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A while back Jason Drohn wrote a nice piece on the elemental character traits you must possess or develop in order to build a successful business. He combined two concepts of his own with three ideas from Seth Godin. Then I added a minor contribution of my own to create a nice even six.

They laid out like this:

1. The ability to abandon a plan (Godin).
2. The confidence to do the right thing (Godin).
3. The capacity to believe in other people (Godin).
4. The ability to create a vision (Drohn).
5. The ability to build a dream (Drohn).
6. The drive to keep moving forward, not matter what (Adkins).

Afterwards I had a lot of fun changing lenses to see how each of these would look to the varying temperaments. Here is a brief review of the concepts.

Choleric have a very difficult time abandoning plans, because they are typically the one who came up with the plan. They have made such an emotional investment, cutting losses is not an attractive proposition. In addition they are such driven people that developing a lot of confidence in others is also alien.

The capacity to believe in others is there, as long as the choleric selected those persons in the first place. In addition creating a dream and an executable vision is the bread and butter of the control driven choleric and they will excel in this realm. Also, the Choleric has an inborn ability to continue to drive forward toward a goal regardless of pitfalls and obstacles.

Sanguines have no difficulty in abandoning a plan. This is especially true if something new presents itself to occupy them. They definitely have the confidence to do the right thing. This confidence will boost even further if an audience is available to appreciate the sanguine is doing the right thing.

Cultivating a belief in the ability of others is a challenge for the sanguine not because they don’t think well of others but because they rarely think of others at all.

Creating vision, building dreams  and moving forward are tailor made skills for the charismatic sanguine who is always looking for the next great thing anyway.

The Melancholic will be able to abandon plans, have confidence in others and build great dreams with out difficulty because these things make no great drain on the limited energy reserves of the Melancholic.

Doing the right thing, building an executable vision and continuing to move forward are traits which require great discipline on the part of the Melancholic.  But, they can, if planned efficiently be done.

Phlegmatics are natural born supporters and once they have the big picture are proficient at executing all six of the prerequisite steps. Give a Phlegmatic a plan and they will execute it in a casual sincere way that brings a feeling of security to all involved.

The Supine will have difficulty abandoning a plan if someone they respect created that plan. Their fierce loyalty gives them pause at such junctures. They can whole heatedly invest their faith in doing the right thing and believing in others with whom they work. The Supine will go to great lengths to advance the dream and vision but they will feel more comfortable borrowing these elements from another in whom they believe than in generating their own. They will continue to move doggedly forward as long and the cause they serve continues to be a worthy one.

These are my views and I hope they serve you well.

Money is nice, but it won’t make you happy. I once met an extremely wealthy man name Kenny Stewart. Kenny had built a tremendous fortune in the MLM industry. He focused on the Amway plan and built an organization that brought him millions in residual revenue every year.

When he started with the organization he was a bankrupt building contractor.

Kenny was living the dream. Several big beautiful houses, motor coaches, cars, fabulous vacations the whole nine yards. At the time I met Ken he was in the midst of a divorce. Although, he was too much of a gentleman to speak in detail about his personal life he did make one statement that has stayed with me through the years. “Money can’t fix everything.”

Even though Stewart was making an obscene amount of money he could not reconcile his conscience to what he viewed as the inappropriate requirements for using the Business Support Materials (BSM’S) in the organization he had built.

What it amounts to is that we sometimes sabotage our own potential for achieving wealth.  And, we do so in such a subtle manner that we may actually delude ourselves into thinking we are working toward achieving wealth.

First, we may take on a job, contract, or position which provides a higher salary, because it provides a higher salary. This is a mistake regardless of your underlying temperament.

If we commit ourselves to something that we do not enjoy doing, every minute we put into it will be resented. If we are not intensely diligent we may inadvertently take passive aggressive actions which will undermine our efforts.

