Thursday, February 19, 2009

An inside look at Jenn, PhD

A while ago there was a series of memes with personality tests... I finally decided to procrastinate long enough and do one. I have to be honest that it's a bit scary to read... quite a bit is true. But what happens if you don't like the traits you have? Can you change your personality? How much of "personality" is circumstantial? I think different environments bring out different aspects of a person's personalities, so I'm hoping I can change... What do you think?

For anyone interested here's what Signal Patterns told me about me (my comments in italics):

Your Results You are Passionate, Rash, and Volatile.
More About You: Discover the top 10 traits out of 90 that uniquely describe you
Passionate
You are in touch with your emotions, and sometimes you react before you think. The good news: you don't tamp down your feelings. The bad news: you sometimes say or do things that you later wish you could take back.

I really wish I could change this and I hate that it's the first trait!

You do not live your life on an even keel; you do not go for long periods without experiencing some mood swings.

Rash

You get excited easily, allow yourself to react without censoring your feelings, and sometimes blurt out the first thing that comes to mind.

And this is the second trait?! Aw, man, I'm doomed!

You generally don't consider what you're about to say before you open your mouth to speak.

This I actually have to kind of disagree with, usually the problem is I think too much for too long without saying something and then it explodes out without thinking...

Volatile

You go with the flow when it comes to your emotions. Whether you're happy or sad, you show it, and when something upsets you, or you're feeling stressed out, those around you will know it right away.

Does anyone else get the feeling I'm an emotional wreck waiting to happen?! Maybe I'm worse off than I thought?

You are not necessarily the one person in any group who can be depended on to stay calm, cool, and collected in a crisis; you aren't known for keeping your emotions under wraps.

Introspective

You like your own company; you're a very interesting person. Tracking your own mental processes, knowing what you're thinking and why you do what you do, is important to you. Often, what's going on in your mind is more compelling than what's going on outside.

You are not someone who is constantly looking to be among a group of friends; you never feel bored when you are by yourself.

For the most part, those with a high score on the "introspective" trait enjoy reading, taking long walks, learning new things, and other solitary activities.

See the last part of this one doesn't sound so bad... I do like all those things, but I like being with other people too!

Aesthetic

You appreciate art, beauty, and design; you know that they are not superficial but absolutely crucial to living the good life. You have good taste, and you're proud of it.

As long as they're not talking about my clothes/shoes/beauty asthetic taste. Maybe I like and appreciate them, but I'm definitely not good at applying it to myself!

You don't think it's pretentious to be moved by art and beauty. You're not one of those who believe it doesn't matter what something looks like as long as it does its job.

I DO like pretty things....

Those with a high score on the "aesthetic" trait are often employed in literary or artistic professions, enjoy domestic activities — doing things around the house — and are enthusiastic about the arts, reading, and travel.

Well, except for the employment part I guess... but I've often felt I don't belong here in this profession.

Understanding

You are willing to take the time to find out what's going on with other people, especially if they're in distress. You're a good listener, you don't criticize, and you offer unbiased, respectful, honest advice when it's requested.

You don't feel the need to impose your standards on others or say things that, even though true, cause pain.

With a high score on the "understanding" trait, it is likely that you are enthusiastic about charitable work, helping others, and making the world a better place.

I'd like to be more like this... I find it rather conflicting that this trait comes out together with some of the others above...

Cautious

You very rarely make a move without first considering the pros and cons and, therefore, rarely do anything foolish or extravagant.

...or much of anything at all...

You are not rash; you almost never act before you think and, therefore, rarely end up doing things you later regret.

Except of course for the whole first several traits... see? Conflicting!

Stressed Out

That's a personality trait? Sheesh!

You often feel that there's too much on your plate, that you don't have the strength to deal with the bad hand you've been dealt, or that you're going to lose it if you have to deal with one more problem.

hahahaha, duh! That's the understatement of the year

You don't always bounce back quickly from adversity; sometimes when you get bad news it can hang over you for a long time.

I think that's been especially true during my years at grad school

Curious

You like to get to the bottom of things. You're not content knowing what someone did; you want to know why they did it.

You don't simply take things as they are and move on; you're not content skimming along on the surface; you don't feel you're wasting time by digging for the meaning of things.

yes! and yes!

Scrupulous

You are an honest, fair person. You don't lie or cheat to get ahead. You treat others with respect and hope for the same in return.

You do not feel that you are above the rules that everyone else follows; you are definitely not willing to do whatever it takes to get ahead.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I also don't think I'm cut out to do this science thing...

2 comments:

  1. Well, the last several traits seem to indicate that you're a good match for this science thing. Curiosity is an excellent trait to have as a scientist. I'm now curious as to what my results would be...

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  2. Oooh try it, it's kind of interesting... it only took about 10 minutes I think. I think I'll try it again another day and see if it changes at all

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