A Few Meta Programs, Part 4
'Options' and 'procedures'
It can be hard to pin Helen down. She seems to relish having an almost endless list of things on the go at the same time. When you press her to choose she has real difficulty plumping for just one thing. She enjoys working freelance because it allows her to get involved with a whole variety of different projects. Her brother Jack prefers to follow a set path and likes to see things through to a conclusion before starting something else. He's great at following instructions and explains things clearly in a logical order. He finds it hard to keep up with his sister's approach which he describes as 'scatty' and 'all over the place'.
Understanding options and procedures patterns
The options pattern is easy to spot because these people love variety and bending the rules, even though they quite like creating them for others to follow. They thrive on choice, opportunities and new ideas. They don't relish making a decision because it limits the number of possibilities they have. Freedom is important to them and they enjoy being able to control their own future. If you know someone who is great at starting something but rarely finishes it they're likely to have an options pattern.
The key to identifying a procedures way of thinking is when someone wants to take things step by step. People with this pattern like to finish what they've started and can feel overwhelmed when there's too much choice. Following rules feels right to them and they can find it uncomfortable if they're asked to deviate from the norm. The other thing to listen out for is the way they like to explain things a stage at a time.
This difference in people's behavior can be evident in organizations as well as individuals. Many people associate banking with a fairly procedural approach where the employees follow the rules. When someone's looking after our money this is likely to be a good thing! Media companies on the other hand are often creative and come up with an almost endless stream of new ideas.
Communicating with people who have an options or procedures pattern
When you're communicating with someone who has an options pattern the key to success lies in choice, options, possibilities, alternatives, variety... Put the ball in their court and ask them if they can think of another way of doing something. Key words to use when someone has a procedures pattern are reliable, proven or tried and tested. When you're explaining something, match their behavior by covering each thing in a logical order one after the other.