Personality test full of triggers, do you know yourself?
Do you know who you are?
Are you sure??
Of all the character traits that exist, of all the different ways people can view you, can you describe the most prominent characteristics you possess?
Let me ask you again. Do. You. Know. Who. You. Are?
Sally Hogshead claims she can tell you. Her Ted talk on how to fascinate you and how you can be different in doing so has me intrigued. We all need to be able to fascinate, be it an individual or a business, to get what we want.
It makes sense. Think about it. Personal branding is so important. You may not even realize you are doing it but to the people around you, you are characterized into a type and there is a good chance they rely on you for it.
Who is Sally Hogshead? Why am I speaking about her?
Sally hogshead is a NY Times best-selling author, speaker, and American Brand guru. Her take on personal branding is characterized into seven types of what she calls "triggers”. Ones that will drive you the most and the ones that don’t.
She has carefully accumulated a test that can answer the complex, mind-boggling question of who you are. Unlike many other personality tests, it takes only a couple of minutes to answer 28 questions and it gives you detailed information both in written and graphical form to explain to you, more about you!
So, let’s find out how it turned out for me, shall we?
My experience
Simple, Straightforward, easy to answer. The answer scale was similar to that of Likert, giving plenty of room to answer both extremes of a yes or no. However, I struggled to answer some questions right away because I wished I could choose an in-between.
Being the marketer that I am, I also kept wondering which questions were associated with the “triggers” and what my result could be.
Finally! The most awaited moment
The results were out in an instant. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting but it was more than I could have guessed. It included a brief description of my main two triggers and what they mean. I was surprised to note that only 15% of the people who took the fascination test had the same primary advantage as me.
My primary advantage was Prestige, and my secondary advantage was Power. Two traits that help me approach my career with both goal-oriented and results-oriented perspectives. While one is a huge influence on my career, the other helps me scale personally and use my position of privilege to bring positive impact in the word.
The combination of the two defines my archetype as THE VICTOR — Respected, Competitive, and results-oriented.
My dormant trait was Alert — implying I do not wish to communicate and be in an environment of control. I agree that I don’t like to be caged in. I love to be creative and take on challenging projects. I also received pointers on how I can do better in case I had the need to overcome my dormant trait in a professional environment.
The chart below describes graphically represents percentages of my “triggers”. I was relieved to note that I had a very close difference in margin among my other triggers as well.
This test has certainly given me insight and more importantly, boosted my confidence making me want to be more of what the results made me out to be. Being the optimistic person that I am, it was soothing to read positive descriptive words that were used to describe me. Pointers on how I can grow and be categorized under a list of famous leaders who have the same traits as mine, made me feel inspired to be worthy of the same one day.
‘How to Fascinate You’ test has helped me compartmentalize traits in an easy manner while highlighting my strengths and weakness and what I can do with them. I am sure, in the upcoming days, I will wonder what archetype the people I meet with shall be.
Although this can help us understand the world a little better, I don’t believe a person’s life can be figured out in 28 questions. It is too easy.
Skepticism
I grew up in a land known that is known for its superstitions as part of its culture. Back in India, there are so many ways to predict your life. I have tried them all — Palm reading, crystal balls, parrot card draws, and Jataka charts. Some predictions have been true, some haven’t.
Predicting my future has become redundant for me. I have started to embrace the unknown and to live life vicariously. I only stumble back to future telling when I want to hear positive feedback about my life.
That being said, maybe it is my dormant trait that makes me want to deny this, but my main advantage as per fascinate test is mostly true. The way I see it, I have the potential to alter my archetype and all I have to do is play my cards slightly differently.
If you were simply curious or need motivation in life, I urge you to take this test.
In the meantime, don’t forget to let me know what you think! Until next time…
Signing off,
Supraja
