13 July 2021, Somewhere in the Metaverse - UplandDood (@Just1Dood)

Did you know that we have a time bomb inside each of us? The moment we are born, it starts ticking. No one knows when the time is up. It is morbid but that's the truth.

Either we can focus on this ticking time bomb or we can focus on the time at hand. If you don't believe in salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ, and the prospect of an eternity in the life after, I suggest you give it a thought. Why? Because when compared to eternity, it gives us a new perspective of our lives on earth. It is very short. Imagine if eternity is one day, then you'll treasure every microsecond that you have.

Well, this article is not about that. Somehow the minds work in a mysterious way (just as some people describe that God works in a mysterious way). My mind somehow drifted in that direction and being the obedient writer that I am, I let it flow. LOL.

Now, my challenge is to connect the dots. Let's see if I'll be successful in doing so.

I think, therefore I am

Or in Latin, Cogito, ergo sum. Until today, I still can't figure out why English-speaking people like to interject Latin in their writings. Incidentally, Cogito sounds like a nice puppy's name, don't you think?). Pardon my wandering mind again.

So, now that I have proven that I exist, there is a danger. Can I prove others exist? What a thought! Even if I do acknowledge other's existence, do I give a hoot? Do not be surprised. There are those whose ego is so big that, the vastness of space isn't big enough to contain it. I've met a few who came close to fitting that description.

I am, therefore I think

Would that mean it's Ergo sum, cogito? I'm just plain curious there as I'm no Latin expert. Do tell, if you are.

Once "I am" is out of the question, the next is logical one is "You are?" I'm now thinking if this is what it's meant by philosophy. Am I dabbling in philosophy now? I've no idea. But do tell, if you're a philosopher.

Since there is an "I am" and a "You are", the world is no longer revolving around me. There are others. If there are others, I need to find ways to get along. Don't you think that should be a priority? Okay, if you are the 'big ego' mentioned above, then this article is not for you. Go play far far away. But if you are like me and the majority, then yes, it is a priority. Because I say so and it's my article. If you disagree, you go write your own. I need to connect my dots. So, please don't spoil my narrative.

So, let me justify the heading by saying this: If I don't know how to get along with others, I'm then sabotaging myself - both professionally and personally. No man is an island and in order for me to be a valued human being, I need to get along very well with others.

Get along guide

There are many "I am & You are" get-along guides out there. Of course, one that I believe in and follow is the Bible. Believe me, this life manual is not easy to follow without grace and faith. But with grace and truth, it is a life-saver. It is my guide to being an enlightened human being. But this article is not about that.

This article is about other guides.

I will proceed to share with you one such guides. My first introduction to this goes back almost 20 years. Then, I re-discovered it about two or three years back. I have found that it is one of the simplest and easiest guides to understand. From my experience, it is very accurate. It has helped me understand myself and those around me much better.

Personality Plus

Personality Plus - How to Understand Others by Understanding Yourself is a book written by best-selling author Florence Littauer about personality types. It is so good that it's used for pre-marriage counseling. I like its simplicity. She'd broken down the personalities into 4 types.

I'll briefly go through each. To delve into each any deeper is beyond the scope of this article.

1. Sanguine

   1. This is the joker in any group. He or she is the life of a party. If you hear lots of laughter at a party, you'll find the Sanguine being the source.

   2. Traits of a Sanguine: Emotional; Influencing; Socializer; Expressive

2. Choleric

   1. This is usually the CEO of any organization. In an emergency or even at a party, you'll find this person taking charge, ordering, and directing others with specific tasks.

   2. Traits of a Choleric: Volitional; Dominance; Director; Driving

3. Melancholy

   1. In the above same organization, you'll probably find this person in the accounting department or the data analysis department. This person is methodical, analytical, and probably has tons of spreadsheets for everything imaginable.

   2. Traits: Rational; Cautious; Thinker; Analytical

4. Phlegmatic

   1. Again, in the above same organization, this will likely be the person in the Human Resource department. He or she is patient and a peacemaker. The phlegmatic is the best person to handle any conflicts in that organization.

   2. Traits: Personal; Steadiness; Relaxer: Amiable

The above is by no means enough information to glean from in order to get along with everybody. We're only scratching the surface. Each temperament has strengths and weaknesses and there are ways to understand, relate and get along with each personality type.

It is possible for you to take the test without having the book. But that's no reason not to get the book. Anyway, here's a link by a third party if you're interested to take the Personality Plus test. Do note that it's done by a third party and I'd noticed some typos in some questions. The good news is that these few typos won't impact your understanding of the question and answer.

Once you've taken the test and hit submit, you'll see the result of your dominant personality type followed by less dominant ones. Most, if not all of us are have a personality that is a mixture of two or more types. Generally, you will have a noticeably dominant type.

I highly recommend you get a copy of Personality Plus. You will need it in order to understand yourself better and know how to get along with others, especially loved ones. The copy I have is written more for the work environment and is called "Personality Puzzle - Piecing together the personalities in your workplace"

Dots Connected

In order for us to be successful in any and all areas of our lives, we need to realize that we can't do it alone. But in order to reach our success with others, we need to know how to get along. How do we do that? It started with understanding ourselves first, then seek to understand others.

I believe I have managed to connect the dots together enough to show that if we don't know ourselves well enough, it will be very tough and near impossible to know others. Why go through trial and error when it's been clearly laid out for us to learn?

Thank you for reading and I hope you will take the Personality Plus test and get a copy of the book.

It's time to stop sabotaging yourself.

Stay safe and see you in the next article.

Sources:

Header: Unsplash.com - Joshua Fuller

Image 1: Unsplash.com - Aron Visuals

Image 2: Unsplash.com - K. Mitch Hodge

Image 3 Unsplash.com -  Brett Jordan

Thank you again for dropping by. Have fun with English. Remember to share your experience in the comment section.

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