On the other hand, there are times in which we must take on the less pleasant tasks on a temporary basis in order to achieve our ultimate goals. The key being to acknowledge they are temporary and put a clock on their completion.

Based on the underlying needs of your fundamental Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholic, Phlegmatic or Supine temperament you must be alert for the following negative self defeating reactions and be prepared to control them.

Sanguine.

You may find yourself become the “loud talker”, speeding haphazardly through tasks and agreeing to less than productive actions simply to get it over-with.

Choleric.

You must be ever vigilant to avoid yelling, blowing up, bullying, throwing tantrums, taking pot shots, and displaying arrogance with faced with unpreferred necessities.

Melancholic.

You may find yourself becoming silent, fleeing, avoiding issues, withdrawing or becoming overly autocratic as you try to emotionally distance yourself.

Phlegmatic.

You may submit to undesired solutions, accommodate when you shouldn’t, gunny sack or ambush your colleagues, and develop a very passive aggressive nature.

Supine.

You may find that you sublimate all of your desires to the purpose of serving the greater good to such a degree that your own desires are never known, let alone acknowledged. This can create intense feelings of resentment.

The next post will be a compilation of this series of articles and tips.

Don’t despair if you are not “gifted.”

Being overly gifted can be a detractor. Gifted people get annoyed when others don’t see things that to them seem completely obvious and simple.

In fact, a brilliant idea is neither necessary nor sufficient for a successful business. Look at Microsoft, it has never had a brilliant idea in its history. 

Implement these three steps.

Do things other people are afraid of.

Most people are afraid of public performance. Make it a point to hone your public persona. Volunteer to speak whenever there is an opportunity. Rotary clubs, Toast Masters, Women’s Clubs are all actively seeking speakers to full up their agenda. The topics are a broad as the sea. The very charters of many of these groups are founded on the importance of examining new ideas and perspectives.

An average guy is reluctant to contact a successful businessman to present him an idea he believes in. On the other hand, no qualms are experienced when trying to hire the best person to do a job. Go ahead and make the contact. Tell him what you’re doing up front. Truly successful people are willing to contribute to the success of others.

Make some mistakes.

If you are not prepared to go wrong, there is no way you will learn the way to go right. Fall, learn, rise and keep moving forward.

Think about it this way, businesses with fewer than 20 employees have only a 37% chance of surviving four years in business and only a 9% chance of surviving  10 years (Dunn and Bradstreet, 1998).  Is that bad? Shoot no! If you look at the numbers you see you have 37% chance of success. Those are pretty darn good odds. And if you take the time to address some of the common trip wires, you’ll have an even greater chance of success.

Tripwires.

1. insufficient operating capital
2. lack of realistic planning
3. lack of business management skills
4. unaware of ordinances and regulations
5. delay in collecting accounts receivable
6. insufficient money for start-up costs
7. negative cash flow
8. unpredictable extraordinary circumstances
9. misconception of the actual amount of work required
10. corrupt or unethical behavior
11. dishonest employees
12. lazy employees

Remember, failing is the natural ingredient of personal growth. It will make you respect yourself because you will experience the hardships for growth.

The reality is, experiencing one business failure greatly increases your chances of a subsequent success.

Be sociable.

People will decide of your success or failure. Never underestimate the role of social networks, being seen, and talking to people. Wealth is in hands of human beings, and you need to communicate with people on a personal level all the time.

There is a person behind every dollar spent on this planet. 

Treat people with respect.  

Share a kind word with people around you.

Sanguine Temperament.

The struggle area for you is in taking the time to carefully address each of the tripwire issue in advance. But, if you tell yourself this is the price for getting to the fun of achieving wealth you will be able to navigate it well.

Choleric Temperament.

The only difficult area that you may encounter on this series of tips is your aversion to mistakes. The key is to remember you are the control factor which determines whether, or which component was a mistake. Keep your desire to push through in check long enough to analyze and learn from the circumstances.

Melancholic Temperament.

