“Let’s talk social”, James said.
“Great, I love social media”. But he wasn’t referring to the tech channels we use to create or share information in virtual communities and networks; instead he wanted to discuss people with social personalities. He was referring to the real meaning of the word “social” before we had turned it into a generic term.
German philosopher Karl Marx stated way back in the 17th century that as human beings we are intrinsically, necessarily and by definition, social beings who cannot survive or meet our needs without social co-operation and association. No surprise then that social media has been embraced so enthusiastically in the 21st century.
But I digress… the discussion James and I were about to embark on actually involved the personality traits of high performing advisers. James’ theory was, people with a strong social personality, those who loved to communicate, enjoyed helping others and gained greatest satisfaction from engagement with the public, made better advisers. True or false? It certainly got me thinking…
Before I could agree or disagree I first needed to understand some things:
- What are the defined attributes of a person with a social personality?
- Do the exceptional advisers I know possess these attributes?
- Can these traits be learned?
What attributes does a social personality type possess?
According to the academics at Radboud University in the Netherlands, individuals with a social personality type are dedicated leaders, humanistic, responsible and supportive. They use feelings, words and ideas to work with people. They enjoy talking, closeness, sharing, groups and being in charge.
People and their concerns are the focus of a social personality type. Making friends easily, these individuals are both empathetic and sensitive to emotional cues which help them solve problems as they possess good awareness of others’ moods and feelings. They can pull people together easily and naturally generate positive energy according to the experts.
Exceptional advisers with social personality traits
In my career I have been privileged to have met and worked with some extraordinary advisers. When I reflect on the key attributes and characteristics of these experts – whilst there were many commonalities, there were a few who were quite different as far as their style or manner went, but they did all share one thing and that was an authentic interest for, and care of, people.
Can we mere mortals be exceptional advisers too?
Absolutely – it simply takes self-awareness. Identification of who you really are; how you behave, what you do that people like, what you don’t do that you should start doing, and what you should stop doing because it isn’t helping you engage those you need to. And think about the attributes that make up a social personality… if you don’t have one, think about whether you can develop one.
Exceptional advisers know their audience – internal and external. They really get people, which means they have exceptional intuition about others. They genuinely want to understand what interests, motivates, and concerns people and they want to know why. They spend more time developing and helping people succeed than they do blowing their own trumpets… but not surprisingly, their trumpets will got blown anyway and in stereo by many others.
These great advisers are observant. It starts with listening; to the public, to the target market, to superiors, and to other advisers. Being observant pays off and encourages an ‘always learning’ attitude.These best advisers are voracious about taking in new information constantly, and from diverse sources.
Being ‘social’ could also mean more love in your life
So could James be right? Do people with a strong social personality make better advisers?
Having not done any rigorous research, but instead simply reflecting on my own experiences, I think there is some good evidence to suggest social personality traits give you a real advantage.
But wait, there’s more…
A psychology research exercise was done with 222 undergraduates a few years ago to assess happiness, comparing consistently very happy people with average and very unhappy people. The research found the very happy people group exhibited traits that were:
- Highly social
- They had stronger romantic and other social relationships
- They were more extroverted, more agreeable and less neurotic
No variable was sufficient for happiness, but good social relations were necessary and being ‘social’ is linked to greater levels of happiness.
In summary, advising others is not a solitary job – it is social. It is about interacting, collaborating, asking questions, gaining feedback and generally always learning from others you wish to help.
So if you aren’t someone who enjoys the company of people, chances are you won’t succeed. You may also be less happy and missing out on love. Now there’s a good reason to be more social.
Jac Phillips is the head of brand & marketing at Bank of Melbourne. She has more than 20 years’ of marketing and communications expertise across both traditional and online environment and is passionate about conducting business across Asia-Pacific, improving diversity and creating an inclusive workforce.
The opinions expressed in this content are those of the author shown, and do not necessarily represent those of No More Practice or its related entities. All content is intended for a professional financial adviser audience only and does not constitute financial advice. To view our full terms and conditions, click here.
