I’ve always thought that the difference in temperaments could be described as by comparing them to journalism vs. creative writing. Pure reporters are trained to just put it out there – just the facts Ma’am – concisely, prioritized and without embellishment. Authors, on the other hand, have liberties to create and fantasize and to be much more eloquent in their thinking. It’s like someone who is direct vs. someone who is more nuanced. Both have their place; they are just different.
But the more I think about this analogy, the more layers it has. There are different types of journalists: news reporters who follow the pure model and stick to facts; feature writers who are akin to creative writers with more flourish; sports reporters who are focused on the action and columnists or opinion writers who offer analysis and insights. The different parts of the newspaper seem to parallel the True Colors temperaments or personality types.
Creative writers, too, parallel the temperaments with their genres: fact-based stories that parallel real events, romance novels, thrillers and science fiction.
I wonder if we gravitate toward one type of writing – or one type of reading – depending upon our innate preferences. It sounds like a dissertation study!
Pay attention to the reading you do – online, in books or in the newspaper – and conduct your own mini-study. If you find yourself focused on one area, take the advice I give my temperament session participants and branch out. An artist with only one color on their palette is limited in what they can create, just as a reader with only one perspective is missing what the other perspectives have to offer.
