Go-getter. Over achiever. Aggressive. Competitive. Impatient. These are all adjectives that describe what characteristics a Type A personality should possess. I would definitely like to be two of these all day, every day. However, I do not feel that my world is that black and white. Type B is supposed to be a middle balance between the aggressor Type A and the apathetic Type C. I will say that I have met certain people that could fall under each one of these types, but I guess I am just more comfortable with a Type B personality.
In my gray world, I am passionate about some issues and topics, but not all. I can compete when it’s important enough for me to be the successor. I strive daily to be a better go-getter and I try to gain the virtue of ultimate patience, even when something is as trying as inconsiderate individuals. Then there are times where the scale is uneven and I resemble more of the Type A than the Type B or C, and vice versa. I know who I am. I know more than anyone how things affect me and how I react to them. And yet, my father will tell you that I am a hands down Type A personality through and through.
Anyone who has some sort of relationship with their parents, good or bad, knows that a parent will tell the child who he or she is as an individual, usually due to the fact that they raised this child. They could be completely right or they could be totally delusional or they could fall somewhere in between. Most of my friends have parents that fall somewhere in between where they know their son or daughter’s goodness and would go to bat for them in a second, however, they don’t know the things that really make their brain tick or their emotions heighten. Some parents have a wonderful grasp on who their child is deep within and could even predict what they would do in major life decisions. Unfortunately, some parents won’t let go of their own self projections and/ or jaded opinions of their child, even when it’s necessary to uphold any type of relationship with them.
Like my friends, my parents fall somewhere in between. However, my dad and I cannot get past the latter part of where his own self projections and jaded opinions blur the love and admiration part. It’s unfortunate, because I know my father loves me, and yet words really can be that double edged sword, which I feel he should know by now. My father is more of the Type A personality with a habit of procrastination. Due to the fact that my father and I have some things in common, he projects that I too am the same personality type. He is definitely competitive, especially when it’s about who has the floor when speaking. His patience level depends on what day you catch him on. When he has his mind set on something, watch out, because he will go get it and even get it at a price an extreme couponer wouldn’t deem possible. He can have the most compassionate, all encompassing love that soaks anyone in and they would feel privileged to have earned such a love. Then, if you were to catch him on a bad day… typically such a day would be brought on by his own life’s stressors, whether it being issues about his career or angst from a love quarrel… then it’s as if the Aggressive side of the Type A is the only thing living. The most vulnerable specs of history in your lifetime, something he may only know a fraction about, those memories, those things you’ve shared in confidence, they become his ammo and you are the target. The aggressive person that stands before you on such a day makes you want to eliminate that type of personality from your life altogether. But one day, when the pain has subsided and you can look at him again, you forgive him and bask in the love he is so willing to share with even strangers. A quote comes to mind, but it has to be taken out of it’s original context because Jack Nicholson says this to Diane Keaton in “Something’s Gotta Give” and I, of course, would not be saying this to my father in such a manner. However, when I think about his good days… when I think about when his family yearns to be around him… it’s at such a time where he lets go. He lets go of that Type A personality and he falls into the B column with me.
“I do think you use your strength to separate yourself from everyone.
But it’s thrilling when your defenses are down.”
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