Are You My Type?

At my age, I know myself pretty well; just don’t put a label on me because it won’t work. I’m a bit of a mutt when it comes to assigning myself to one particular category. This used to cause me a lot of stress and frustration as I deal with dueling personality traits. But now, I’ve accepted it for what it all adds up to – me.

A & B

I am somewhere between a Type A and Type B personality. I am an organized person. I like to be either early or on time when we go places. I set goals and obsess over articles about time management skills and productivity systems. And if that doesn’t clinch it, I have zero patience. Whoever said “patience is a virtue” did not have me in mind.

However, I am also Type B. I am creative and innovative. I would not describe myself as competitive by any means. I focus on the fun and not the scoreboard. I am flexible and mild-mannered (until I lose my patience and then all bets are off). I enjoy conversations with people that are reflective and meaningful. I am proud of the fact that I can be flexible and adaptable to situations when things take an unexpected turn.

SMART and SOFT

So, when it comes to setting goals for myself, both personalities come into play. In my career, I set SMART goals and stretch goals and often refer back to them to make sure I’m on the right track. When I sit down for a performance review, I want to say I accomplished or made progress with each of the goals I set out to do. All of this easily puts me in the Type A category.

As for losing weight, FitBit steps, and Goodreads goals, I’m much softer. Probably because, according to Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies quiz – I’m an Obliger. As I read more about this tendency, I see that it is the intersection of Type A and Type B personalities. I always want to put others before myself (Type B) and do what I can for them (Type A) to make them happy.

Myers-Briggs

As if to add insult to injury, I fluctuate between an ENFP and an ESFP type on the Myers-Briggs Personality test. The difference in that one letter is whether or not I get more excited about concepts and ideas or experiences and actions. Can’t I be both?

To Sum Up

This is all to say that I have a huge list of goals to tackle for 2021. In order to be successful, do I really need to pick a side? Maybe I’ll set a new goal to be a little less of an Obliger, and tap into my Type A traits while keeping what I love about being a solid Type B.

Hmm… I think I’m back to where I started.

How about you? What is your personality type?