Understanding how your client will behave in a particular situation is a huge skill for a health coach to possess, and understanding the sixteen different Briggs/Meyer Personality Types will help you deliver more targeted health coaching strategies for your clients. This is the third post in our series on how to coach your clients based on their Personalities Type. We have previously discussed coaching strategies for the Sentinels and the Explorers. Today we will discuss how bring out the very best from your Analyst clients.
The Analysts include the Architects, the Logicians, the Commanders, and the Debaters, and whilst they make up a mere 12.5% of the population, their impact on our world far exceeds their numbers. With their exceptional intellect and rational thinking, the Analysts are responsible for many of our greatest human achievements to date.
Architect
Introverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, Judging.
Whilst very private, Architects are highly intelligent, imaginative and ambitious. Architects are extremely rare, making up just 2% of the population.
Coaching tips: The chances of coming across an Architect Personality Type as a health coach is rare. Firstly, it is a very rare Personality Type, and secondly, Architects possess such a strong sense of self-confidence in their own beliefs and values, it would be uncharacteristic for them to seek guidance or advice in an area such as health or lifestyle. However, in saying this, Architects are very open minded and usually lead quite unconventional lives. If you do come across an Architect client, it’s important to change your coaching strategy accordingly, as your standard approach is unlikely to bring out the best in them. Architects are imaginative and highly intelligent and take every opportunity to improve their knowledge. Provide your Architect clients with plenty of resources to peruse in their own time, including links to blogs, podcasts, and scientific articles; trust us, they will appreciate this! Rather then setting health goals, you can get your Architect clients to perform health experiments. The important difference here is that the focus isn’t on the end goal, but on the acquisition of knowledge. Architects are very hard working, so if you coach them in a way that will bring out their best, they are likely to stick with you throughout their journey. Remember to not take anything personally when working with an Architect client, as they can be quite insensitive and are not afraid to voice their opinion.
Logician
Introverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, Perceiving.
Logicians are inventive, creative and have a unique perspective of the world. It’s not surprising that they are responsible for many scientific discoveries throughout history. Logicians are rare, making up 3% of the population.
Coaching tips: Logicians are imaginative, original and highly innovative. They are extremely open-minded and are highly receptive to alternate theories, as long as they’re supported by logic and facts and will more than likely be receptive to the Primal Health Coaching principles, if provided with enough information. Logicians are quiet, shy and reserved and may take time to come out of their shell, but when they do, they are very loyal. They are highly intelligent and will enjoy coming up with their own ideas and testing them out. Quench their thirst for knowledge by providing your Logician client with loads of information in the form of blogs, podcasts and scientific articles. Logicians are usually very reserved so you may not even realize that they are excited and enthused by an idea, so the best way to know that you’re getting through to them, is to gauge their desire for more knowledge. Logicians loathe rules and guidelines as they go against their creativity. Instead, arm your Logician client with the Primal concepts, and allow them the freedom and space to construct their own new lifestyle structures. This will work much better then just telling them what to do. Keep in mind that Logicians struggle to commit to new concepts and ideas, and often quit before they even begin. A coaching tip to over come this personality trait would be to regularly check their health benchmarks including body fat percentage, measurements and fitness goals. If they can quantify improved health from their new lifestyle changes, this will be enough of an incentive to continue their health journey with you as their health coach.
Commander
Extraverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, Judging.
Commanders are natural-born leaders who embody charisma and confidence. Commanders make up 3% of the population.
Coaching tips: Commanders are highly efficient and energetic and they love to be out in front, taking charge and leading teams. They are goal-orientated, and highly driven. They possess plenty of self-confidence, and trust their own abilities. Commanders respect efficiency and rationalism and have little time for decisions based on emotions. When coaching a Commander, be sure to always provide facts and to draw on their desire to set and achieve goals. Commanders have an “all or nothing” approach to life and can become impatient if they feel that they are not progressing as they had hoped towards their health goals. Try to provide them with short-term as well as long-term health goals, as this will satisfy their desire for success. They are strong-willed and they definitely don’t give up when the going gets tough.
Debater
Extraverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, Perceiving.
Debaters can be characterized by their effortless quick wit, and their broad accumulated knowledge. Debaters make up 4.5% of the population.
Coaching tips: Debaters love to soak up new ideas and concepts, for no particular purpose other than their passion to expand their knowledge. Debaters have no problems discarding existing methods for new concepts. Very much like the other Analysts, the best way to coach a Debater is to load them with knowledge. Provide them with as much information as you can so that they can brainstorm ideas on how to best implement primal living into their current lifestyle. Debaters are great communicators, and shouldn’t have any problems opening up in your coaching sessions. However, preparation is key when coaching a Debater, as they enjoy playing the devil’s advocate at any opportunity they get. Make sure you back up any statements you may make with respectable and trusted references, as you can be guaranteed that your Debater client will look it up later. Whilst debaters are great at embracing new concepts and ideas, they struggle with practical day-to-day matters, like grocery shopping and cooking. A coaching tip here would be to brainstorm with your Debater client how to keep the practical aspects of their journey less boring. The mere process of brainstorming ideas about how to make grocery shopping less of a chore, and more of a fun experience, may spark more interest in this practical task.
Whilst taking up only 12.5% of the population, you can see how the intellect and rational thinking of the Analysts can have such a strong impact on the people around them. The key to coaching the Analysts is to provide them with the knowledge and the freedom to explore their own health journey.
We’ll finish this series on Personality Typing in our next post, which will explore how you can bring out the very best from your warm and caring Diplomats clients.
