, stay on the porch.”

“Agreeableness is not one of my strengths, so don’t expect me to be sympathetic.”

Part of the problem is how personality assessment results are portrayed. Any assessment that categorizes types of people instead of describing types in people invites entitlement. Most of the problem, however, is how these tools are applied to leadership.

Learning about our personality should help leaders be more responsible, more capable, and more agile. A High-D is not destined to turn everything into a competition. An extrovert can learn to be sensitive to another’s personal space. Empathy and compassion can be learned, even by people with low agreeableness. Personality isn’t an entitlement program or get out of jail free card. It’s just the opposite. Personality can be the mechanism by which leaders simultaneously honor their uniqueness and influence diverse capabilities and perspectives toward shared goals. Honoring our personality starts with mastering the emotional issues beneath the surface. PCM calls these Phase issues.

It’s common wisdom that employees leave their leaders, not their companies. Research reported by the Gallup Organization shows that leaders account for 70 percent of variance in employee engagement.¹ That’s a staggering amount of influence.

Positive leadership influence occurs by tapping into people’s unique motivational needs and preferred modes of communication. PCM identifies what these are and how to feed them positively. This is a leadership goldmine because employees who are motivated according to their personalities are happier, more engaged, and more productive. Leaders who figure this out and develop the necessary communication and motivation skills can turn their influence into a tremendous lever for business success.

Properly motivating people requires that leaders abandon the Golden Rule in favor of the Platinum Rule. Treating others as I want to be treated is a recipe for disengagement. Treating others as they want to be treated is the key to engagement, especially among a more mobile, discerning, and self-focused workforce. The Platinum Rule requires personality agility, the Golden Rule does not.

One of a leader’s most important roles is connecting people with the purpose of an organization. People won’t connect with the purpose of an organization unless that purpose connects with their motivational needs. When they can align their Phase motivators with something bigger than themselves, it allows them to apply their personality in ways that make a tremendous positive impact in the world. PCM is a powerful tool to help leaders facilitate these connections.

A resource guide at the end of this chapter shows the preferred communication modes, or channels of communication, for each Base type; the unique motivational needs for each Phase type; and how these needs connect to purpose.

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For the rest of the day after her meeting with Pauline, Kayla couldn’t stop ruminating about the situation with Pauline and the brochure redesign. She didn’t like how she felt when the spotlight was on her and really wanted to blame someone for not giving her the specs ahead of time. Kayla wondered if this might be her unconscious effort to avoid her Phase issue of responsibility. Would she have the courage to be honest with Pauline about it? Did she trust Pauline’s promise of safety? Kayla wasn’t sure yet.

In the next PCM training session Kayla was fascinated to learn about parts and channels, the specific verbal and nonverbal behaviors that go into effective communication. She learned that communication is defined as “an offer and acceptance in the same channel.” It made sense that unless people are on the same wavelength, and unless the message is received as intended, communication isn’t happening. Based on this definition, Kayla could see that very few interactions actually meet the criteria for communication, and why so many interactions turn into miscommunication, especially via texting and email. Her Thinker floor appreciated how predictable and observable it all is once you know what to look for. Her Harmonizer Base floor was encouraged to have a method to connect authentically with each person by meeting them where they are at in the current moment. Her Persister floor valued this new framework for respecting people by adapting how we interact with them. Her Imaginer floor could see endless possibilities for improving relationships in her own life.

Although there was a lot of technical learning, what helped Kayla the most were simple words Sandy, their trainer, used to describe the five channels of communication: Telling, Asking, Caring, Playing, and Protecting. Each personality type has a preferred channel that is most effective, and a least preferred channel that will most likely invite miscommunication and distress. The preferred channel of her Base Harmonizer was Caring, a channel that invites others to feel nurtured and cared for. That felt just right to Kayla. The preferred channel for her Rebel Phase was Playing, which also matched her experience. “No wonder I like it when people say kind things to me or joke around,” Kayla realized.

Kayla also learned a bit more about Phase changes, and they practiced how to motivate each personality Phase. Her PCM Profile included an action plan with specific guidance on how to get her needs met in healthy ways. It was spot-on. Kayla was shocked by how accurate the PCM Profile was, and how it fit for each person in her class.