This wealth key is custom made for you. Your deliberate, dependable, analytical nature is perfect for successfully implementing this key.

Phlegmatic Temperament.

You target area is to take in stride the necessity to open yourself up to failure without the security of having evenly distributed risk. View the out of the box thinking as necessary to establish a greater cosmic order.

Supine Temperament.

All of the elements of this key are designed to create success of the mission. You are willing to do what it takes to achieve success for the greater good. Any of the areas of this key are designed to bring about that greater good.

Don’t be afraid to be an individualist.

It is a healthy exercise to ask yourself the same question on a regular basis. Why do we do it this way?

Let us take your promotional information.

People go online to search for information relevant to their need. When I do keyword research I see what people are looking for when they find my business and website. For example, a large number of visitors to Elemental Truths find their way here as the result of a search engine query on temperament analysis, or by searching for one of the specific temperament types Choleric, Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Melancholic, or Supine. 

Your keyword research will show you exactly which problem your market is trying to solve and the specific phrases they’re using to describe it.

You have to show visitors your site offers a different solution to their problem. That’s why I need  large, easy-to-read, clearly defined headline sat the top of my site. I want it to be the first thing people see when they arrive at my site, and I want it to present their problem and promise a solution in a unique way.

Choleric Temperament.

Build upon your high level of control and decisiveness. Emphasize your get it done attitude. Capitalize on your resistance to intimidation in difficult situations

Sanguine Temperament.

Emphasize how fun your solutions are. Be certain to display your creative, charismatic, energetic strengths. Buil upon your talents as an influential communicator.

Melancholic Temperament.

Capitalize on your attentiveness to details and your systematic problem solving techniques. Make certain to advertise the benefits of your consistent, well-prepared approach. You are always accurate, fast, precise and organized. Sell it.

Phlegmatic Temperament.

Build your message around your loyalty to others. You are tailor made for the team player, steadfast, patient needs of the developing business community. If anyone can shepherd others into a harmonious working solution it is you.

Supine Temperament.

Advertise your ability to provide an accurate analysis of the current social situations that may be impacting your client. You have the ability to take an identified problem and work on it independently until you find a solution. This is a highly marketable skill set.

Each temperament type brings unique perspective and should be expanded to its fullest potential.

If you have a plan and it gets rejected, adjust your plan and try again.

If you make an attempt at financial growth and is isn’t successful, try again.

Your temperament and approach to life determine most of the outcomes. Your personal financial situation is no different.

If you have a sequential, solid plan and implement it you will triumph over your personal finances.

We all struggle to balance our desire for short term gratification (spending) with our desire for long term gratification (long term return).

The person with clear financial objectives, works hard, saves a portion of earnings to meet specific objectives, eventually becomes wealthy.

The person with no clear objectives, can’t come up with $5000 in cash even if they are earning $80,000 per year.

Take the long-range view with your finances. Develop and maintain a positive, long range goals.

You must know specifically what you want to accomplish. Your drive must motivate you to consistent action.

Persistence moves you steadily towards your goals. This is particularly the case when they become hard to do.

Calvin Coolidge said: “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not: Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

Choleric Temperament.

Many cholerics find this technique trying. They are not frustrated because they don’t have the discipline to put off gratification. They are frustrated because this is a system that runs under its own momentum. They must restrain themselves from making unnecessary adjustments just for the sake of maintaining control.

Sanguine Temperament.

This tip will be a challenge for the supine. It has little to do with attention, entertaining the troops or the spotlight. It might be best to enlist the help of a kind phlegmatic or melancholic to help keep you on track.

Melancholic Temperament.

This is a strategy that you will be able to embrace. This stepwise strategy is custom made for the high expectations and standards of your temperament.

Phlegmatic Temperament.

Your low key, sure steady hand should do well with this strategy. Your nature of taking the ups and downs in stride are great strengths in this area.

Supine Temperament.

