Do you really know what makes you tick? Some people describe themselves as “bold”, some as “reserved”, some as “shy”, and so on. When organizations advertise for jobs they include phrases such as “the preferred candidate must be a self-starter”, and “the preferred candidate must be self-driven” or simply “the preferred candidate must be driven” and so on. The expressions “bold”, “driven” and “shy” are all subjective expressions but when added together provide tell-tale signs about ones psychological make-up.
Philosophers over the ages advise “Man Know Thyself.” This origin of this phrase is lost in antiquity, but is generally attributed to Socrates, the ancient Greek philosopher. As a contributor recently wrote in Quora, “Socrates says, as he did in Phaedrus, that people make themselves appear ridiculous when they are trying to know obscure things before they know themselves. Plato also alluded to the fact that understanding ‘thyself,’ would have a greater yielded factor of understanding the nature of a human being.”
The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao-Tzu is quoted as saying, “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.” That is why the most implacable foe to subdue is the man in the mirror – yourself.
It is said that in ancient Rome, there was always a court jester hovering around every Roman emperor, whispering to him now and then, “Remember you are a mortal.”
It is well known that when Alexander the Great was age seven, his father, Philip of Macedon, who was himself a general in the Greek army, took him to the Oracle at Delphi to prophesy about Alexander’s future. According to legend, Alexander was given two choices, to choose “a long uneventful life”, or “a short life full of glory.” Alexander, who was then known as Alexander of Macedon, chose a “Short life full of Glory.” As the saying goes, the rest is history. Alexander became one of the very few leaders in all of history to have the title “Great” appended to his name.
It is claimed that the sign hung at the entrance to the Oracle at Delphi was “Man Know Thyself.” I believe it is for this reason that social scientists, sociologists, psychologists, behaviourists and others have gone out of their way to develop self assessment instruments to figure out what makes each and every one of us tick.
The most popular of these instruments, generally referred to as psychometrics, are Myers Briggs Type Indicator, DISC Personality Assessment, Flip Flippen Personal Constraints, Path Elements Profile, Explanatory Styles, and Belbin Team Interplace. Indeed there are tens of others. You can get a collection of assorted personality tests here.
Are you the type of person that if your boss shouts at you at your place of work you start to cry? It’s very likely you are thin skinned and cannot “work under pressure.” Are you the type that talks to others as a general in the army? It’s very likely you are a “D” (Dominant) in the DISC model. Your people will dread coming to see you with their problems.
Taking a variety of personality tests will give you an indication of what makes you tick. Most of the tests have free versions you can take online. About a year or so ago, my company, Vision & Talent Training Group, had a training session with a big government agency and administered some of the free personality tests to the attendees and it brought out tears from the eyes of some of the participants. Some said “Paul you eviscerated me.” I did not eviscerate anyone, it was the test that served as the oracle.
Other than pure personality tests, you should also find out your core values: what truly drives what you do. That’s the biggest indicator what makes you tick. Your values are at your core. To know your core values, you can carry out a very quick values assessment at Barrett Values Centre. It takes less than 10 minutes and it’s free. If you want to do it right now, head here.
Knowing what makes you tick, will enable you play to your strengths. The key to success is playing to your strengths rather than hitting your head against a wall trying to fix your weaknesses.
If you don’t want to head online to do the free tests, you can email me at paul@pauluduk.com to send you forms to do it offline, and all the tests are free. Just be specific on the one you want. If you don’t know what you want, I will guide you.
To your success as you move to uncover what makes you tick day and night.
About Paul Uduk
Paul Uduk is the author of several books, including Bridges to the Customer’s Heart dubbed The Customer Service Bible. Richmond Dayo Johnson calls him “One of Nigeria’s most authentic experiential writers.” A trainer par excellence, and founder Vision & Talent Training Group, his clients include Fortune 500 and some of Nigeria’s biggest companies, including Nigerian Breweries (Heineken), Nestle, Dangote, First Bank and Nestoil Group (whose clients include ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, Agip, and NNPC, amongst others. Paul has been featured on NTA, SilverBirdTV, and Radio TVC, and his articles have appeared in The Guardian, Vanguard, Business Day and SuccessDigestExtra. A Platinum writer at EzineArticles.Com, his mantras are “There is no defense against excellence”, and “Excellence Every Day.” Follow him on Twitter and Instagram, like him on Facebook, connect with him via email and at his website. Above all, let your views be heard by commenting on his sensational Ultimate Guides.