Personalities, Purpose, and Pathways

We all have a personality. Steven Sissler, author of one of my favorite books, The Four People Types, tells us that our personality stems from how much we are of each of these types; mad, sad, glad, and scared. He explains that no one is just one of these but one type can dominate how we view the world and how we choose to interact with it. People can have a high anger quotient and this will cause them to charge through their world at a very fast pace with a very high sense of urgency. But, most people with a very high anger quotient learn, over time, to slow things down a bit. Other people might have a high happiness quotient and this will cause them to go through life spreading cheer, sunshine, and gladness. They are sometimes accused of being Pollyannas but they usually learn to tone it down a bit and recognize that not everyone sees the world as an endless ray of sunshine. And then there are the people dominated by a doom and gloom outlook or those who are in constant fear. As I said, very few people, if any, are one dimensional. A very high percentage of people are a combination of these four types with stronger tendancies towards one or two of them. One thing that experience does tell us, however, is that there is no one best personality for every situation and circumstance. Therefore, the most highly successful people tend to be able to adapt to the needs of the situation they face without confusing others or losing their own identity.

In order to become adaptable to the level required to maximize one’s chances for success means that people need to have a purpose for their lives. Without a true purpose, people will change on a whim and without thought about how the change might affect them in the long-run. Failing to adapt, on the other hand, quite often results in an individual being at war with the world they inhabit. They often see the world around them as failing to be fair to them and their own personal needs, want, and desires. Learning how to fit in without losing one’s identity is one of the keys to becoming a mature adult. When we interact with people who’ve learned the art of conscientious adaptation, we see them as being authentic. If I am the leader of an organization, my goal should always be to have everyone one on my team be as authentic as possible while still being able to interact with the diversity we find in our world every day.

Finding our Purpose is not always easy to do. It takes personal reflection and self-evaluation. This isn’t as simple as it looks in print. If we think about what we love to do that really makes a difference in our world and then also think about the totality of our behavior, we can begin to see that there are productive behaviors, neutral behaviors, and destructive behaviors. Our Purpose in life will exist in a sweet spot that exists between what we love doing, makes a difference in our world, produces outcomes that others need, want or desire, and results in personal sustainability. Making our purpose more than just an idea means making sure our behaviors are as productive as possible. By evaluating everything we do in light of our purpose, we begin to see what works and what doesn’t. Not many people do this but the most highly successful do. The best of the best take time every day to review their actions against their self avowed purpose and make note of what they need to do better tomorrow. Then they begin each day by reviewing their notes from yesterday before they get started on their day. Most people only think about their behavior periodically and by failing to intentionally engage in personal reflection and evaluation every day repeat their unproductive and potentially destructive behaviors for way too long.

Once we are clear on our purpose in life, development of a life pathway is our next big step. Instead of bouncing from action action, people with a purpose are focused on taking actions that increase their chances for success. Spending time on unproductive behaviors delays success. Spending time on destructive behaviors prevents success. People with a purpose live on the pathway of intentional, mindful living. When an organization has teams full of people with a purpose and those purposes are aligned with the organization’s purpose, the outcomes are extraordinary. It should be every organization’s first and most important goal to make sure everyone in the organization has found their purpose, is in a position that is aligned to their purpose and knows how to engage in self reflection and self evaluation. By doing this, an organization can so dramatically increase their probability of success that leadership will be amazed.

So, why don’t more companies do this? Why don’t they take the time to assess their people’s personalities, help them find their purposes, and then provide the time for them to do the necessary self reflection and self evaluation? It’s time! They fail to realize that investing this time will save them time. When all your people operate based on their purpose which is aligned to the company’s purpose, and when each person is dedicated to a pathway that leads to personal fulfillment and organizational success, everyone wins. How can organizations find the time to do this critical work? They never will. It must decide that this is so important that the time must be devoted to accomplishing the task. In many instances it is helpful to devote a person to manage the process. It is what I often do for our clients. If you are interested, send me an email or message and I’ll give you a free walk through the process.