The next week involved lots of new learning. ProcessCorp had taken on several new corporate clients and Kayla got to be involved in some of the initial exploration sessions around the culture, goals, and aspirations of these clients. She was much more aware of how Pauline and others in her department were adapting their communication based on the person with whom they were communicating. They talked openly about it and tested out their hunches with each other. They talked about how they were feeling, and it was remarkable how vulnerable it seemed to Kayla. In her previous jobs, getting vulnerable about feelings was the last thing anybody felt safe doing.

And it wasn’t gushy, touchy-feely stuff that crossed boundaries. It was genuine and helpful. One of her teammates, Mario, shared his feeling of sadness when the client didn’t select his brand story concept. “I put a lot of work into it and I feel sad that it wasn’t chosen.” Several people empathized with him. Pauline said, “I hear you. It’s okay to feel sad when something you have worked for doesn’t go as planned. I know you want to make sense of it and can’t. How can we best support you? You are smart and I bet you’ll connect some dots for the future.”

Kayla wasn’t used to this level of support and affirmation. Although she was working to focus only on her own Phase issue of responsibility, she couldn’t help but wonder if sadness was connected to Mario’s personality Phase in some way.

IS IT OKAY TO BE HONEST WITH YOU?

When Kayla arrived for their next session, Pauline was standing in the doorway to her office. “Hey, I need to get some fresh air. What say we talk at the coffee shop around the corner?”

Kayla was excited. The boss wanted to take her out for coffee? She thought that was pretty special. “Sure!”

Once they got their drinks and were settled in a quiet corner of the coffee shop, Pauline asked Kayla, “I’m curious, Kayla, what did you notice this week about your Phase issue?”

Kayla felt the pressure in her chest. She knew what she needed to do but was anxious. “Can I be honest with you, Pauline?” Kayla asked tentatively.

“Absolutely, Kayla,” Pauline reassured. “I meant what I said last week about accepting you the way you are. It’s safe to be open with me and I will not judge you. Our commitment to interaction safety at ProcessCorp is a sacred one.”²

“Okay, thanks for that reassurance,” Kayla began. “Do you remember a couple of weeks ago when you asked me to redo that brochure design?”

“Vaguely. Why do you ask?” Pauline was curious.

“I think I bumped up against my Phase issue that day. I felt embarrassed and hated feeling accountable for not getting it right. Although I agreed with you and didn’t argue, inside I was feeling like it wasn’t my fault. I wanted to blame you for not giving me clear directions in the first place. I wanted to run away from it all.”

Pauline smiled knowingly, and responded with a playful tone, “Wow, I totally get how hard that must have been. Yikes!”

Kayla continued, grateful for not being judged by Pauline, “I definitely don’t like when the spotlight is on me, especially when I make a mistake or don’t do something quite right. Don’t get me wrong, I love figuring stuff out and I want to please people, but I just don’t like the pressure of expectations and scrutiny.”

“Yep, that definitely stinks! Did you notice anything about how you reacted to this feeling?” Pauline asked.

Kayla explained what she had learned about herself. “I’ve noticed that when I feel responsible, I have this immediate urge to make an excuse or blame someone. I want to run away from the feeling and if I can find someone else or something else to blame, I can get away from it. I’m not proud of it. I don’t usually act on the urge, but I can get a pretty negative attitude inside and it probably shows.”

“Kayla, that’s perfectly normal and it’s part of your personality,” Pauline’s voice was reassuring. “Every person in the world with a Rebel Phase has felt like that, and every one of them has acted on the urge from time to time. It’s human.”

“What a relief!” Kayla sighed. “Tell Lucas that. He hates it when I blame or make excuses.”

“I hate to take sides, Kayla, but I think Lucas is right on this one.” Pauline waited for Kayla’s reaction. Kayla seemed curious.

PERSONALITY IS NOT AN ENTITLEMENT PROGRAM

Pauline continued, “It’s not okay to make excuses or blame others for your behaviors and feelings. There’s a big difference between how we feel and acting on how we feel; in other words, the distance between stimulus and response. One of the most valuable emotional intelligence skills is the ability to identify emotions and use them to guide effective action, but not be ruled by them.”

Kayla felt bold today, so she pressed the issue. “What do you mean? This is my personality and it is part of me. Lucas should accept it just like I accept his opinionated skepticism, right?”

Pauline smiled. “Your Phase issue is part of you and it’s okay to be uncomfortable with the feeling of responsibility. That doesn’t mean you aren’t responsible for your actions. Everyone is 100 percent responsible for their feelings, thoughts, and actions. Regardless of where they come from or what happened, it is still our responsibility what we do with them.”

