Life of an addicted rider

Take the test. Tell me about yourself. Things you never knew about me. Have you changed in the last 10 years? All of these are personality tests. They tell us a little about yourself, or a lot about yourself depending on what test you take, how many you take, and how many you give to your friends. Reading posts on the bulletin board, blogs, and those pesky spam e-mails got me thinking. I’ve recently had training and a realization that we do indeed fall into 4 major catagories of personality.

1. Driving
2. Analytical
3. Amiable (controlled, for those too lazy to look it up)
4. Emotive

You may say to yourself, HEY, I’m more than one of these personality types. Dru is completely lying or full of it. I used to have a similar feeling until I really “analyzed” it. As implied, I’m fairly analytical. Probably the second toughest to please. If you ever have a chance to interview or meet hundreds of people, you will definately discover how true this is. Let’s discuss the personalities first, in brief.

1. Driving
This is a person who craves control. They are either natural born leaders, or they think they are. Think Bill Gates, or Steve Jobs. They run their own companies for a reason. They don’t get along will with authority, or direct authority, and they work very hard.

2. Analytical
This is a group generally regarded as scientists. They look at data, be it in life or in the lab, and they can analyze anything. They may even over analyze things. Just ask the local nerd who gets straight As because they study. They can understand many things. Languages may not be a strong point, but if they work hard at it, they can.

3. Amiable
This group is very easy to manipulate. They require someone to hold their hand. If you are a momma’s boy, or you can’t make a single decision on your own, you could be Amiable. A good example may be George W. Bush. Everyone says he’s just a puppet. If true, he’s pretty Amiable.

4. Emotive
This group can often be confused for being conceited. They love to talk about themselves or anything. They can just talk your ear off. No, not Oprah. Think Roger Moore. He has an opinion about anything and everything. He loves to talk and get his point across. He may be Driven, but he works very Emotively.

This is where things get confusing. Draw a square grid and on each side, place one of the personalities in order. You can be Driven, but not Amiable. You can be Analytical, but not Emotive. Get the idea? What does this have to do with life? In life, we meet people every day and we talk to our friends and co-workers. Ever wonder why some people are easier to get along with? Maybe it’s because they have the same personality type. Maybe it’s because they have the opposite personality. Imagine the arguments 2 very driven people have. How about making 2 Amiable people decide on something to do? Make 2 Analytical people talk about personal things? Get 2 Emotive people to SHUT UP! Exactly.

Here is where things really get messed up. A person who is Driven can also be Emotive and Analytical. Get the idea on this one? You can have a bit of the neighbouring personality trait. A driven person is, by nature, required to analyze a situation, and give their opinion. Analyitical people must allow others to control things, but at the same time, control the situation to gain the needed information. Amiable? They are just push overs and can talk about themselves or analyze things as you speak. Emotive? If they can’t talk about themselves, they control you. If you let them talk, they’ll let you decide where the conversation goes.

What does this say about me? I’ve been told that I’m very mysterious. I believe that is true. I rarely, if ever, give out all the information about myself. I challenge any of my friends, even the close ones, to really tell me everything about my life. Sure, people get to know me over time, understand who I am and can guess what I’m thinking. Those who never truely got to know me, only understand the surface. Can my closest friends truely understand the inner workings of my brain? You tell me. Being a friend of mine, I ask for more input. I’ve received a lot of input from my students over time. My style is very Analytical as I ask a lot of “why” questions. I listen intently and analyze everything said. I do my best to be a perfectionist (probably due to my blood type but that’s a different story). So, am I correct or am I just stupid?

As for yourself, take a moment and really think about your personality. Get to know these 4 types of personality. It can really help you understand yourself, your friends, and anyone you meet. Whether you know it or not, you can use this to your advantage. Salespeople who know this have an upper hand at helping you and getting a sale. Amiable people need that push while Driven people need time and persuasion. Analytical need a good reason to buy, and Emotive needs to know they will love it. How about a manager? Knowing these 4 types helps you pair people when forming groups for projects, or even manipulating people into doing what you want them to do. I’m by no means an expert, but I do believe that the more you know, the better you’ll be in daily life. Give it a try and please let me know how it goes.

PS: I wrote this after 3am. Boy am I tired