I’m that type of a person who puts effort into knowing oneself, one’s personality, passions, motivations, fears and weaknesses. Somehow and for some reason, I find this internal discovery fulfilling and useful and above all important. I’m maybe an idealist, but cannot fathom people who are not interested in who they really are.

Anyways, if you’re interested, I can recommend some websites which can help you find yourself, or shed light into who you really are.

First, keys2cognition.com has a test which helps you assess your strongest cognitive processes, i.e., how you focus our attention and gather information and how you organize your experiences and make decisions. This I find particularly practically useful, and it helps you also to assess your personality type.

According to theory, people can have and utilize eight different cognitive processes, but out of these eight, two usually are most refined and developed. I usually score highest with Introverted intuiting and extraverted thinking,

Introverted Intuiting (Ni): Transforming with a meta-perspective. Withdrawing from the world and focusing your mind to receive an insight or realization. Checking if synergy results. Trying out a realization to transform things.

Extraverted Thinking (Te): Measuring and constructing for progress. Making decisions objectively based on evidence and measures. Checking if things function properly. Applying a procedure to control events and complete goals.

Second, a group of psychologists, Carl Jung, Isobel Meyers and David Keirsey in particular, have all contributed to producing a framework for different personality types. With sixteen different types singled out, there are options, but I personally still find them too rigid. See this site for great, serious personality tests. Of these sixteen types, I usually score an ENTJ, that is, an extroverted, intuitive, thinking and judging person, but at times, I see myself as an ENF(eeling)J or I(ntrovert)NTJ – that is, I feel as someone who’s not as cold and logical as a “typical” ENTJ but harmony-seeking and in sync with people’s feelings, or someone who draws energy from the inside and does not enjoy social gatherings. An ENTJ is described as a ..

Strategist Mobilizer: Theme is directing and mobilizing. Talents lie in developing policy, establishing plans, coordinating and sequencing events, and implementing strategy. Excel at directing others in reaching the goals dictated by their strong vision of the organization. Thrive on marshaling forces to get plans into action. Natural organization builders and almost always find themselves taking charge in ineffective situations. Enjoy creating efficiently structured systems and setting priorities to achieve goals.

Whereas an ENFJ is said to be a

Envisioner Mentor Theme is mentoring, leading people to achieve their potential and become more of who they are. Talents lie in empathizing with profound interpersonal insight and in influencing others to learn, grow, and develop. Lead using their exceptional communication skills, enthusiasm, and warmth to gain cooperation toward meeting the ideals they hold for the individual or the organization. Catalysts who draw out the best in others. Thrive on empathic connections. Frequently called on to help others with personal problems.

And an INTJ is described as a

Conceptualizer Director: Theme is strategizing, envisioning, and masterminding. Talents lie in defining goals, creating detailed plans, and outlining contingencies. Devise strategy, give structure, establish complex plans to reach distant goals dictated by a strong vision of what is needed in the long run. Thrive on putting theories to work and are open to any and all ideas that can be integrated into the complex systems they seek to understand. Drive themselves hard to master what is needed to make progress toward goals.

Third, and I’m saving this for the last for a good reason, is the Enneagram personality type framework. This people find the most goofiest and least scientific, and I can see why. But yet, it’s fascinating and helpful if you give it a chance. According to it, there are nine different personality types present, and each person has one which is prominent, most visible. I usually score a 3 (achiever), 1 (reformer) or a 9 (peacemaker). A Three is usually a..

Success-Oriented, Pragmatic Type: Adaptive, Excelling, Driven, and Image-Conscious

Whereas a One is a..

Rational, Idealistic Type: Principled, Purposeful, Self-Controlled, and Perfectionistic

And a Nine is a..

The Easygoing, Self-Effacing Type: Receptive, Reassuring, Agreeable, and Complacent

What I’ve learned in my path of self-discovery is that yes, if I truly am an combination of 3,1 and 9, or an ENTJ and ENFJ, I have both the typical strengths AND the weaknesses of these types. The realisation is very humbling. You simply can’t have the just best of both worlds.

Of course, I’m trying too much when I try to label myself or assign myself into a certain “box”. And people who are not interested in self-actualization and finding oneself steer clear of such tests and frameworks for the exact same reason. But educating oneself about these theories, and especially knowing them all and how they’re formed, gives great insight into drawing conclusions about yourself. You don’t have to assign yourself into a box but appreciate the help these give you as you understand yourself and recognize your characteristics. This ultimately will help you develop yourself and become a better person in general. And in my opinion you owe this endeavour to yourself and people around you.

A great article about a book by Jonah Lehrer from Forbes:

How to make better decisions

Personally speaking, intuitively (hehe) this sounds reasonable – simple dilemmas are manageable and suitable for some coherent analysis before coming to a conclusion/decision. Biggest, most complex decisions require more insight, guts, experience and entrepreneurial risk-taking.In other words, use analysis with simple decisions and intuition with complex decisions.

I love their statement about how the brain can depending on person manage four to nine pieces of data at a time before oversimplification of the problem issue begins and focus is lost. A very good bit of information to keep in mind the next time I’m sitting down and mulling over a problem with a client!

They say: “Studies of consumers weighing numerous factors, for example, have shown that excessive analysis led to worse decisions than when relying on intuition to make a final choice.” I wonder though, how have they defined a worse decision? A key question here I’d say! How are they worse, and why? Worse because the decision took more time to be made and the opportunity slipped away, or the added value diminished (e.g. missing a sale by a day)? How was the difference perceived, or calculated?

From my experience though I’d venture a guess that best decisions are a perfect, balanced combination of analysis, experience and intuition, no matter what the problem.

Mr. David Straker authors and has created a wonderful website, or should I say resource, for change agents, -evangelists, -managers and everybody dealing with change, persuasion and influence. It’s called changingminds.org. Check it out, it’s worth it, especially for people like me who are striving to become full-fledged, all-around, do-it-in-your-sleep type of change agents!