Kayla didn’t like how she felt when hearing this, but she knew it was true. Instead of arguing, Kayla tried to reflect what she was learning through a joke. “So are you saying that personality is not an entitlement program?”

Pauline laughed spontaneously, so loud that several people near them turned to see what was going on. “That’s hilarious and so true, Kayla! I’ve always said that personality isn’t a get out of jail free card, but I like this much better. Can I use it?”

“Sure! What I really want to know is how to handle my discomfort with responsibility in a healthier way.”

“Easier said than done, as usual,” Pauline chuckled, “but not that complicated. You’ve already completed step one, be aware and own it. Step two is to share it openly and honestly. This may seem totally crazy to tell someone you don’t like responsibility, but here’s the twist. Just because you don’t like it doesn’t mean you can’t take ownership and figure it out. Step three is to ask for help. This sends a clear message that you are capable and willing to learn and grow. Step four is to use your unique personality to solve the problem in front of you. Each floor in your condo has unique character strengths that you can access to help you. You have a special set of skills that you can use to turn that negative energy into something super cool.”

Kayla had a knack for playing with words. “I got it, Pauline. Feel it, share it, ask for help, solve it with your special set of skills.”

“Fabulous! You nailed it again. That last part sounds like a line from a famous movie. What a terrific mantra. This is the process anyone can use to see themselves through when the Phase issue comes knocking.”

Something else clicked for Kayla. “Wow, that’s exactly what happened with you and Mario the other day!” She blurted out. “You guided him through all four steps.” Kayla also tested her theory about sadness and confirmed that is the Phase issue for the Thinker personality type.

“Right on, Kayla. It’s fantastic how you’re rockin’ this!” Pauline congratulated.

“Thanks.” Kayla felt energized. “So what are we covering today?”

MOTIVATION

“Today is about influence,” Pauline replied. “One of the most important functions of a leader is to influence people toward the team and organizational goals. Seeing people through means influencing them in a way that honors each person for how they are built by leveraging their personality. Seeing ourselves through means influencing ourselves to show up each day in the best space possible.”

Kayla was curious, “Does this have anything to do with motivation?”

“Yes, it does,” Pauline affirmed. “It has everything to do with motivation. As you learned in your last PCM training session, every personality type has unique, inborn psychological needs that must be satisfied in order to function at our best. These are called motivators because we are intrinsically driven to satisfy these needs and when they are satisfied we have more energy to interact with positive energy and enthusiasm.”

“I also learned that the most important motivators for me at this time in my life are those of my Phase floor,” Kayla added, “and that these have changed at some point in my life from Harmonizer to Rebel.”

“Yes, and there’s more!” Pauline added. “When people experience a Phase change, these new motivators become primary, and the motivators of our Base floor become secondary. It’s like they fade into the background but are still important.”

Kayla felt compelled to explore something else she had learned about Phase and Phase changes. “Sandy said that everyone starts out with their Phase being the same as their Base floor in their condo, and that two-thirds of the population experience one or more Phase changes in their life. My current Rebel Phase is the next floor up in my condo. Is this typical?”

“Yes, Kayla,” Pauline answered. “Did Sandy tell you about how we always go to the next floor, never skip a floor, and never go back?”

“She did, and that blows my mind! How does this work? How does the PCM Profile know?” Kayla was incredulous.

“I have no idea, Kayla,” Pauline matched Kayla’s surprise. “It’s all about developmental psychology and the nature–nurture process, about which I know very little.”

“Well, in any case, I agree that I’ve experienced a Phase change. It seems like I’m a lot more on the move these days. I can’t sit still as long, and I get restless. One of the things I love about working here is that I have flexibility to move around when I want to and I get to work on novel problems every day.”

“That’s awesome! Tell me more.” Pauline used the Playing channel with Kayla, but resorted to her own favorite channel, Telling, in the very next sentence, as is typical with people when they become passionate about the content of a conversation.

Kayla didn’t mind. She felt energized and her elevator was moving freely, so she was able to respond effortlessly to Pauline’s directive, even though it required her to go to the sixth floor in her condo. “My current Rebel Phase motivator is contact. That means I am motivated by movement. Making contact with people and things is energizing because it keeps the creativity flowing. It doesn’t have to be loud or wild, as long as there’s positive energy.”

Pauline probed further, “How about the suggestions in your PCM Profile action plan? Did they resonate?”

