Through The Looking Glass

“Sometimes you can’t see yourself clearly until you see yourself through the eyes of others.” Ellen DeGeneres

Home on a Saturday night, reflecting on who I am, I sit with my laptop open to the ‘HOWTOFASCINATE’ by Sally Hogshead webpage. I contemplate taking the test. But I am a believer in signs and considering I had been doing a lot of thinking on who I am lately, taking this test couldn’t come at a better time. 

I answered the 20 something questions based on my initial instinct. As I played the video where Sally would tell me how the world saw me, I could hear the drum roll in my head.

Mystique + Power : My Veiled Strength

It was almost like looking into a descriptive mirror, one that showed me the reflection of my personality. People see me as realistic, intentional, to-the-point. The report goes on to tell me those aspects of my personality, which I had began to think are weak, turns out, can actually be used to my strength. 

I have never been much of a talker of my achievements. And somewhere down the line, I even stopped taking credit for anything. Reading the report just opened my mind to the person I am and want to be. Yes I set goals. Yes I have steps to get there. I believe my work should speak louder than my words. And I strongly believe leaders do not create followers, they create more leaders. This is who I am, and if the results of this test are testified, this is how the world sees me too.  I have to learn to consolidate my strengths, overcome my weaknesses, and strengthen my core.

The result says at my highest value I deliver realistic leadership. I am at the crux of my career and knowing how I can add value to my workplace is a crucial takeaway for me. I am stable and reliable, and even though I may not always feel it, it is sometimes better to see yourself as others see you. I may be guarded and complex, but when it comes to problem-solving, my confidence and rational approach enable me to find solutions and reach goals.

The ‘Storytelling’ concept is something I have been hearing a lot of lately. I need to learn to better incorporate it in my ideas, my communication, to depict my message. I realize, the more you can engage people with your story, the more they will trust your purpose. THAT is who I want to be, fascinating people by my mystique and power to inspire them to dream more, learn more, do more.

To sum it up, taking the test gave me a deeper insight on how people see me and how close it is to who I essentially am. I write about this today, as I want more people to gain this insight, experience what I experienced today. And thanks to the digital world, all this is now available just a click away.