Picture this… you’re heading off on holiday to Italy. Before you go, you practise a few key phrases – a friendly ‘Ciao’ or ‘Grazie’ or if you’re me ‘Dov’è il bagno, per favore?’ to connect with locals and show respect. You don’t need to be fluent – you just want to feel understood and make your experience smoother.

Now ask yourself… why do we do that for strangers abroad but not for the people we work with every day?

The Language of Workplace Communication

In business, communication isn’t just about the words we use – it’s about how we adapt them for different people. According to research by Gallup, only 21% of employees strongly agree that they trust their organisation’s leadership (Gallup, 2023). Trust doesn’t grow from strategy documents; it grows from daily conversations that build understanding and confidence.

Like learning the basics of another language, small adjustments in how we communicate can have a huge impact. It’s about tuning into other people’s preferences and perspectives so that everyone feels heard and valued.

Why It Matters for Leaders

When leaders don’t ‘speak the same language’ as their teams, communication breaks down and that means results suffer! Harvard Business Review reports that poor communication costs companies an average of $12,506 per employee per year (HBR, 2022). That’s a staggering figure and it’s not about incompetence, it’s about misalignment and miscommunication.

Learning how others prefer to interact – whether they value detail or big pictures, fast decisions or reflection time – can be transformative for collaboration, innovation and accountability.

Learning the Language Without the Labels

This is where tools like DISC come in. DISC, at least in the way we use it, doesn’t pigeonhole people. It offers a shared language to understand behavioural styles:

• how we respond to challenges,
• pace,
• people and
• procedures.

A DISC-aware team is one that can recognise when someone needs clarity instead of enthusiasm or data instead of debate.

It’s not about changing who we are – it’s about flexing our communication styles so others can bring their best selves forward. That’s what fuels trust, creativity and resilience in business.

Bringing It All Together

So the next time you prepare for a trip and practise a few local phrases, think about the day-to-day ‘foreign languages’ spoken in your workplace. When we take the time to understand how others communicate, we create stronger partnerships, greater accountability and a culture where people feel safe to contribute their best ideas.

After all, every great business journey starts with a simple “hello” – spoken in a way that others truly understand.