Trump - saving America but losing the World?
So Donald Trump has won the election for the next President of the USA on the tag line "Make America great again". A country is largely a reflection of its people and there are great and not so great people in every country. Whether a country is great or not depends a lot on which are in power.
There has been much head holding and handwringing on one side and joyous celebration on the other. Some people are predicting a calamity for the world, others the political game-changer which will make America great again. In my experience, things very rarely, if ever, turn out as bad as one thinks, or as good.
Understanding a good personality model can help us get deep insights into people very quickly, and help us know what to expect in terms of their strengths and development areas.
If we look at Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump using the UHM personality model based around how people make decisions then they come up almost opposite extraverted physical-intellectual versus introverted spiritual-intellectual. The only thing in common is an intellectual focus (rather than emotional one) - using their "head" (thinking) over their "heart" (feeling). Trump's personality gives some immediate clues as to what can we look forward to from a Trump Presidency.
Positives: Likely to
- Follow his own thinking and be resistant to lobby groups/special interests pushing agendas
- Act quickly to make changes
- Take practical actions
Negatives: Likely to
- Follow his own thinking and make good short term decisions which are bad long term
- Make changes but not follow through on commmitments
- Act too quickly without thinking of the impact on people
There are other factors besides personality style which are likely to come into play. Some commentators say that Trump is narcissistic which is one of the 'dark triad' of characteristics and linked to underlying motivations rather than personality (find out more here). This would suggest some more negatives. That said the American Consititution seems to have been put together carefully and this limits what Presidents can do. (As we see with Obama, for example he promised to close Guantamano Bay prison straight away and it is still open 8 years later).
Working out what the usual politics of the Democrats and Republicans is hard enough under normal circumstances. Trump's nomination confuses things more. So perhaps a metaphor might help - in terms of farming cows. Why might a cow analogy be apt? Because the political system can be "milked"...
Typical Democratic Approach
You have two cows.
Your neighbour has none.
You feel guilty for being successful.
You push for higher taxes so everyone else pays for your neighbour's cows.
Typical Republican Approach
You have two cows.
Your neighbour has none.
So what?
Trump Approach
You get hold of the two best looking cows.
You make sure others pay for their upkeep.
You keep telling people that you have many more cows.
You get elected President.
MarkTwo Health Tip
We are exposed to some 100000 man made chemicals in a modern western world. For instance, research found 232 toxic chemicals in the umbilical cords of newborns in the United States. Very few, if any, have long term safety studies. Short term studies can be very misleading as what looks like minor harm can build up to serious harm over time. Take smoking, people smoking for a few months typically suffer little damage, its the long term effects of the buildup which are so bad.
Cleaners we use may only be slightly damaging to us in the immediate term but where are the long term studies? So I was pleased to read the Choice consumer organisation study on cleaning chemicals finding one of the highest rated ones had no toxicity at all. Mint Kleen cleans very well (speaking from experience) and I have no hesitation in highly recommending it. Help yourself and the environment by using this: see http://www.ozkleen.com/mintkleen (and I have no connection to the company).
Egg Health. Remember the free Cluckar app from the Choice Consumer organisation? We tested 9 different "free range eggs" we could find at two major Australian supermarkets and all came up as 1 out of 20. In the words of the app: "do not buy". A shop around the corner had free range eggs at the same price which were 7 out of 20 and recommended. And at a local organic shop we found eggs rated 20 out of 20 for a few dollars more.
MarkTwo Wealth (Giving) Tip
There are many charities in the world and some do a superb job - others not so good. You can get an objective measure on their performance by going to Charity Navigator. For instance, MarkTwo financially supports 4 charities and only supports those ranking at least 3 (out of 4) on the Charity Navigator assessment. Click here for list.
Understand yourself and others to a whole new level
Understanding Human Personality - Public Workshop
Personality almost never tends to be the sole reason for anything but it is usually a significant factor in any ones life decisions and therefore experience as the quality of our decisions has a direct impact on the quality of our life. Join this workshop to get deeper insights into Trump, Clinton and many other famous people, as well as your self! It is also one of the most powerful relationship building programs that can be applied to parent/child, manager/subordinate, and romantic relationships.
People are the biggest driving force on Earth for good or evil - hadn't we better know what makes us tick?
