Tell us if this sounds familiar:
You love Everything DiSC®. You’ve been facilitating Everything DiSC® in your organization for many years and you know the theory and applications inside and out. Everyone relies on you as the local go-to expert for DiSC.
It seems like you have everything locked in, so why would you want to invest in certification? What more could you possibly learn?
After 16 years of facilitating Everything DiSC®, we had the same thoughts. At first, when the opportunity for certification landed in front of us, we were excited. But then we wondered, “what more could we learn to make the investment worthwhile?“
Well, from day one, we were floored with the depth of the content and quality of learning platform! It’s amazing!
So today we’re going to share five of our biggest takeaways that every DiSC® expert can learn from certification.
#1: You don’t know what you don’t know
Over the years, our clients rave about how accurate and relevant the Everything DiSC® tools are.
Key to this success is Wiley Publishing’s commitment to validate their tools with on-going research. New research means new discoveries. What we learned in certification is how new research changes how we facilitate and talk about Everything DiSC®.
There is specific terminology to better describe Everything DiSC® and old terminology to strike out of your script. For example, in the past, we would guide people to respond to the profile questions and think about a specific role they play.
Today, technology is able to capture the whole person, so today, we no longer instruct people to think about a specific role when taking their profile.
Another correction we learned is not to label people or name them by their DiSC® Style. For example, instead of saying,”George is so D” it is more appropriate to say, “George relates strongly to the Dominance behavioral style and prefers a direct communication style.”
You will love the new research and how it impacts how you teach the concepts in the classroom.
#2: Understanding Why
As a DiSC® expert, you probably get a lot of questions.
- “Why is Everything DiSC® different from Myer’s Briggs?”
- “How come there are four main behavioral styles?”
- “Why do I relate strongly to a style that is not reflected in my graph?”
- Why, why, why…
Dr. Mark Scullard, Director of Research at Wiley Publishing, describes certification as a way to get under the hood and take a closer look at the engine that drives Everything DiSC®.
One of my favorite parts about certification is understanding the technical aspects of the model.
For example, did you know that Everything DiSC® is built upon 2 axis and therefore generates 4 main behavioral styles? Other tools that may appear more complex are built on a model with more axis and therefore have more styles.
We also learned the definitive answer to the most asked question, “Does your dot move over time?” The answer is specific and surprising.
Take your guess by posting your answer in the comments below.
We will share this answer with you in the upcoming live certification in Honolulu. (You are signed up for the certification, right? Get in now while you can!)
#3: Networking and Personalized Attention
Certification cohorts are designed to be small groups of no more than 12 people. Why? This so that you have an opportunity to build your DISC network and also so that you receive personalized attention.
You can be in a certification session with a 20-year DiSC® veteran on one side of you and someone brand new to facilitating DiSC® on the other. This means that you will learn both tested methods and fresh ideas in your certification session.
This network of DISC® users will be your go-to group to bounce ideas off of whenever you need a new perspective or even some good advice.
#4 Build Your Resume by Adding Credentials
All of us need to understand the importance of branding. We are CEOs of our own companies: Me Inc. To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You.
– Tom Peters in Fast Company
It is important to continue to build your personal brand. Certification is an opportunity to build your brand as being an expert in your field.
Certification is evidence that you have put more energy into developing your DISC® knowledge and that you have validated expertise. Learning new information and building skill is an investment in your future.
At the end of this certification, you will own the certification. It will be your personal designation. So, if you are looking for a new job or promotion, you will be able to say that you are an Everything DiSC Workplace®, Certified instructor.
Sure, people can teach DiSC®, but a certified instructor has more value since you invested in yourself and there is evidence that you have taken your expertise to the next level.
#5 New Ideas
Your company loves DiSC® and your employees are asking for more. So, what should you do next?
Certification provides you with more DiSC® tools beyond the facilitator’s kit. Certification is rich with experience, new perspectives, and new ideas.
At certification, your facilitators will provide you more ideas, but many of the fresh ideas come from the participants.
For example, we transformed one of our group activities in an Everything DiSC® class with an activity done by a facilitator in Guam. Her version of the activity included a fun creative twist which made the activity clever, exciting, and it got people thinking out of the box and laughing more!
Our class became new and improved with new ideas from our certification experience.
How do you get certified?
If certification sounds like the right step for you, then you’ll want to be sure to get in on the upcoming DiSC® Certification live session happening soon right here in Hawaii. We have a brochure with lots of details on the specific curriculum which you can download by clicking here or on the image to the right.
We’ve set up four sessions over the next year, but there are only 12 spots so you’ll want to sign up quickly so you don’t miss out.
You can get all the information and sign up by clicking here. It will have all the upcoming dates and details for you to get involved, certified, and bring your Everything DiSC® skills to the next level.
See you there!
