As I am introducing my new Care4U program, I am breaking down the 6 categories of life balance into class sessions. The first is on Identity and Career. It is easier to find balance in that area when we understand our own temperament, and how to read them in others. I am teaching on the basic four, that date back to Hippocrates, and found a site that offers an easy test to give you a start. Most of the time, we are a combination of two, but usually can spot the dominant side. Based on my findings (which I have known for years but this site really makes it simplified)
Here are my results:
The Idealist (melancholic) Temperament

“Idealists pride themselves on being loving, kindhearted, and authentic” (AdvisorTeam.com).

The Idealist type prefers superiority and disprefers inferiority. The Idealist prefers:

Superiority.
Perfection.
Meaning.
Purpose.
Acceptance.
Approval.
Altruism.
Aesthetics.
Accomplishment.
Accuracy.
Completion.
Culmination.
Faultlessness.
Improvement.
Intimacy.
Self-actualization.
Social justice.

David Keirsey, In Please Understand Me (1984), he defined one group as the Idealist temperament:

Idealists want to search for Self, to become themselves, to have a goal, a purpose in life, to be self-actualized, to be and become real, to be what they are meant to be and to have an identity which is uniquely theirs, to become self-actualized into a perfect whole and to have an identity which is perfectly unique, to have meaning, to have their significance appreciated, or at the very least, recognized as existing, to have integrity, that is unity, with no facade, no mask, no pretense, no sham, no playing of roles, to be genuine, to communicate authentically, to be in harmony with the inner experiences of self, to avoid a life of bad faith, to live a life of significance, making a difference in the world, to experience life as a drama, to be sensitive to the subtle gestures and metaphoric behavior in relationships, to help others become kinder, warmer, and more loving human beings, to reform the world, to romanticize their experiences, their lives, and the experiences and lives of others (Keirsey, 1984, pp. 57-66; cf., Heineman (NF)).

Areas of interest: Acting, Arts & Humanities , Education, Horror (not), Idealism, Issues and Cause, Journalism, Language, Linguistics, Literature, Mental_Health, Music, Mystery, Mysticism, Mythology and Folklore, New Age, Personal Growth, Philanthropy, Religion and Spirituality, Social Science, Teaching, Theater, Theology, Writing

achieving a goal, actors, actresses, actualizing potential, Apollo, attitudes, awareness, bearer of truth, becoming a person, becoming oneself, biographers, brings out the best in others, clinical psychology, communicating with people, communications media, counseling psychology, creative efforts, cultivating human potential, dedicated to helping others, desire for self-actualization, devoted to a cause, divinity, dramatists, encounter groups, gestalt group, greater intensity in relationships, guilt, having a goal, having a purpose,

And here is the site.

I’d say he got me right.

I am looking forward to sharing more on this in the new class. Follow Life’s Journey for a calendar of classes.

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 27th, 2010 at 6:12 pm and is filed under personal growth, values. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.