We all have a dominant communication style that creates mutual understanding when speaking with another person who shares the same style but can be frustrating when our conversational partner is quite different in how they receive and decode your message. This presentation unpacks the four different communication styles used by Toastmasters International. Enjoy! Feel free to comment on your experiences in adapting your style to match the others. Do you find it easy or challenging?

1. The Four Communication Styles
WHAT IS YOURS? CAN YOU IDENTIFY OTHERS’?

2. Communication
Impact
• Understand and be
understood
• Develop relationships
• Resolve or present potential
conflicts
• Persuade and influence to
build support for an idea
• DNA, environment and
experiences influence style

3. Not Connecting
Can be frustrating when you are not having a meeting of the minds. Many times this is
due to different communication styles simply not understanding one another!

4. We Have
Understanding!
Identifying and adapting your style to someone who speaks and
decodes messages differently creates better relationships and
enhances creativity and progress in all areas of life.

5. Communication Styles
Toastmasters International Communication Styles Model,
Presentation Mastery, Pathways

6. Supportive
.
• Calm, steady, approachable, sincere, and
gentle
• Careful, patient, and amiable. Slow-paced,
like a personal, relaxed, no-tension
environment
• Possess active listening skills, are
cooperative, dependable and loyal
• Values close relationships and does not like
conflict
• Dislikes change, may appear indecisive
sometimes
• Nurses, therapists and teachers

7. Initiating
• Sociable, enthusiastic, energetic,
spontaneous, fun-loving and gregarious
• Big-pitcher, self-assured, innovative,
persuasive, story- tellers
• Prefers personal and friendly work
environment
• Enjoys praise, is fast paced and may
appear impulsive
• Sometimes talks more than listens
• Bosses, promoters and salespeople

8. Direct
Decisive, competitive,
independent, and
confident. Focused,
ambitious, goal-oriented
and driven. May seem
demanding and impatient
at times.
01
Likes to feel in control and
may become frustrated if
dependent on others.
Motivated by challenges
and is results driven. Does
not easily share feelings.
02
Fast paced and decisive,
likes a busy, efficient,
structured, and formal
environment. Controllers
and project managers
often share this style.
03

9. Analytical
• Precise, exact, analytical, logical, systematic and task-oriented
• Organized, self-reliant, purposeful, and diplomatic
• Slow and cautious, likes structure, order, and functional
environment
• Certainty of position and others’ expectations
• Private and does not easily express emotions
• Can be seen as a perfectionist
• Financial Analysts, Architect, Computer programmer

10. Which Style?
A) I feel like we’re off
to a good start this
quarter!
B) This quarter, sales
are up by 7.2%

11. Which Style?
C) Big-picture, broad strokes communication.
Not interested in too many details, linear.
D) Likes process, results-oriented, to the point.
Can be seen as impatient and demanding.

12. Communicate To Connect
• Amplify the strengths of your style
• Work on the areas that you aren’t as
comfortable
• Adapt your style to match and mirror
the listener
• Enhance relationships and
opportunity for growth
• Greater enjoyment in all areas of life!