Summer blogs

Fourth Monday in and it's my birthday blog today! Hard to believe I've been working in the Students' Union for nearly a month now, but on the other hand I've learned a lot since I first walked into the Welfare Office! Last week I spent in Athlone Institute of Technology with the rest of the sabbatical team in various issues. My modules centered on casework, counseling and running effective campaigns, and I must say I feel all the stronger after doing it. Students' Union Training is one of the more vital functions that Union of Students in Ireland provide, and even offers a great networking space, I know if I'm having a bad day I can ring Welfare Officers around the country who are going through the exact same thing and are ready to listen. It all comes down to the PleaseTalk.org message that talking is a sign of strength!

Ok last time I wrote a blog I promised I'd do a personality test on each of the sabbats. Ok before I begin, I did a prediction of what each of their personalities would be and wrote them down on a piece of paper and gave it to Shane. I then got each of them to take the test which consisted of 60 questions and saved their results. I successfully predicted mine, Shane's and Heffo's, but was off for Breslin's and Guiney's (those two are just unpredictable). The results are divided into an enneagram of 9 personalities that are divided into three sections that have different base drives: with Heffo laying in the ‘instinct' section, Comer and Guiney in the ‘thinking' section and Breslin and myself in the ‘feeling' section.

I'll start off with my own. Type 2 "The Helper", of the personalities that are driven by feeling section. (I'll write in the third person now, it's wired writing about myself :P) This personality is one of the most emotionally expressive, and one of the most focused on human relationships. At their best, "Helpers" bring a special interpersonal touch to almost everything they do, empowering others with their desire to make others feel special, important, and loved for simply being themselves. This personality type has a preoccupation with the needs of others. (I think it's pretty apparent why I ended up as Welfare Officer)

Second up is Breslin: Type 3 "The Motivator", another personality driven by feeling. She is competitive, and places great value on winning and achieving. Her personality type projects qualities that make a leader: drive, energy, and success. Her personality type leads by knowing what their followers want. The 3 personality type often have a "cool" attitude to go along with their accomplishments - they know what is "hot" and what is not, this contributes to the 3's reputation for being excellent salesperson who can win over the most reluctant audience. Because they place high value on affirmation from others, they may be very adept at reading subtle cues in others, using this information to quickly tailor their message to their audience. (Clearly the welfare gang in the corridor was always going to be naturally "feeling" personalities)

Now onto Comer. Shane is a Type 5, "The Thinker" personality type that identifies strongly with their thoughts. To others, 5s are known for their sharp intellect. 5 personality types are intensely interested in explaining the world and predicting what it will do next. This derives partly from scientific curiosity (this is Shane all over). The "five" personality type brings a strong desire to investigate, observe, and understand an issue deeply and provocatively. (This is always apparent when he's dissecting policy or planning an information campaign, Shane leaves no aspect unplanned or un-researched!)

Next stop Guiney: Personality type 7, AKA "The Enthusiast". Another thinking based personality, but focus their thoughts on seeking experience, pursuing plans, dreams, and visions. This comes across in the way Paddy exudes a youthful spirit, ready to engage with anyone in any topic and his ability to connect with anyone of any age (I often have to drag him off trains and buses when he gets engrossed in talking to randomers..) One quality of Paddy's personality type is to be perceived as lucky, as they are unusually perceptive of opportunities and quick to grab them. Sevens are good problem solvers in a pinch, improvising clever solutions out of whatever is at hand. Even though their work style seems rather chaotic they are often extremely prolific and productive.

And last and most certainly not least, Heffo: personality type 8: "The Protector" and is an instinct based personality (the only one in our team!). This personality can be assertive, they like to speak their minds bluntly, and respect others who do the same. They need a high degree of autonomy; they often show an unmistakable defiant streak. They are often shrewd in using circumstances to their material advantage. Heffo is one of the best negotiators I've ever met, and it stems from the fact his personality is based around analyzing people sub-consciously and going with this "gut-feeling", and then effectively communicating across his needs in meetings. This personality does show a softer side amongst friends, where their strength is used not to dominate, but to protect. (I've witnessed this on nights out as Heffo keeps an eye on us!) The "Eight" personality types are the prototypical "father figures".

I hope you enjoyed my little psycho analysis.. These are just my own opinions etc.

Find more information on the tests here:

http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/intro.asp

And do one for yourself here: http://similarminds.com/test.html

But remember, never read too much into them. They can help you understand some aspects of how you work and think but aren't the be all/end all. Tweet me @micgalla if you've any questions about it.

Till next week,

Mícheál