My Inner Potato

My friend, Jordan, suggested that I take the “Big Five Personality Test” on our podcast the other day. It ranks you within five different traits based on responses to questions about your self perception. These are the traits:
Openness

Conscientiousness

Extroversion

Agreeableness

Neuroticism

There are plenty of other blogs that break down these concepts with more educated language than I could muster so feel free to seek those out. I won’t pretend to be a psychology expert but the quiz was interesting to me and I wanted to talk through my own results. Here’s my score:

I write and perform music, so scoring high on Openness and Extroversion weren’t all that surprising, but look at my neuroticism.

87.5%.

That’s kinda high.

I’ve always associated the term “neurotic” with the step-mom characters in Disney shows or the accountant types like Milton from Office Space. Is that me?

The site mentions that those scoring high in neuroticism tend to respond to things with high levels of emotion. Anger, depression, fear etc. I mean, I play emo music so…fair.

I’m curious now as to how other creative people might score. If you want to take the same test I did here’s: The Test. Feel free to post your results in the comments.

While this is perhaps more important than discovering what your inner potato is: A Real Buzzfeed Quiz (I’m a Home Fry), it’s definitely worth mentioning that these sorts of self-reflective metrics are just that: self-reflective. They represent only what you tell them, and if you happen to have a low opinion of yourself, they will reflect that. It’s worth looking into and absolutely has utility for those trying to better understand why they behave in certain ways, but if you don’t dig your results, understand that each and every one of us is in a constant state of flux. The best way to balance yourself within these metrics, according to Jordan Peterson is to take a bit from the opposite side of the spectrum you are strongest in.

For example: I’m super open so I could benefit from borrowing a bit from those scoring low in that area that are more routine and rules oriented. Those traits can help balance that neuroticism by better preparing me to handle the world as it comes, rather than as the flighty and easily distracted artist who doesn’t understand why taxes are important.

Your inner potato could possibly provide some similar insight. I don’t know, I’m not a doctor.

I hope that anyone taking these quizzes while locked inside their home for the fourth or fifth week on end is taking into account the mental toll that such isolation and interruption to routine can have on their own self-image. You’re doing great, and I dig all of you. And just remember, when you feel sad or stressed out, that maybe you just need to get in touch with your inner potato.