My - how time flies when we're having fun!  Time stood still when I was a child, but now it travels at Olympic speed!

This past December I was having a few medical issues that grounded me to the couch, but after blood tests, a CT scan, ultrasounds, a mammogram, and a colonoscopy, they have determined that I am healthy and the pain in my side which doubled me over will go away in time.  I'm not so sure I'm all that comfy with this prognosis, but time will tell.

While setting on the couch I had the opportunity to watch a few movies that got the character's personalities right!  Just for fun, we watch The Family Stone to get into the mood of family get-together.  Both my husband and I come from dysfunctional families, so this movie rings true for us.  It has great moments that pull back the curtain on personality conflicts and resolutions. It let us into the mind of the Proper Melancholic, with all the inner struggles, shows how the laid back Peaceful Phlegmatic quiets the insanity, and the movie even shows how fear can push a Powerful Choleric into a place were they need comforting.  If you haven't seen The Family Stone, I recommend that you do.

The movie that I find most fascinating in terms of personalities is the HBO mini series John Adams.  I purchased the set as a Christmas gift and it's worth every penny and the long hours it takes to watch it!  Who ever cast this movie deserves an award!  The two main characters are John Adams, the second president of the United States and Thomas Jefferson, the third president.  These two men were polar opposites in personality types, and the movie shows how they were naturally drawn to each other - how they were naturally at odds over issues of policy and approaching a solution to the problem.  The movie "shows" us the natural parts to our personalities - it's wonderful!

I love this movie from the stand point of how it shows the weaknesses and strengths of all the personalities.  John Adams was a No-Test-Needed Powerful Choleric, hot-headed, determined, natural born leader, getting the job done kind of guy, while Thomas Jefferson was quiet, studious, stayed in the background taking inventory of the situation, brilliant with the written word and an inventor.  Jefferson is one of the best studies in the Proper Melancholic category that I have found.  I use Thomas Jefferson as my example of Melancholic when I teach.  He is well known for his thinking and writing abilities, only he was an enigma when it comes to living out his opinions.  Jefferson wrote heated papers about anti-slavery, but owned slaves until the day he died.  Slavery wasn't the only conflicting issue in his life - money, peer pressure and his sexual life were just some of the other issues that made him so complex.  If you have not studied these men, I recommend you do.  You will find them fascinating.

If you have a favorite movie which shows a good use of the personality types, drop me a line telling which movie you liked and why - I'll post it in an upcoming newsletter.

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This month's teleconference is about making a business plan.  If you feel this is over your head, consider it a lesson on goal setting.  We have had great teleconferences in the past and I'm sure you will love the guest hosts and topics that are coming up.  See you there!