“Most of them did,” Kayla shared. “I highlighted the ones that I liked the most: a relaxed work environment, permission to move around, variety in my work, and being with people. Oh yeah, and plenty of music and colors don’t hurt, either!”

“That’s awesome,” Pauline said with a grin. I’m curious how easily you are able to get contact motivation here at ProcessCorp. I know it’s only been three weeks, but how’s it going?”

Kayla reflected for a moment. “Actually, it’s amazing. Now that we are talking about it, I realize that the people around me have been offering and encouraging contact all along without me even knowing it. We have music in our office. It seems someone is always inviting me to take a walk to the cafeteria or head outside during break. We even have this game going where we try to guess where in their personalities our customers are coming from and share what’s working to connect with them. The novelty and creative problem-solving of my job really fills my tank. The more comfortable I get, the more I’ve been taking it upon myself to do these things.”

“I’m so glad to hear that, Kayla,” Pauline said enthusiastically. “How is it working?”

“I love it. I look forward to coming to work, I enjoy being here, and I feel like you all accept me for who I am.”

“What about your attitude toward your work and our company?” Pauline’s tone was more serious.

“It’s huge, Pauline. I care a lot more about what we are doing than I’ve ever cared about work. I have no problem working hard because I feel satisfied when I can contribute. I feel like I’m part of a team and we are working together to delight our customers. Yeah, I’m tired at the end of the day, but it’s so much better than feeling drained!”

“I’m really glad to hear that. I’d like to share with you some research we’ve been doing at ProcessCorp related to motivation.” Pauline pulled a packet out of her briefcase. “Since we got serious about applying PCM in our culture, we’ve been tracking the connection between motivation and our key performance indicators; most importantly, customer satisfaction and retention, employee engagement, and our financial performance.

“We define motivation like this: Are employees getting their motivational needs met at work in a healthy way that coexists with other people’s motivators? By now you are probably getting a sense for how we implement this in everyday behaviors. It’s a pretty intentional process. First, we get a PCM Profile for each person when they are hired, just like we did with you. This lets us know where to focus our efforts. Then, we check in about how it’s going. We talk to employees about their Phase motivators and work with them to get those satisfied in healthy ways every day. We hold managers accountable for having these conversations and working with employees on it. And, as part of our employee engagement survey, we ask people to rate how well their motivators are being satisfied at work. This, along with daily conversations about our personalities in a safe and inclusive environment, creates a powerful, self-improving feedback loop.”

Kayla was curious. “Now I’m going to ride my elevator to my Thinker floor and ask a data question. So what does your research say?”

“Glad you asked, Kayla.” Pauline beamed with pride and pulled out two pieces of paper in plastic protectors, each with charts on them. “The data is pretty impressive. Every single year since we implemented PCM in our culture, we’ve seen steady positive growth in our key performance indicators. As motivation improves, so does business success. We’ve done our best to track the actual cost of profiles, materials, training, and time so we can calculate return on investment.

“Before we started using PCM, our turnover was about 15 percent. The first year we trained and coached our C-level executives and top managers in PCM: about 30 people. The following year, turnover had dropped to 12.5 percent. This is significant, because it costs about one third of an employee’s salary to replace them. We employ about 250 people, so our savings was over $100,000.³ That’s twice what we spent on the training and coaching, which calculates to a 200 percent return on investment, or ROI. We also saw improvements in engagement and customer retention, which are hard to put a value on. I know one of the clients we saved was totally because PCM helped us recognize and correct a pattern of miscommunication that was heading for disaster. Best we can figure, we get about 300 percent ROI. That means for every dollar we spend on PCM training and implementation in our culture, we get about three dollars improvement in value.”

Pauline pointed to the second graph. “You’ll see that ROI started a bit lower and increased steadily over the first six years. That’s when we were figuring out how to fully integrate PCM into our culture. It seems like every day we find new ways to live out the incredible potential of PCM, and the rewards are so satisfying.”

“ROI is a fairly squishy thing to measure when it comes to leadership and people skills, isn’t it?” Kayla was skeptical.

“Yes, Kayla, it is,” Pauline agreed. “We do our best to measure it and we are pretty confident that it’s making a difference. Plus, it’s the right thing to do.”

“You said PCM improved employee engagement?” Kayla asked.

“Our engagement numbers are in the 98th percentile, according to Gallup. How do you think we made the ‘Top Places to Work’ list?” Pauline chuckled.

