What's Your Point?
I have an exercise I do in seminars that really helps clients quickly and easily get to the nut of who they are. It's something that's really easy for anyone to grasp--anyone who's had more than a first-grade-level education. I call it “Personal Punc-h.”
I ask: If you were a punctuation mark, what would you be? Seems like an odd question, seems especially odd in a board room or auditorium packed with C-Suite executives for sure, but in my experience I have seen that it’s actual the simplest way for people to encapsulate themselves, and explain who they are to others.
Take me for example. My corporate logo is a trademarked bright red “!”. It was inspired by my book, Get to the Point!, but through the years has resonated as a symbol of my message that people immediately get.
Recently, as I tried to come up with an easy way for people to start understanding their personality type, I happened to glance down at my logo and it just hit me: I am a quintessential exclamation point. I am optimistic and energetic; I am aggressive and sometimes a little over the top. But whatever emotions the mark conjures, I am easily and comfortably defined by it.
That lead me to think of other punctuation marks, and to see my friends, family members, and clients as punctuation. I started asking people and they immediately got it:
“I’m a colon, because I always have more to say.”
“I’m a semicolon because I am a connector of ideas.”
“I’m a question mark because I always want to know more.”
“I’m a period, because I like closure—and demand it from others.”
“I’m a comma, with semi-colon rising… A work in progress.”
Take a quick look at the chart to see the basic characteristics attributable to each mark and see which best describes your personal punc-h.
YOUR PERSONAL PUNC-H
MARK. WHAT DOES IT MEAN? WHAT TO CELEBRATE. WHAT TO WORK ON
! Energetic, innovative, assertive, Your boundless energy, Your quick temper,
ambitious, enthusiastic, your passion seeming too aggressive,
self-reliant, confident, determined. cocky, or stubborn
? Speculative, ambitious, curious, Your unparalleled research Stopping yourself from
thoughtful, imaginative, resourceful. and investigative skills, actually “doing” because
your boundless desire to you’re too busy thinking.
want to know more. Seeming much too nosy
. Practical, responsible, sensible, Your careful planning, Being inflexible, not being
logical, analytical, your precise, scientific open to ideas that may be
highly discriminating. approach to life. different than yours,
stubbornness
; Philosophical, intellectual. Your flexibility and Being restless and
studious, farseeing versatility. Your ability sometimes too indecisive
to see more than one
side in any situation
: Methodical, businesslike, Your impeccable Taking on too much and
organizational, multitasking management skills, overwhelming others
your ability to keep
many thoughts in line
at once.
, Team player, diplomat, Your ability to help others Being too wishy-wash,
clarifier, peacemaker make sense, your sense of sacrificing own best
compassion, always interests for the good of
helping the cause along the group, shyness
Every mark is important, and that a comma can be absolutely crucial to ensuring success. As Lynn Truss proved with her hilarious book on punctuation, Eats, Shoots and Leaves, one misplaced comma translates to a panda bear with a smoking gun.
Get more exciting communication tips in Your Self-Sabotage Survival Guide by Karen Berg. Read more here: tinyurl.com/y786t4ax