Personalities. What are they? Who has them?
Every person has a personality and every personality is unique and individual to each person.
Your personality has an influence over who you choose as friends, who you vote for during an election or how you choose to spend your time. Personalities also influence how you react in difficult situations, how you express feelings like joy or sadness, and even the field of work you pursue.
But how often have you actually given consideration to your personality and how it influences your life?
Taking time to understand and cater to your personality can help you build on your strengths and strengthen your weaknesses. Knowing how your personality influences your interactions with others can help give insight to how others view and react to you and it can help you learn ways to adjust your interactions for a positive interaction with others.
So, what is the personality and where does it come from?
There are a variety of personality traits that are identified in personality tests like the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or the Jungian Type Index (JTI). But modern-day psychologists focus on five major personality types, or the ‘five factor model’, and they believe every person has some degree of the five major personality types.
Here are the five main personality types identified by the ‘five factor model’. Which of the five traits do you believe you align closest to?
Conscientiousness
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People who score highest in this category are well-organized, dependable, self-sufficient and efficient. They are planners and like to have things planned in advanced. They have high standards for themselves and aim for high achievement.
People scoring low in conscientiousness might view their counterparts as stubborn and obsessive.
Studies have shown that marrying someone who scores high in conscientiousness can actually increase your success at work. A spouse with high conscientiousness can boost your productivity and help you meet your dreams and goals.
Extroversion
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This is one of the most commonly known personality type and most people know (without taking a personality test) if they are an extrovert or an introvert. Extroverts are social and gain energy from socializing with others. They are outgoing, talkative and feel comfortable at the center of attention. Their introvert counterparts can view them as attention-seeking and controlling.
One way to identify an extrovert is by their handshake. Studies show that men with strong hand grips are more likely to rank in extroversion and are least likely to be neurotic.
This however, does not hold true for women.
Agreeableness
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Those with strong scores in agreeableness are kind, affectionate and trustworthy. They are known for their social positive behavior and can often be found doing volunteer work or altruistic work. They often put the needs of others before themselves which causes them to be viewed as naive or passive.
Looking for a financial investor?
Look for one with a high agreeableness score. Studies have shown the investors scoring high in agreeableness are the least likely to lost money from risk trading. Avoid investors with a high score in openness.
That personality trait is associated with overconfidence which can lead to poor risk taking.
Openness to Experience
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Do you have a friend that has a broad range of interests and are very vivid with their imagination? Then your friend likely scores high in openness to experience.
People scoring high in this category are creative and curious. They tend to encourage variety and avoid rigid routines. They are known for self-building through experiences like living abroad or meditative retreats. Others might view them as unreliable and unfocused as they do not stick to one area and change their plans at the drop of a hat.
Is your open friend also a liberal? Studies have shown that people scoring high in openness are likely to endorse liberalism and be open about their political beliefs.
Neuroticism
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Everyone knows that person. They are neurotic and often not the most popular people. Unfortunately, neurotic people experience emotional instability at a higher rate than their counterparts. They tend to experience higher rates of anxiety and irritability and are known to be reactive and easily excitable.
Others tend view them as insecure and unstable.
Due to their emotional instability, neurotic people seek acceptance from others by publishing a lot of pictures on social media. They also have been found to be less likely to post comments or updates that are controversial and stick only to posting pictures.
The Fundamentals of Personality
Did any of these personality traits speak to you? Then it is possible that you fall into one (or more) of these categories.
Personality is something that you develop at a young age and carry throughout your lifetime.
Often the personality traits you exhibit at the age of seven will carry into your adult life. Of course, you can work toward changing some of your personality traits that you are maybe not fond of through hard work and effort. But the best thing you can do for yourself is learn your personality traits and work toward building your strengths and strengthening your weaknesses.
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