Kayla could tell how proud Pauline was to share the data, and assumed it was related to Pauline’s Thinker Phase. Kayla had learned that the Thinker Phase is motivated by recognition of productive work and time structure. Kayla was curious to learn more. She tried a strategy she had learned in class: connect with a person using their Base channel and Perception, and motivate them according to their Phase needs. Kayla used the Telling channel first, followed by recognition of Pauline’s work. “Tell me more about your Thinker Phase. You’ve contributed a lot of hard work that went into those numbers you shared.”

Pauline lit up. “Thanks, Kayla. I am really proud of our company and our team. It has been a lot of work and it’s very rewarding to see the numbers to prove it. For me, recognition of productive work means I need to know that I am getting the most important stuff done. I thrive on task lists, goals, and metrics. Time structure means I need to know I’m using my time efficiently. Each night when I go to bed, I ask myself if I have used my time productively to accomplish things that help ProcessCorp function more efficiently. One of the reasons I like PCM so much is that it reveals the method to the madness; it unpacks the mechanisms behind why people act the way they do, shows what to look for, and gives us specific strategies to be more effective.”

“I can certainly see how your Phase motivators inspire you to do great work and lead a well-run department. What was it like for you before Thinker became your Phase?” Kayla was curious about what motivated the Promoter, which was Pauline’s Base floor.

Pauline answered, “When I started at ProcessCorp, I was in a Promoter Phase. I was motivated by incidence—a lot of excitement in short bursts of time. My whole life I loved risk, excitement, competition, and the thrill of the chase. I played sports, was the star of the school play, and was the president of the student council in college.

“Most of my professional life before ProcessCorp was in sales. It was pretty competitive but I loved it. It was also cutthroat. Unfortunately, I spent many years doing whatever it took to get ahead, even if that meant undercutting others in the process. I didn’t let myself get close to anyone, and even ruined my first marriage because I cared more about my next commission than my husband. That’s the dark side of Promoter. I wasn’t taking care of my needs in a healthy way, and I wasn’t dealing with my Phase issue of bonding. I avoided intimacy and I used manipulation and negative drama to put distance between me and the people who cared about me the most.

“It was after my husband left me and I got fired from my job as a sales executive that I hit rock bottom. It took me a while to realize that I was 100 percent responsible for my feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. I realized that unless I could authentically experience emotional closeness with another person, I was going to be alone the rest of my life. I didn’t want that. So I got some professional help and worked on it.

“Long story short, after I dealt authentically with my Phase issue, I noticed a change in my motivators. I was much less interested in competition, and much more interested in achievement. I was up at the crack of dawn planning my day and setting goals. I’d never really thought beyond the next sale, and suddenly I was using the calendar and list-making apps on my phone! I guess that was the emergence of my Thinker Phase.”

“Sounds like things got pretty bad before they got better,” Kayla empathized.

“Yeah,” Pauline agreed. “That’s usually how it goes. When we don’t get our motivational needs met in healthy ways and we don’t deal authentically with our Phase issue, things can get pretty dark. Most of the time, this type of distress and dysfunction are what lead up to Phase changes. It’s not pretty but it’s what I needed to go through at the time. Thank goodness for Sam.”

“Sam? What did Sam have to do with it?” Kayla was confused.

“Sam saved my life, Kayla.” Pauline was silent for a while. “Sam hired me to work in the Storytelling and Brand Engagement department. I had applied for an opening here and didn’t expect to get called in for an interview. My life was a mess. When I did get the invite, it was Sam who interviewed me. Sam told me that she saw so much potential in me, and that she believed in me and wanted to mentor me. I was scared to death. I wanted to burn the place down. But I remembered my therapist’s voice in my head challenging me to embrace intimacy instead of run away from it. So I took the job.”

“So, what did Sam do next?” Kayla asked.

“Sam gave me what any distressed Promoter needs more than anything else: strong boundaries and unconditional acceptance. She didn’t put up with my crap, but she also never rejected me. It was the weirdest thing because I always expected that if you got close to someone, they’d take advantage of you. So I was used to self-protection. Strangely, though, this is what it took for me to start opening up and get healthy. I had nowhere to hide, and had to take full responsibility for myself. Sam treated me with compassion and helped me recognize that I was valuable, capable, and responsible.”

“That’s intense, Pauline. Thanks for sharing.”

