“Labels are for filing, labels are for clothing, labels are not for people” ~ Martina Navratilova
In our quest to understand ourselves we are often drawn to all sorts of frivolous games, quizzes and questionnaires to explain who we are. These approaches attempt to reduce the complexity of human behaviour to a label. In many cases the label acts like a metaphor comparing us to an animal, a car, a book, etc…
What if there were a better way to gain this understanding?
The labelling problem
When we label people we often label them as their behaviour. But a working premise is that people are not their behaviour, they are infinitely more than that! Behaviour takes place in a context and the meaning of all behaviour is dependent on that context. Some people love their labels because it gives them an excuse for inexcusable behaviour. Others hate labels. They feel disappointed in themselves and, if they accept the label, limited for life.
If you’ve ever been given a derogatory label you’ll know the feeling!
Confusing labels
We often confuse our labels with our behaviour when we describe what we do as who we are. When we say “I’m an engineer” what we really want to do is describe what we do. However, a label by its nature freezes what we do in time and space and this can be extremely limiting. Many engineers are also fathers, mothers, musicians, teachers, sports coaches. They are infinitely more than one label.
Are you a warrior lover?
So too with psychometric tests and assessments that label people with things such as combinations of letters or colours or terms such as “warrior”, “lover”, “jester”, etc… Most of these labelling approaches are derived from Carl Jung’s work on Archetypes, which in turn were derived from his interest in the Tarot cards.
There’s a better way…
A more useful way is to describe behavioural tendencies in terms of intrinsic motivators and preferences such as: tasks, working environment, interests, interpersonal relationships. This way you get a more meaningful insight into an individual without limiting their potential to develop and grow.
Since I started working with Harrison Assessments Talent Solutions (HATS) I have witnessed people gain a greater understanding of themselves and make significant strides in their own growth and development. Test HATS for yourself for FREE today.
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