I Type Personality

I personality styles are friendly, talkative, and people oriented. They are generally positive and upbeat individuals and enjoy meeting new people.

What is an I Personality Type?

The letter 'I' in DISC represents the I personality type, also known as Influence. The I style is one of the four basic DISC personality types that originate from William Marston's DISC Model. Simply put, a High I style is friendly and optimistic. They enjoy interacting with others and meeting new people. I Styles consist of approximately 32% of the New Zealand population.

Key Characteristics of an I Style Personality

I styles are talkative, sociable, optimistic and lively. They are people-oriented, spontaneous, energetic and enthusiastic. I personality types tend to be positive and good at influencing others. I-styles are the influencing and interactive individuals who shake up their environment by bringing others into an alliance with one another. They know what they want and align everyone to get it done. Social acceptance is significant for I-styles – they like to be liked.

I styles tend to jump from subject to subject. They can be inattentive to details, overly talkative, and emotional. They may over-promise because they are so optimistic and are eager to be popular. Others may perceive I styles as somewhat careless, impulsive and lacking follow-up. When experiencing extreme pressure, they may tend to focus more on people and overlook details and tasks.

Communication of an I Style Personality

I personality types, prefer to talk about the big picture and avoid details. I profiles focus on the positives and tend to avoid unpleasant subjects. They are good at providing positive, constructive feedback, but they may not be direct in their communication style. I styles communicate their ideas and visions in an inspiring way. I personality style enjoy communicating with others. While it is a wonderful strength, it can also become a liability as they may have a tendency to speak too much. 

When communicating with I Style individuals, focus on feelings and emotions, be positive, move quickly, but spend time chatting. Try not to talk about too many details or negative subjects. Talk about people and focus on the big picture.

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How to Work with an I Style Personality

Emailing an I Style

Emails should begin with a warm greeting. I styles appreciate a personal connection and a human touch. Keep the content of the email casual and friendly and use emojis if possible. I styles prefer calls over emails when possible, as they much prefer talking rather than communicating in writing.

Meeting with an I Style

I styles love informal meetings over coffee. Approach them casually, and say "hey, can we go for a chat over coffee?" Begin meetings with discussions of common interests and backgrounds to help build rapport. When meeting with an I style in a formal situation, consider using presentations as a visual illustration to help them stay engaged and retain essential information.

Providing Feedback to an I Style

I styles appreciate feedback that is personal and focuses on their contributions, creativity, and positive attitude. Feedback should be delivered in an encouraging manner and on a high level. I styles move at a fast pace, and feedback should be provided accordingly, short and snappy, to keep them motivated. Concentrate on how their work affects how people view them, their popularity, and their prestige.

I Style Leadership Culture

An I style leader creates a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere for their people. Their leadership culture is more informal and socialble. They often lead by befriending their team members and encourage involvement from everyone. Creativity, positiveness and good energy tend to be valued more than accuracy or rules at times. Personal relationships are essential to I style and at times are emphasised more than arriving at the end results.

I Styles Working Remotely

I styles thrive on personal connections, working remotely may be challenging if they are isolated from other people. Use applications such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom Meetings to encourage open dialogue in virtual settings. 

What Does an I Style Personality Contribute to a Team?

I Styles find the bright side to issues and challenges. They keep the team atmosphere positive and upbeat. They provide emotional support, maintain personal, contacts and inspire others. I type individuals are talkative people and generate discussions around ideas and issues. I styles are great at generating new ideas and selling ideas to the team to create 'buy in.' 

What are the Strengths of an I Type Personality?

I styles prioritise people and relationships. They offer lots of encouragement to others and like to facilitate group work when overcoming challenges and issues. I styles provide a high level of energy and fun. They bring positive energy and a sense of optimism to any situation.

Strengths of I Styles include:

  • Generates new ides
  • Creates a positive atmosphere
  • Looks on the bright side
  • Maintains contact with team members
  • Creates openness and discussion

What are the Potential Weaknesses in an I Type Personality?

I styles are very flexible with their routines and time management. However, this may result in them providing insufficient structure for other styles that need a systematic approach to work. I personality types are idea generators but they may become distracted if they have too many new ideas and can fail to focus. I styles need lots of personal connections and can cause distractions by being overly talkative.

Potential Weaknesses of I Styles include:

  • Gets involved in too many things
  • Lets emotions control them
  • May not stay in their designated work area
  • Can be overly talkative
  • Can become easily distracted and lose concentration

Typical Careers for an I Style Personality

Your DISC style does not limit your career opportunities. DISC styles are all capable of working in any profession. The different DISC personality types may find some aspects of a job more or less challenging than the other styles. 

Careers that are suited to the behavioural strengths of I styles include positions that require lots of personal contacts and have varied activities. They perform well in job roles that require creative solutions and lots of contact with people. I styles may become exhausted, demotivated or stressed if they spend a large amount of time working alone and isolated from others. I styles like to have opportunities to meet other people. They thrive on flexibility, so not surprisingly, they are often found in training or teaching industries as they value the flexibility in rules and schedules and extensive interactions with people.

Some of the tasks and work environments that suit the natural strengths of I personality types are:

  • Working with people
  • Positive atmosphere
  • Lots of communication
  • Multi-dimensional
  • A variety of contacts
  • Free from hard facts and conflict situations

When finding a new career, I personality types should look for jobs that require an extensive network of associates and colleagues and to work on issues that deal with people and the atmosphere. I styles value freedom from paperwork and having to apply pressure to other people. Some careers that include these factors are:

  • Advertising and marketing
  • Public relations
  • Teaching and Training 
  • Hospitality and Tourism

I Style Celebrity Personalities

  • Steve Irwin (TV Personality)
  • Jim Carrey (Actor)
  • Hamish and Andy (Radio Personalities)
  • Han Solo (Star Wars)
  • Bill Clinton (US Former President)
  • Eddie Murphy (Actor)
  • Hilary Barry (New Zealand Journalist and TV Personality)

What about the other DISC styles?

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D personality styles are risk-takers, decisive and results-oriented. They move fast and complete tasks quickly.

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S styles are calm, patient and modest. They are people-focused and eager to help others.

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C personality are logical, analytical and correct. They are task-focused and get things done accurately. 

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