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Description

Thinking Preferences: Identify, Adapt and Smooth Your Communication

Three days to understand why the same message lands with some people and not with others

  • 3 days — 21 h
  • In-person or virtual
  • Intermediate
  • Up to 6 participants

An argument built on figures leaves a listener focused on human consequences unmoved; a highly structured presentation irritates someone who is looking first for the bigger picture. Yet the message is identical. Without identifying these differences in how people process information, we repeat the same approach and expect a different outcome.

This 21-hour intermediate programme draws on the thinking preferences approach. Over three days, participants map their own dominant preferences, learn to identify those of their counterparts from the vocabulary and questions they use, and then rework the way they build their messages and run their meetings.

Learning objectives

  • Map your dominant preferences and your own way of processing information
  • Identify a counterpart's preferences from their vocabulary and their questions
  • Build a message that covers the four modes of processing
  • Adapt your argument to a counterpart with the opposite profile
  • Run a meeting that takes account of the diversity of profiles present

What makes this programme different

One single message reworked for four different profiles during the programme
Observation grids usable in meetings based on the vocabulary being used
Analysis of a real communication document brought by each participant

Programme

1Four ways of processing information

The thinking preferences framework

  • Analytical, organised, relational and big-picture modes
  • Effect of the dominant mode on how a problem is framed
  • Typical vocabulary and questions of each mode
  • Limits of reading profiles too quickly

2Mapping your own preferences

What I favour without thinking about it

  • Feedback on and analysis of your personal profile
  • Testing the profile against real professional situations
  • Identifying the modes you rarely draw on
  • Effect of your preferences on your usual presentations

3Identifying the other person's preferences

The clues present in the exchange

  • Listening to vocabulary and the type of questions asked
  • Observing how a document is handled
  • Spotting signs of disengagement in meetings
  • Testing your hypothesis with a simple question

4Adapting your message

Building to be understood

  • Structuring a message that covers the four modes
  • Choosing arguments and evidence according to the listener
  • Adapting the visual material
  • Reworking a message that did not land

5Facilitating a mixed group

Getting different profiles to work together

  • Distributing speaking time according to dominant modes
  • Sequencing a meeting that covers the four approaches
  • Handling disagreements rooted in different reasoning styles
  • Adaptation plan for your regular counterparts

Who is it for

Managers, sales professionals, trainers and project managers who need to convince counterparts with varied profiles.

Prerequisites

Regular practice of professional communication is expected.

Dates & locations

36 scheduled dates between November 2026 and December 2027. Seats are confirmed in the order enquiries are received.

November 2026

December 2026

January 2027

February 2027

March 2027

April 2027

May 2027

June 2027

September 2027

October 2027

November 2027

December 2027

None of these dates suit you? We open additional sessions on request, and any programme can be run privately for your team.

Practical details

Before the programme
Online positioning questionnaire. Your development objectives are shared with the trainer, who tailors the practical case studies to your context.
Teaching methods
Theoretical input, workshops and practical case studies. Digital course materials and method sheets provided.
Assessment
Multiple-choice tests and role-play exercises. Assessment of learning at the start and end of the programme, with immediate and 60-day follow-up evaluations.
After the programme
One year of access to the e-learning platform. Self-assessment of the skills acquired and a 30-day follow-up session with your trainer.
How to register
Registration online or on the basis of a quotation.
Lead time
11 working days after confirmation of registration.
Accessibility
Accessible to people of determination. Contact our accessibility coordinator to design a suitable solution: contact@mpf-academy.ae
Start dates
Rolling intake: in addition to the scheduled sessions, this programme can start on request.