DISCovering the S Style

People strong in the DISC S Style ("S Personality") tend to be influenced by sentiment, and their performance is often shaped by their mood. Acceptance, cooperation, and teamwork are important elements to their success.

Our journey of DISCovery continues to unpack the uniqueness of each of the four DISC styles of communication, as we explore Supportive, Stable, and Sweet DISC S Style

These individuals are among the kindest you'll ever encounter. Their steady and stable nature makes them a tremendous asset to any team or group they join. They are naturally agreeable, and known to diffuse tense situations and bring warmth to interactions. 

Just as we DISCovered with the D Style and the I Style "personalities," each style has their strengths and their weaknesses. Understanding this fact will better equip each of us to recognize those tendencies in ourselves, as well as in others, and will better position us to respond, rather than react, on good days as well as bad days.  

As is the case for every person, what we really need is balance.

Remember – ‘Strengths pushed to an extreme become weaknesses.’ 

For S Styles, the question "HOW?" is crucial. They appreciate clear instructions and don’t mind being directed. It’s important to demonstrate patience, provide clear explanations, outline their contributions, and show how their actions benefit the team. Given the S personality's supportive nature, activities that involve patience and cooperation will be most suitable for them. Their motto is: “Working together, we can do it!”

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People who are high in the DISC S Style may exhibit the following characteristics:  

They are likely to be influenced by sentiment and their performance is often shaped by their mood. Therefore,  acceptance, cooperation, and teamwork are important elements to their success. 

Identifying factors may include gentle gestures, slower-moving body language, intermittent eye contact, conventional clothing and vehicles, understated colors, and sincere, open communication.

S Styles excel as good supervisors, nurses, human resource directors, counselors, real estate agents, teachers, and artists.


The DISC S Style appreciates sincere, open communication.


Dr. Robert A Rohm, Ph.D. writes in his book, "Who Do You Think You Are…Anyway!" – the key to success for the S style includes the following advice:

"To be seen as a team player and included in decisions, they must show more ability to make decisions and adaptability to change. Learning to do this will also ease their inner turmoil."

And he continues to write, "the ‘Secret Tip’ for an S personality is, ‘You may actually HELP people by saying NO.

The ‘Secret Tip” for a strong DISC S Style:  You may actually HELP people by saying NO!

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If you are leading others who are S Style (or are yourself)...

Ensure they feel valued, provide advance notice of upcoming changes, and create a sense of security. It's also important to recognize that most people strong in S Style tend to avoid conflict, sudden changes, pressure, and multitasking.

For those strong in the DISC S Style, their motto is: “Working together, we can do it!”

People who share this personality style are Florence Nightingale, Matt Damon, Princess Diana, and Sally Field. 

While this style processes information at a slower pace, it does not reflect a lack of intelligence. They simply need to ensure they fully understand. If you have this style, don't hesitate to ask for further clarification. 

In previous blogs, we have used the idiom ‘Ready, Aim, Fire’ as it would be spoken by various personality styles. The S’s version would be: ‘Ready? Are you ready” Are we all ready?’ Dr. Rohm states that their killer statement is “You’re not very nice!” They so dislike conflict and misunderstandings, and because they care so much, this infers they are being selfish or unkind, which may be emotionally devastating to them.

As the old saying goes, ‘Teamwork makes the dream work!’

Contact Us to explore proven and custom options for team assessments and strategic development.

In closing, some key points to keep in mind when identifying both our own and others’ personality styles are:

  • There are differences in the intensity within each style
  • No one style is ‘better’ or ‘lesser than’ another style
  • We are unique blends of each personality style
  • YOU are the one that can adapt your style to that of another to improve communication
  • Each of us inherently believes ‘our style’ is THE BEST style
  • To progress forward in life and work, we need each style to effectively collaborate together
  • Anyone can be a ‘leader’, no matter which style
  • As Dr. Rohm cites, ‘The first step in maturity is recognizing the strengths and weaknesses of our own personality style.’
Learn more here about your own Primary Style and Unique DISC Combination! Download the free sample assessment.

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As a reminder...

DISC should be used in a positive way to encourage a person to be his or her best, not as a way to “label” someone. 

DISC is a practical and widely used assessment tool that has been employed in various organizations worldwide, from Fortune 500 companies to nonprofits and small businesses, to individuals within their personal lives and relationships. 

The letters D, I, S, and C describe the four intrinsic drives that manifest in behavioral patterns. This makes it a less complicated, and more memorable, model for application than some of the other assessments on the market.

  • One of the best ways to gain a better understanding of the model is to take the assessment yourself. It only takes about 10-15 minutes to complete.

In this series:

We're exploring how understanding yourself and others reduces stress in your life... How to better understand others and predict potential conflicts as you develop better relationships... How to use the process in interviews, staff evaluations, team structuring and building, and more! And how this affects decisions to invest in people, or in "human capital."

See other articles in this series or related to DISC.

November 1, 2024
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