I often speak with healthcare groups, giving psychological insights about a variety of issues within long-term care. Sometimes I address a C-suite audience; other times I train direct care staff.
I noticed during the course of these talks that some of the group exercises that generated excitement and intense discussion among direct care staff were met with relative restraint when presented to executives.
After pondering the discrepancy in reactions, I adjusted my talks accordingly and came to this conclusion: Healthcare executives and managers are very different from those they manage.
Understanding and utilizing these differences can facilitate leadership in a variety of ways.
How execs differ from direct care staff
We can consider the discrepancies between the two groups by looking at the traits generally exhibited by each. I’ve borrowed a tool from career counselors, who test their clients’ personality traits to determine what types of jobs best suit them.
One such test is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which examines four different aspects of an individual’s personality as it relates to career choice. The summary below is from an article with a handy chart based on the book, “Do What You Are.”
