I’m in my third day of freelancing and truth be told, I’m feeling scattered.

So many ideas tumble around in my head that I need to make sense of them. In my home office, I’ve stuck “Magic Whiteboard” on the walls and as the ideas come to me, I grab the coloured markers and scribble them down. One day I hope my gobbledygook actually makes sense to me or someone but I’m fast coming to the conclusion that I need to ‘package it all up’ somehow and start deriving an income from it.  At the same time, *sigh* it’s just so tedious because no sooner as I think of one idea and how to make it happen, I’m onto the next.

In the last few months, I have been doing lots of reflection and revisited my old personality and psychology reports stored in my filing cabinet to seek out that elusive answer to the question “Why am I the way I am?”

I found old MBTI reports, Learning Skills Inventory, Leadership Style reports…. Discarded battery of tests that attempted to define the way I thought, acted and behaved.

Dare I say it even found an Astrology chart there in the mix.  I think because my Moon is in Aries and I have the Sun somewhere shining where it’s not supposed to be is the closest to explaining who I am.

It’s been amusing to read and recall the results but I wonder if I did them today, would the results be the same?

It seems that every job I’ve had in my career involved a team day where we were subjected to some kind of personality, individual or team test to assess our suitability, fit and alignment into the organisation or the team.  After the tests were completed, we were segregated into groups: the extroverts or the introverts; the big thinkers or the detailers; abstract or concrete – and then advised on how we could best work together.

Last year, I viewed a video from Sally Hogshead, The Fascination Advantage from the Great Work MBA and as part of the package, she provided access to her Fascination report.

If you want to read more about this then check out her website: How to Fascinate.

All the other tests I have done are all about how I view the world but this one is how the world sees you – how you fascinate the world.

But of course, I give anything a go – so I did the test.

After answering some questions, it took me into a members only site that gave me access to my report.  The report outlined my”Archetype” which is how the world sees me; and my Primary and Secondary advantages which are my effective mode of communication with others.

You can see the Trigger chart below.

The Trigger Chart by Sally Hogshead – now why couldn’t I have been “The Rockstar?” or “The Maestro?” or even “The Secret Weapon!”

My primary and secondary advantages were Innovation and Prestige – which according to the chart above makes me a….Trendsetter!

No – definitely not a fashion trendsetter….

Now for someone who has never set trends in her life (never wore knickerbockers when they were the rage in the late 70’s; still wear clothes from years ago; play music on a reel-to-reel player because I like the tactile nature of pushing buttons and spinning reels; updating the old Nokia phone to iPhone; still loves knitting…) you can see how surprising this was to me.

I read the report and it had me described as “Cutting Edge, Elite and Progressive” and together with the advantages of Innovation and Prestige, she explained that I’m the type of person who “sees where things are going and shows the rest of us how to get there.”

The report also mentioned that I use spontaneity and wit, I embrace opportunity for change and encourage cutting edge thinking and innovation but that I also encourage others to go down this path too.

My secondary advantage is Prestige which means that I have higher standards (alas), aware of all the details (sigh) and strive to add value in whatever I do.  With a strong will and determination, when both the Innovation and Prestige is combined I have the unique advantage to be able to identify things that others haven’t considered yet because I can see what’s down the line and see what’s coming.  When things become familiar, I start to reinvent them (true – I get bored easily. I think it’s because my Moon is in Aries; and Venus in some such).

The report also mentions your ‘Dormant’ advantages and it’s not one I will go in here because that would be revealing my weakness! Suffice to say that it resonated with me and explained why I felt exhausted and drained in situations where this particular communication method was being played out.

So what’s it all mean?

Really like any test, it’s an opportunity to just be aware of your key drivers, motivators and influence.  I don’t believe that any test will truly capture everything about you because we are all individuals with different thoughts, ideals, goals, values and cultures. Some of this report doesn’t sit well with me because I have preconceived notions of trend setters being fearless risk takers and visionaries but at the same time, I also have doubts, questions, issues and concerns like everyone else.

The report also provides a ‘one minute coaching’ snippet that how to get through my ideas to others so that it adds values.  I like this coaching tip because it’s a conclusion I came to myself but that I have to remind myself to continue to do.  If anything, it helps me in my own thinking and context around what it is I’m trying to achieve and why.

I recall this being mentioned in my performance coaching sessions with previous managers. Closer to home –  in my husband’s words  – “You’ve just had this conversation with me in your head haven’t you? You’re two steps ahead in the conversation we’re having right now!” My response to him: Keep Up!

So if this is of interest to you, I recommend Sally Hogshead book Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers of Persuasion and Captivation. 

Please Note:

I have not received any payment or endorsements to promote the report, book or company in my blog post.