Since the supine prefers indirect behaviors rather than direct action, they sometimes have difficulty putting this plan into motion. They must be particularly cognizant that systematic plans are by nature up and down ventures. Temporary down turns are merely part of the overall growth and are not personal attacks on the individual.

In most circumstances the only difference between the employee and the owner of the company is the ability to tolerate risk. On the other hand, there is a tremendous difference in taking risks and gambling your money away.

In 1988 Charles Givens wrote a book. The title of the book, Wealth Without Risk. Some of his strategy drew a lot of heat. They were decried by many as too simplistic and by others as containing self-contradictory advice. For example one of his strategies stated your shouldn’t invest in vacant land. Then 39 strategies later he encourages placing your IRA or Keogh money in vacant land.

For many that was a completely contradictory statement. To me, it simply said, neither investment was good, but land was the lesser of the two evils.

When Givens died in 1998 he had structured his estate in such a manner as to preclude any of the litigators who had sought to attach his wealth from getting much of it at all.

However, the lesson learned from Givens is not about following the advice he offered. The lesson to be learned is about risk taking.

Charles Givens (love him or hate him) all but singlehandedly created a new market. The infomercial.

He began by putting together a string of video interviews he had done with several news shows and developed them into a totally new concept. That is the epitome of risk taking.

It may be the secret to your tolerance level for risk is to find the risk which matches your temperament type.

Sanguine Temperament.

Take risks that allow flexibility, capitalize on enthusiasm, use demonstrations, are people oriented and create an opportunity to be the center of attention.

Choleric Temperament.

Take risks that capitalize on the ability to be decisive, being self confident, provides high levels of control, in a get to the point, task oriented manner.

Melancholic Temperament.

Take risks that are designed for the long haul pay off. Acceptable risks are those that can be minimized by your innate ability to plan, organize and enhance with step by step, logical facts and structure.

Phlegmatic Temperament.

Take risks that are evenly shouldered among all stakeholders. Build upon like minded relationships with those who also place high value on loyalty and team success.

Supine Temperament.

Take risks that invest in your belief in others. You have an inborn ability to see the high potential in those around you. Capitalize on this by providing the support network those worthy of your confidence deserve. But, be certain to have provided an agreed upon return your investment of support in advance.

Jason Drohn wrote an excellent piece last week that examined the key elements to achieving small business success. In his article he listed several characteristics identified by marketing guru Seth Godin and added a couple of items of his own. Inspired by Jason’s work I, in turn, wrote an article reviewing both the concepts of Jason and Seth.

You see, this is one of the beauties of the information age. We have access to the concepts of giants which we can quickly turn to our own will and build upon. It is, in truth, a very exciting age to be alive.

I am going to attempt such a construction here.

Jason and Seth have listed the frame, I will now add my view of the elements of construction.

In order to build this is a logical and sequential manner, I will publish each segment as an installment which builds upon its predecessor.

I was recently presenting at a conference on conflict resolution when on a break I heard a very successful entrepreneur make the following statement.

It beats me how anybody can avoid getting rich in this country. More people than ever before are making fortunes. In fact, those who can stomach the requirements are reaching higher financial peaks than any in the history of this nation.

If people would just stop watching the other guy and put in the work, they would be amazed at the results.

Hard Work.

I know what your thinking. “I do work hard, and I’m not wealthy!”

I’m sure you do work hard. But, who do you work hard for? And what do you work hard doing?

Those who have a regular job working hard for someone else are quite probably amassing wealth. Just not for them. The wealth amassed goes to whoever owns the business they are working for.

The key is to continue to work hard. But, to change the beneficiary of that hard work from someone else to yourself.

Remember to do what you can to invest your hard work in and area in which your temperament naturally leads you toward your success.

Sanguine Temperament.

Continue to work hard and building entertaining situations and relationships. But, do so in such a way as to shepherd the ultimate outcomes of these interaction are productive or profitable, rather than frivolous.

