Ever tried to sell a big idea, ripe with metaphors and drama, to someone highly analytical? Or perhaps you’ve walked into a presentation with armloads of metrics and KPIs, all of which go ignored by the personality you’re selling to?

This might occur inside an agency as a project evolves. It definitely happens once ideas are brought out into the world to clients and partners. It doesn’t matter if you’re advancing a strategy, media plan, design, headlines or storyboards. The nature of the person receiving an idea can dramatically impact the way you prepare and present. Understanding the differences between personalities and what motivates acceptance and agreement can be a useful aspect of selling your work.

A few years ago, Scott Litman and Dan Mallin introduced me to a solution called “How Now Me We.” Scott tells me he first learned about this system from executive coach Paul Batz. I don’t claim to have invented this concept, merely to appreciate and extol it.

How Now Me We assumes each of us falls into one of four personality types during the moment of decision. When the pressure’s on — it’s time to vote or sign or commit — what personality overwhelms you? Are you a How, a Now, a Me or a We?

These personality types are not rigid archetypes, or forever. How Now Me We isn’t fail safe, or all-knowing. It is not a law. None of us is solely one type or another all the time. The question is, who is your audience most likely to be at the moment of decision? What kinds of information or communication do they need to decide?

You discover and infer the clues differentiating How Now Me We personalities before it’s time to present ideas. They come through mannerisms, personal office decor and group communication. That first new business meeting, the chemistry check, is a ripe opportunity to discern what personalities await. Prosaic actions like offering you a cup of coffee, and the ensuing interactions, can offer distinct clues about the personality you’ll ultimately be selling your ideas to.

This week I’ll devote posts to each of the four personality types, as well as posts to compare and contrast How/We versus Now/Me (the data divide) and How/Now versus We/Me (the social divide).