5 Voices

6The Guardian Voice

The Guardian. What an incredibly valuable foundational voice and yet, the one that is often the least appreciated of the five. Guardians do what their name implies: they guard, protect, and defend. Yet Guardians are often misunderstood because they can be viewed as a wet blanket on the ideas of the futurists and the dreamers. They are wired to question change and have an innate ability to understand why something won't work, which can cause them to appear negative. The reality, though, is that Guardians are vital to the health of teams and groups: They keep companies afloat, keep families on the right track, and are the engines that help make great ideas actually happen in real life.

Guardians comprise 30 percent of the population, and 70 percent of them are men. Interestingly, this is the direct opposite of the Nurturer where 70 percent are female. Guardians are by nature conservative leaders; when they pioneer they do so based on years of expertise and unconscious competence in their chosen field. They are rock-like characters who provide an incredible sense of security, stability, and consistency for those they lead. They champion discipline, systems, and infrastructure and have a right and wrong filter that helps keep order. When you begin to understand and value the contribution of the foundational voice Guardian, your team productivity will go to a new level. Without Guardians, companies would run out of money, teams would go adrift into random idea ...