Melancholic Temperament.

Continue to work in a way that conserves your energy reserves and builds in payback and residual benefits.

Phlegmatic Temperament.

Plan out your work effort so that you can easily track the benefits to your pursuits.

Chloeric Temperament.

Lead others in the direction for the greater good of all, yourself included.

Supine Temperament.

As the epitome of the servant leader you must take great care in selecting the causes you wish to support. Select those that meet your personal needs as well as being altruistically satisfying.

The most famous biblical sanguine is probably Peter. Peter was selfish, inconsistent and changeable but in the end he wrought great works by building three tabernacles.

The most obvious modern example of the sanguine would be the California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He has jumped from one endeavor to another ever seeking the next rush of excitement. Yet, like Peter, he seems to have the underlying quality of naive goodness about him.

To keep a Sanguine happy, or to remain happy if you are one yourself you need an understanding of the heartfelt desires and driving forces of the Sanguine temperament.

The Sanguine is an extremely social person who thrives on many surface relationships with many people. This person is always ready for the next social event, the next outing, the next road trip, anything that will get them into the company of many people.

At the party they are the center of attention. They make it their business to know and tell the funniest jokes. They talk and laugh the loudest and they wear the flashiest outfits.

1. He is a social person. He likes to be with people. He approaches a great many people and has a large number of surface relationships.
2. He is a strong motivator. When you need someone to inspire and bring about a sense of enthusiasm the Sanguine is your ideal choice.3. He is very active. In fact, Sanguines without enough to fully occupy them will slip into a heightened sense of stress.

4. He is communication oriented. He is so much so, that he becomes quickly frustrated and impatient with task-oriented jobs.

The Sanguine must feel he is appreciated and accepted. He is often drawn to those who have a serious philosophy which he feels will compensate for his impulsiveness and irresponsibility.

The Sanguine is very motivated by the promise of reward and not at all by the threat of punishment. However, the reward he craves is that of increased attention, acceptance and approval.

The Sanguine needs.

Inclusion – Demonstrates a tremendous need for association and social interaction initiated both by self and many others.

Control – Desires very little control over others and desires others to have very little control over them.

Affection – Expresses or demonstrates a great deal of affection and desires the same.

The Sanguine may not commit because he fears he may have to miss the next party or big event.

The Sanguine is a social person who likes to be with people. They are always ready for a new social encounter and have many surface relationships with the people they meet. Isolation and inactivity are two of the greatest stressors for the Sanguine.

Sanguines do not do well in task oriented professions but excel in communication focused fields. Primarily, these persons want approval and acceptance but may have no idea how to obtain it in an appropriate manner.

Sanguines must seek out career paths which meet their needs for high socialization and interactions.

They might consider:

teaching
coaching
choir director
sales
public relations
entertainment
human resources
marketing

In social situations the sanguine likes to interact with many people. The majority of their relationships are of the surface and casual nature. They are at constant risk of the questionable practice of adopting the behaviors and values of those they encounter in an effort to be popular.

The sanguine is always ready for the next social interaction, party or function. They are the first out the door and in the car, always ready to go, go, and go. They are often found to be the center of attention because they tell the most jokes, laugh the loudest and party the hardiest. When you encounter a person who “brightens up the room,” you are undoubtedly in the presence of a sanguine.

They are typically extremely optimistic and obsessed with having fun. They must remain constantly in action and on the move.

In the area of inclusion, the sanguine is extremely impulsive. In their desire to be included by all, they often jump in before thinking things through. Their desire to be in on the fun is almost manic in its intensity.

They have many desirable qualities. They are friendly, outgoing, able to motivate others with their infectious good humor, extremely perceptive of relationship dynamics, warm and they always see the glass as half full.