“Absolutely, Kayla. I actually enjoy telling my Phase change story because it reminds me and others of how important it is to get our Phase needs met in a healthy way, and deal authentically with our Phase issue. These are foundational to leadership. It can get pretty personal and intense, but if we don’t have a place to talk about it and help each other out, the alternative is pretty grim.”

Now Kayla was even more curious about her own Phase change, but before she could ask Pauline about it, a friendly “hello” interrupted their conversation. It was Sam, who had just ordered a coffee and come over to where they were sitting.

Sam asked, “Am I interrupting anything?”

“Not at all,” Kayla and Pauline replied in unison. Pauline continued, “Want to join us? We were just talking about influence, motivation, and my Phase change story.”

Sam looked at her watch. “I’ve got a few minutes before my next appointment. I’d love to join you. I love Phase change stories!”

THE PROBLEM WITH THE GOLDEN RULE

“Perfect timing,” Pauline said enthusiastically. “Kayla, Sam taught me two very important lessons about motivation and influence. Maybe she would share them with you, too. Sam, would you be willing to tell Kayla your philosophy about the Golden Rule and purpose?”

“Absolutely,” Sam began. “The first one has to do with the Golden Rule. I was brought up to believe that you should treat others like you want to be treated. I did a pretty good job of that. In my previous career, I was in a Thinker Phase and I gave everyone around me what I would have wanted: plenty of data, time frames, and the logical reason for everything. When I didn’t get the results I wanted, I turned up the volume. When that didn’t work, I turned on people because I decided they were stupid and lazy and didn’t deserve to benefit from my experience and expertise. It became a vicious and self-destructive cycle.

“By the time I founded ProcessCorp I was in my Harmonizer Phase. Still clinging to the Golden Rule, I treated everyone like I wanted to be treated. I showed compassion and empathy, offered compliments, and tried to make sure everyone felt cared for and nurtured. Some people loved it! When I look back now, I realize the ones who loved it were other people in a Harmonizer Phase or with lots of Harmonizer energy in their personality. But others didn’t seem to respond at all. Some people began avoiding me. Others openly criticized me for being a bleeding heart and too soft to lead a company. I remember someone comparing me to Jimmy Carter and saying I should go start a nonprofit service organization.

“I responded by doubling down on compassion. More caring, more personal notes, more creature comforts. When that didn’t work, I started questioning myself. What was wrong with me? Was I even cut out to be a leader? At the same time, I was really angry at people for not appreciating all I did for them. Of course, I didn’t express it.

“I remember sharing my concerns with my executive coach, and I’ll never forget what she said. She asked me, ‘Samantha, why are you being so selfish?’ I felt insulted and nearly got up and left. Thankfully my coach had more to say. ‘You are treating everyone like you want to be treated. You are projecting your motivational needs onto everyone else. Some of them share those same motivators and that’s great. But for those who aren’t motivated like you, your nurturing behavior is demotivating, maybe even offensive to them. You can’t treat everyone like you want to be treated. You’ve got to treat them like they want to be treated.’

“I can still remember the heaviness in my gut, and shame I felt as I let it soak in. All this time I was pushing my motivators onto others. Selfish indeed! Thankfully, my coach understood seeing people through and offered me reassurance. ‘Your heart is in the right place, Sam.’ She said, ‘You care deeply about people feeling seen and valued. And, you have a great tool to help you do this in ways that work for them. You’ve been talking about PCM and it seems there could be some wisdom there.’

“That’s when it clicked for me. The Platinum Rule: Treat others as they want to be treated. ‘I can do that,’ I said to myself. When I shared my epiphany with my leadership team, they weren’t that impressed, but were kind about it.”

Pauline interrupted Sam and looked at Kayla, “Yeah, I remember that. We all wondered when she would figure this out.”

Sam laughed, leaned back in her chair and took a sip of her coffee. Kayla wanted to test out what she had gleaned from Sam’s story. “So the lesson is that motivation is the key to influence, and people are motivated differently, so seeing people through means treating them as they want to be treated, not how I want to be treated. Am I on track?”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself. Most leaders talk the talk, but very few have developed the curiosity, humility, and skill to really put it into practice. In my previous career we profiled and analyzed people and had all this information, but did nothing about it. What’s the point in that?”

