Someone (who shall remain nameless) recently emailed me an article with this headline: “16 Signs You’re a Little (or a Lot) Type A.” Now, I could have taken this gesture as passive aggressive—or maybe just aggressive—especially since I was right in the midst of perfecting my use of the word “unbeknownst” in a sentence. (Unbeknownst to me, this person just happened to be Googling the term “Type A” and just happened to come across Carolyn Gregoire‘s article in The Huffington Post. OK. Insert emoticon of sarcastic face with rolling eyes.) But in all seriousness, I have learned to embrace my Type A tendencies, which is one reason why I decided to call my firm, TypeA. (In case you haven’t noticed, A is also my first initial…but that’s another story.) Back to the article. Writer summed up the personality trait as such: “‘Type A’ has become a pop psychology buzz word and catch-all descriptor for the more driven, anxiety-prone go-getters among us.” Ouch. Now you might be tempted to think I’m about to launch into a discussion of resolutions and the ways in which I will rise above my natural inclinations for avoiding lines, sleepless nights and pushing my writers to their greatest potential. But Gregoire goes on to point out some of the more positive traits of Type A, which I thought was poignant for us as a firm, as we begin a new year with new clients and new initiatives for old clients.
Taking six signs from Gregoire’s piece, I decided to throw in a few of our TypeA-isms for fun measure. Take a look:
1. You’ve been described as a perfectionist, overachiever, workaholic or all of the above. Personally, I have been described as a perfectionist and an overachiever—a Type A double whammy. In the end, though, I believe these qualities benefit our clients.
2. You bite your nails or grind your teeth. This should tell you everything you need to know: I own a night guard. (Note: I didn’t say whether I actually wear it).
3. You’re highly conscientious. It’s already been established that I care deeply about the work I do for my clients. But I am also fortunate to employ a team of writers who care about the work as much as I do. Susy cannot let a spelling or grammatical error go unnoticed. It’s like her kryptonite. Jaymi, no matter how many deadlines she has, always manages to find a new way to approach a sentence or topic. And Lori? Well, as a writer and photographer herself, she has such a sharp eye for detail and a visual sensitivity to the photography side of blogging. We are artists at our core. The work that we produce for our clients is not just an extension of their brand and identity—it’s also an extension of our artistry, and ultimately, ourselves. This level of conscientiousness is a difficult quality to find.
4. You have a hard time falling asleep at night. T.S. Eliot once said, “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.” Well, at TypeA, we measure out our lives in coffee cups! There are certain periods of the year (first quarter and third quarter especially ) when TypeA faces the pressure of several major high profile projects coming together at once, and we might lose some sleep at times we are deeply imbedded in these projects. Now that’s dedication!
5. You’d be lost without your to-do list. At TypeA, we’re all about creating goals and plans of action. We love spreadsheets, especially when it comes to creating social media schedules and editorial road maps.
6. You make it happen. This one is my favorite. We DO make it happen for our clients everyday!
Do you see yourself anywhere in these signs? Let us know. It’s always fun to commiserate with fellow TypeA-ers.
