I AM a Maverick Leader!

I think I was a senior in high school when I first heard about the concept of archetypes. Someone, no doubt a girl I was hoping to impress, had recommended Carl Jung’s book The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious” to me (Hey it was the 60s, we didn’t have manga) and I remember being blown away by this man and his mind. The idea that there were personality motifs, as it were, that showed up over and over again in history was both fascinating and undeniable.

So, when I was recently invited to fill out a questionnaire that presumed to show me my own archetypal profile, I decided it was worth the time investment and gave it a shot. The invite came from Sally Hogshead at howtofascinate.com and the questionnaire and the profile it generated are intended to accompany a book Sally has just published, entitled How the World Sees You (full disclosure, I have no financial stake in Sally, her book, or the profile system advertised). You can go to the website yourself and learn more. The book is $29.99, and unless you got the super-secret invitation like I did, the report will cost you 37 bucks.

But, wait, it may be worth it. When your report is generated, you will find that you have been placed into one of 49 different archetypes. Some of these have pretty exotic titles, like “The Veiled Strength” or “The Intrigue”. Others sound a bit less exciting. Would I want to be “The Drama” or “The Control Freak”? I think not. When you have your personality archetype, you also get a variety of information about that type, like what percentage of the population shares it with you, what adjectives best describe you, how your archetype will help you thrive and things you should be cautious of.

I generally look at these types of personality typing with a bit of suspicion, wondering if there isn’t a lot more diversity in the world than typological studies would suggest. I mean, think about horoscopes – are we really to believe that one-twelfth of everyone on the earth is THAT much alike? Even the Meyers-Briggs Personality Test, a tool that is still used by professional counselors, psychologists and the occasional human resource director, doesn’t go much beyond the Zodiac, MBTI sorts us all into 16 combinations.

Still, 49 slots is a far bit more than those listed above. And, what is more to the point, the archetypal profile I received put me smack in the middle of the one category I would have chosen for myself in advance – “The Maverick Leader”. Anyone who knows me well will understand this. Primary personality characteristics: Embraces Opportunity for Change and Exploration, check; Values Creativity and Cutting-Edge Thinking, check; Captivates with Spontaneity and Quick Wit, check; Confronts Potential Problems or Obstacles Immediately and Decisively, check! Adjectives to describe me: Creative, Visionary, Entrepreneurial, Confident, Goal-Oriented, Decisive – when I started Innovaision, LLC in 2011 those were exactly the strengths I felt I was bringing to the game. And then there was the section on how I add value.  “You quickly solve problems with fresh solutions”, I certainly hope that is true, it’s the foundation of my work. “You’re able to generate ideas that surprise people with a new perspective”, most of the success I have had in the past decade I would attribute to that. And “People watch to see what you’ll do next, because you thwart tradition”, one of the best compliments I ever got was when someone said “I always like to be in a meeting with Dick, because I want to see what he is thinking about THIS week”. (The other best compliment was “He is a guy with integrity” but that can be for another time).

There was some fluff involved in this report as well – do I care about the famous people who share my traits (Madonna, Albert Einstein, Amelia Earhart, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Betty White)? Betty White? Well maybe. But there was a lot of useful information as well, like how to use your dominant characteristics to best effect, as well as coaching on how to work better with others (I do need to be calmer and allow others to catch up, and explain my ideas in more detail).

Maybe there is more to this than I thought. I’d be interested in hearing from anyone else who gets a “Fascination Advantage Report”. Did it match up with how you see yourself? Did you ask people around you if they thought it was accurate? And most importantly, are you going to use the results to your advantage? Let me know via email. If I get enough responses I’ll write more about this later.