This post is part 2 of a 5 part series on my “Hedgehog Concept.” Previously I discussed my thoughts and what I felt characterized my more positive attributes. I recommend reading my findings and then striving to determine your own Hedgehog Concept.

Looking back at my analysis and knowing what I know now (about how people see me) I’m surprised by my inability to accurately describe myself. As we’ve recently learned, it’s important to “know thyself.” I’ve found tools like FIRO-B and LIFO to be extremely telling and very important to my development. Yet, somehow I underestimated my abilities in some areas. Exercises like this paper are extremely valuable because they offer concrete evidence to support claims against your personality. Coincidently I spoke with my Dad on this subject. He actually admitted to completing a survey much like this every year.

I spent a lot of time looking at the feedback I had received. Of the eleven responders, the breakdown consisted of:

  • 1 from each of my parents,
  • 3 from close friends met through Alpha Kappa Psi (business fraternity),
  • 2 from friends met online (college students, professionals),
  • 1 from my ex-girlfriend (presently a best-friend),
  • 1 from a family friend (known since I was born),
  • 1 from a current employer, and
  • 1 from a co-worker

Everyone provided three examples of my most positive attributes. I then categorized the feedback into the following: “Conflict, Help, Smart”, “Leadership”, “Kind, Cheerful, Funny”, “Listener, Advice”, “Self-Motivated, Initiative”, “Organized, Efficient”, “Analytical, Writing”, and “Creative.”

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With these categories defined I started to sense some over-lap and find some patterns. For example, a lot of responses under “Helpful, Smart” were also relevant to “Leadership”. In addition, being self-motivated and a leader certainly requires organization. Being a good listener is also attributed to being kind. I looked at my responses again and noticed that they started to fit into broader categories just like the ones I had defined earlier. Interestingly enough, the results only seem to suggest a slight correlation between how I saw myself and how others did:

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But, I started to look deeper into the responses again. As mentioned, there is a good deal of overlap. My sense of leadership can be attributed to my ability to be helpful during conflicts. In many instances my advice has also been deemed helpful. The more I read through everyone’s comments the more I realized everything pointed to a bigger, overwhelming concept.

I went back through my data and I found that everything written matched my own personal perspective. Even though all of these responses were compiled from a variety of sources, they all pointed to the same three characteristics:

  • I am very helpful because, through initiative, I’ve learned a lot on my own and offer my resources and knowledge to others. I have a lot of unique technical skills but I’m also a “clever” person.
  • I’m a good leader because I can help people when there is conflict (through my friendly, understanding nature). In addition my self-motivation and organization are characteristic of my leadership style. I’m also friendly, funny and caring.
  • I am self-motivated and consciously take initiative in situations. I don’t require others’ guidance or input in order to determine what’s necessary. I have a strong work ethic and spend a lot of time seeking new opportunities and challenges.