Myself in three words¶

A couple of weeks ago I read two related things. First was a suggestion to learn to describe yourself in a maximum of 8 words. Probably Tom Peters or Seth Godin. A few hours later I saw Steve Pavlina request people to describe him in three words . Hey, that's a good idea! And I went off in search of spouse and colleagues.

I got feedback from 9 persons total, in a mix of Dutch and English words. That mix probably results in some loss of nuance. On the other hand, it allows me to group mostly-similar items.

Three items were mentioned three times:

• Smart/intelligent. Well, yes :-)
• Headstrong. (Dutch: eigenwijs/onbuigzaam/standvastig). Stubborn, obstinate. If I believe something to be true, I really believe it.

  My PhD topic's solution gained exclamations like "sheer idiocy", "that will never work" and "that is heresy". I did not listen and did not do the same non-working thing that others had done before me.

  A problem I have with a technical discussion: sometimes both "sides" are mostly right, they're just a different technical choice. With the same goal in mind. I can be headstrong in favour of my opinion.

• Driven/dedicated. (Two were Dutch: gedreven, gepassioneerd). I sometimes stay up till 5:00 in the morning to finish off a particular bug or customer problem. (As an aside: a common defence tactic I use is by being non-dedicated to something that I don't like. Passive resistance.)

Three items were mentioned twice:

• Efficient.
• Friendly.
• Thorough. (Dutch: grondig).

And 11 items were mentioned once. Conservative; deep thinker (diepe denker); helpful (hulpvaardig); introvert; lax (laks); open mind (open blik); owl; tranquil (kalm); sympathetic (sympathiek); to the point; self-confident (zelfverzekerd).

So, thanks to all that send me three words. If someone else wants to send me his or her three words that best describe in their opinion: please do send them to me (reinout@vanrees.org). Also other feedback: much appreciated.

This experiment has been helpful to me. Good to see how others perceive me. And helpful to prod me to keep improving my strengths (smart, dedicated, efficient, friendly, thorough) and to watch out for steam-rolling over other peoples' toes (driven, headstrong).