Why am I like this? Why do I make decisions this way? Where are these behaviors coming from? These questions came up a lot when I tried to understand how I think and behave. I like to believe I am a very self-aware person, but there were just many questions about myself I couldn’t answer. And just like anyone, I turned to my favorite search engine and typed in “personality test.” 3.1 billion results, but most tests and quizzes only had a handful of these personality types. I was skeptical. How could there only be a dozen or so different types of people in the world?
Enter COBI. COBI is a new report that goes beyond personality and dives deep into how you perceive the world and process the information around you affects your behavior. It helps identify the things that cause stress, how you process and carry out tasks, and how you assess risks. There is so much information in the COBI, it may seem overwhelming, but I will show you how I was able to break down and digest the sections in ways that helped me the most.
Finding Your Challenges
In each section of this report, you will find some of your challenge traits. Knowing and understanding the more difficult areas for you can help you navigate through tasks and maybe avoid situations that can cause you stress. Think of your challenges as a road map; when you want to get from point A to B, you can take many different paths, and depending on how adventurous you want to be, it doesn’t always have to be a straight path. You may not always want to avoid the things that are challenging for you if the risk is worth the reward, but then some days, it’s good to know what you want to tread around.
Defining and Refining Your Strengths
While the challenges may be a little intimidating, you will also find many things that you are great at. You can even use your strengths to tackle some of your challenges. Knowing your strengths will help you build confidence and help you take on tasks in a way that suits you best. The trick is to make sure that you regularly engage these strengths to keep them sharp.
Understanding Your Social Stressors
Along with challenges, you will find certain social situations that cause you stress. Social stress inhibits us from reaching our fullest potential, so knowing what causes us stress is essential to address it. Through my own social stressors, I have learned not to necessarily avoid situations but how to manage my stress appropriately in these situations and therefore build resiliency towards these stressors.
Finding What Brings You Joy
Throughout the entire report, you will find sprinkles of what you enjoy doing. These preferred activities are reflected in cognitive, behavioral, decision-making traits and how you pursue your goals. When you combine these with your strengths, you can apply these to hobbies or even a career path.
This report was beneficial in giving me an understanding of the things I needed help with and shining a light on the tools I already had to overcome such challenges. I would definitely recommend this for anyone looking to know more about themselves. Heck, even if you think you go it locked down, COBI just might surprise you!