THE PROBLEM WITH PURPOSE

Sam looked at her watch again. “I’ve still got a few minutes, so here goes. The second lesson is about purpose. Purpose is really important to me but my understanding of it has evolved a lot. I used to think that purpose was about discovering where you can fit in to make a difference in the world. That’s great, but over time I began to realize that it’s bigger than that. Purpose is about something bigger than you. It’s about finding a reason beyond yourself to be more and do more, finding your ‘why.’ There’s a lot of research showing how important purpose is at work. Authors like John Izzo and Dan Pink have written terrific books on the power of purpose.⁴ A lot of companies have invested great amounts of energy in identifying mission, vision, and values as a way to clarify purpose and connecting employees to that purpose. It’s true that people who are connected to the mission are more engaged and loyal. Just look at successful companies like Disney, Patagonia, or Walmart.”

Kayla replied, “I know what you are talking about. I remember at the hospital we had this big initiative to drive the mission to the front lines. A consultant was brought in to help our executive team and board refine the mission, vision, and values. Then it was posted everywhere. We even got new employee badges with a bullet point summary printed on the back.”

“Wow, that’s pretty serious,” Sam said semisarcastically.

“Truthfully, it didn’t work for me,” Kayla admitted. “I thought it was dumb. Not that I disagreed with what it said, just that it didn’t connect with me.”

No sooner had the words come out of her mouth than Kayla had a light-bulb moment. “I didn’t connect to the purpose because the purpose didn’t connect to my motivators. I wish I had figured that out a lot sooner!”

Sam took another sip of her coffee. “I did about the same thing as the hospital where you worked before. Lots of energy identifying the mission, vision, and values. Lots of energy trying to push it across the organization and not much buy-in.

“That’s the second lesson I learned. Motivation is the foundation for purpose. Unless people are motivated according to their Phase motivators, they don’t have the mental, psychological, or spiritual energy to think about purpose. However, when they can see a connection between their unique motivators and the big picture, it’s like opening the floodgates of engagement and productivity.”

“You’ve cracked the code, Sam! That’s brilliant.” Kayla was inspired.

“Well, I don’t know about that.” Sam was reserved but confident. “But I am certain of this: people want to be part of something bigger than themselves. It’s built into us. People are also unique based on their Phase motivators. When they can align their Phase motivators with something bigger than themselves, it allows them to apply their personality in ways that make a tremendous positive impact in the world. Even better, it’s intrinsically rewarding because nothing feels better than getting my needs met and using my strengths to make a difference.”

Kayla couldn’t help herself. She put her fist up for a fist bump. Sam reciprocated and they “blew it up” as both women pulled their hands backward and laughed.

Sam got up. “I gotta go. Thanks for inviting me to join you.”

INFLUENCE

Pauline put her empty coffee mug down on the table with a thud. “Now that’s influence! And, the best part is that it taps into the individual, collective, and transcendental aspects of our existence. We are individuals. We also coexist in society with others who are different. Together we are better and can transcend our limitations to achieve some pretty amazing stuff.”

As Pauline was putting the charts back in her briefcase, she reflected, “Sometimes I think back to when I was growing up. Imagine if our parents, teachers, and coaches had taken this approach with us! What if instead of trying to make us into replicas of themselves, or push their own motivators on everyone, or create learning environments that only support a couple of the personality types, they would have focused on teaching us to get our own motivators met. What if they would have helped us connect our motivators with the big picture and guide us in using our unique gifts to make the biggest difference in the world?”

“I can’t even imagine. The world would be a different place. People would be happier and more fulfilled, and I bet we could solve much bigger problems together.” Kayla had mixed feelings. She wondered what would have been different for her.

After a long pause, Pauline spoke up. “It’s easy to look back and wonder ‘what if.’ The good news is that we can do it differently in the future. Seeing people through can start right now.

“Speaking of which, I have two homework assignments for you. First, I want you to research MUSE School in Calabasas, California.⁵ Since 2010, this school has dedicated itself to seeing students through using PCM. It’s the only school in the world where PCM is completely integrated into the culture. What they are doing is truly revolutionary. They are educating today the children who will change the world tomorrow. The things they are doing can apply to any organization. And they are helping other schools implement the same principles.

“The second assignment is to focus on influence this week. Reflect on influences from your past and how they connected with your personality. Consider your own motivators and special strengths. How do they line up with our purpose here at ProcessCorp, as well as your own purpose in life? How could you exert greater influence by helping others do the same?”

Kayla and Pauline walked back to the office humming tunes for their new mantra on Phase issues: “Feel it, share it, ask for help, solve it with your special set of skills.”

RESOURCE GUIDE

Table 6: Personality Base Type, Preferred Communication Channel, and Implications for Leadership