This program aims to give all participants an extremely rich and practical understanding of personality, difference and what it means both in personal and professional life. You are likely to find answers to important questions (you did not even know you had!) in areas of your professional and personal life
When: Sun 5-Mon 6 Feb 2017
Where: Best Western Plus The Tudor Box Hill, 1101 Whitehorse Rd, Box Hill, Victoria 3126, Australia
Earlybird: Only 1497 Australian dollars (exc GST) if you pay by Thursday 15 Dec 2016 - SAVE $550
For more details or to book now
Click here to see full list of events and get this sort of response from people you feed back to:
This course increased my self-awareness ten-fold. Not only the materials and activities within the course but also the conversation between members in breaks was insightful. We all shared experiences and feelings about ourselves so we could help each other with self-discovery. I don't think I would normally be willing to share so much or feel so connected to strangers if we weren't on a similar journey - Joanne Capp, National Key Account Manager, Bunzl Outsourcing Services
Quote of the Quarter
Everyone sees what they appear to be, few really experience what you really are – The Prince
TED Talk - The 3 A's of Awesome
When things seem bad is a good time to remember that there is always good.
Neil Pasricha started a blog 1000 Awesome Things which savors life's simple pleasures, from free refills to clean sheets. In this heartfelt talk, he reveals the 3 secrets to leading a life that's truly awesome. It is essentially all about gratitude.
MarkTwo's Quarter - from the CEO
Work & Travel
As the year comes to a close we have had the privilege of experiencing another fascinating quarter. The MarkTwo team ran a 3 day senior manager leadership intensive in NSW before I flew to run our first leadership program in Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh City. It was with a very successful SME which has grown massively over the last 13 years. Mark was then invited to an annual business conference in Ho Chi Minh with the head of IMF Vietnam and other exemplary speakers.
Back to Australia and more high capability leaders are realising the criticality of coaching. It is often thought to be for poor performers but Roger Federer has a coach, as do all top sports people. We have found more and more people coming to us for executive or life coaching through referrals from those who have made big gains with our approach. They are realising to be successful in this ever more challenging and complex business environment you want to be the best you can be.
I have just been speaking at a senior manager workshop, and I am off next week to run programs in KL, Malaysia and Dubai before coming back to help executives with more coaching. I am then presenting at a major senior manager conference with one of Australia's largest corporations.
We then have our office Xmas party and a well earned rest until next year. This starts at the end of January with MarkTwo facilitating a one week conference for the top 70 staff in Europe for one of the World's top 10 universities. After some public coaching programs in the first half of February, I am looking forward to being back working for a week in India.
Upcoming Events
UHM Professional Coaching Accreditation - Public Workshop
Learn the coaching process we use which is getting us many clients through referrals because of its impact. Excel at both coaching and mentoring with one fascinating program.
Enhance one of your key capabilities impacting both your personal and professional life, and develop your coaching leadership - the most widely applicable of the leadership skills. Equip yourself with a unique and in-depth 3-dimensional personality self-assessment psychometric test.
Use it to:
1) Learn the MarkTwo coaching process which gets us many referrals because it helps the coachees so much.
2) Get deep insights into personality style, motivation, preference and potential intelligence.
3) Upskill your coaching ability with excellent advanced coaching skills and processes.
When: Wed 8-Sat 11 February 2017
Where: Ashburton, Victoria, Australia
How much: 4997 Australian dollars (exc GST) and this course is fully tax deductible (check with your accountant)
Earlybird: Only 2997 Australian dollars (exc GST) if pay by Thursday 8 December 2016 - SAVE $2200!
Discounts: There is a special rate of 1497 Australian dollars for full-time students and past participants
Eligibility: Applicants must have completed the Understanding Human Personality workshop before attending this accreditation, or already be professionally accredited in the MBTI®, Temperament Theory, TMI®, MTR-i™, HBDI®, Majors™ Personality Type Inventory, DiSC or Enneagram
For more details or to book now
I have attended numerous development courses over the last decade and there have been less than a handful I would categorise as exceptional - the UHM Accreditation course is one of them. Mark has created an outstanding model that equips the student with a greater depth of human trait comprehension that is not easily attained. I walked away understanding myself and others on a completely new level, knowledge I will effectively utilise in all personal and professional aspects of my life. When I attend a course, my expectation is to walk away with significant insights – in the case of the UHM Accreditation course, I walked away with several that would generally take a lifetime to learn - Yvette Blanchard, Business and Change Coach