Less desirable tendencies are the flip side of this coin. Often they are known for incessant and often trivial chatter. The can be extremely impulsive. There burning desire to be in on the latest thing can cause them to be highly irresponsible. Basically, if it isn’t fun, they aren’t interested. Females of this temperament often fall into the “party girl” trap. Males often find themselves unable to maintain lasting relationships.

In the are of control a sanguine does not typically do well. Their intense need for self indulgent activities makes being successful in situations that require a lot of discipline, restraint or control extremely unlikely. They typically have an initial brilliant flash of leadership, thriving on the attention, but they burn out very quickly under the restraint and control one is required to demonstrate as an effective leader. Once spent, they may take months or even years to regenerate.

In affection the sanguine is the most lovable of the temperaments. They are extremely affectionate toward others and have an unquenchable need to be loved. Unfortunately, if this intense need for constant reassurance goes unmet the sanguine can be totally emotionally devastated.

Because of their tendency to always look on the bright side, if a sanguine seeks counseling help it is probably because someone forced them to because of their horribly irresponsible behavior.

Anyone trying to help a sanguine should keep the following in mind:

1. be certain to have evaluated their temperament in control, affection and inclusion before beginning to work with them.

2. Compile a complete social history and background.

3. Explain to the sanguine why they behave as they do in the key areas. Try to do this in the presence of those who care about them. This will go a long way toward assuaging the guilt and blame issues that are undoubtedly present.

4. Work through all their temperament needs and how they can be met in a positive manner.

5. Address their needs singularly and make sure the sanguine has input into how to meet their needs in a positive manner.

If you interact with a sanguine you must maintain control of the flow or the sanguine will draw you off into more ‘fun’ social topics and leave the core issues un-addressed. The sanguine responds well to the carrot and not at all to the stick.

It is of utmost importance that serious interactions be brief. More than a quarter hour will overload their limited attention span. The sanguine responds well to one who presents as caring and personable. They seek a connection on the emotional level and don’t care at all about formal credentials and qualifications. Credibility will be evaluated solely on emotional credibility.

By Reg Adkins ©

Temperament should not be confused with personality. As you know, our personalities may change to fit the current social circumstances. Our temperament is the permanent underlying nature.

How a person demonstrates (expressive needs) these needs and responds (responsive needs) to how these needs are expressed upon them by others identifies their basic temperament types.

There are five basic temperament types (Dr. Arno added Supine when confronted with a temperament which was valid in and of itself but did not fully meet the qualifiers for any of the othe four) and they are:

The Melancholy

Inclusion - Low need for socialization, low response to need for socialization in others.

Control – Desire very little control over others, desire very little control over them by others.

Affection – Demonstrate very little love or affection, desire very little love and affection from others.

The Choleric

Inclusion – Desire to self initiate a great deal of social interaction, desire very little interaction initiated by others.

Control – Express the need for a great deal of control over others, desire very little or no control over their lives by others.

Affection – Express a high need for love and affection and approval, but accept it only on their own terms.

The Sanguine

Inclusion – Demonstrates a tremendous need for association and social interaction initiated both by self and many others.

Control – Desires very little control over others and desires others to have very little control over them.

Affection – Expresses or demonstrates a great deal of affection and desires the same.

The Supine (Added by Dr. Arno)

Inclusion – Expresses very little need to initiate association or socialization, but has a high need to be approached by many people for association and socialization.

Control – Shows very little need for control over the lives of others, desire a great deal of control over their lives by others.

Affection – Expresses very little love or affection for others, but desires others to express a great deal of love and affection toward them.

The Phlegmatic

Inclusion – Initiates only a moderate amount of associations and socializations, desires others to initiate only a moderate amount of association and socialization.

Control – Demonstrates a moderate amount of control over the lives of others, desires others to have only a moderate amount of control in their lives.

Affection – Express a moderate amount of affection toward others, desires only a moderate amount of affection is demonstrated toward them.

The next article will explore one of these temperaments and how to effectively assist, interact with and educate them more specifically.

By Reg Adkins ©