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CONGRATULATIONS James
You Got a Perfect Score on the Kolbe A™ Index
You have an uncanny talent for coming up with unique strategies, prioritizing opportunities, and dealing with the unknowns in complex problems. You thrive when quantifying an opportunity and prospecting for ways to enhance it.
Kolbe Action Modes®
How do we know this? You told us when you completed the Kolbe A™ Index. Our proprietary algorithm sorted out your answers and came up with the pattern of your MO (Modus Operandi).
Your Kolbe result is so individualized, only 5% of the population is likely to have one just like it.
James Schramko
Kolbe Action Modes are behaviors driven by your instinct
Fact Finder: is how you gather and share information.
Your way of doing it is to Specify.
Follow Thru: is how you organize.
Your way of doing it is to Maintain.
QuickStart: is how you deal with risks and uncertainty.
Your way of doing it is to Modify.
Implementor: is how you handle space and tangibles.
Your way of doing it is to Envision.
You can count on Kolbe results being constant over time.
IT’S WHAT DRIVES YOU, James
Your Kolbe result celebrates your Modes of Operation (MO): 7-4-6-2. It doesn’t have anything to do with what your social style is or how smart you are. It’s how you will and won’t naturally take action.
Kolbe adds a new dimension. Based on wisdom going back to Plato and Aristotle, the Kolbe Theory™ has proven successful with over one million users.
Conables® Tips, individualized for you, will not only help you explain your way of taking action, they will help you control the outcomes. For example:
Conables® Tips
- Tired of Questions like:
- Why do you put off making repairs?
Why don’t you take better care of your equipment?
- Why do you put off making repairs?
- How about saying:
- If you’d broken as many things as I have, you too would stop trying.
It’s just not my thing.
- If you’d broken as many things as I have, you too would stop trying.
What's so different about the Kolbe Index?
You have a natural strength in each Action Mode that helps you make better decisions
| Action Modes | ||
Fact Finder
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Your best way of gathering and sharing information is to Specify. | |
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For instance, you might: Research in-depth Establish specific priorities Quantify/rank order particulars Define objectives Assess probabilities |
Define terms with exactness Determine appropriateness Provide historical evidence Create analogies Develop complex strategies |
|
Follow Thru
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Your best way of organizing is to Maintain. | |
|
For instance, you might: Package things together that fit Adjust procedures Monitor policies Realign objectives Coordinate schedules |
Draft guidelines Provide transitions and segues Identify inconsistencies Meet the need for closure Maintain order |
|
Quick Start
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Your best way of dealing with risks and uncertainty is to Modify. | |
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For instance, you might: Participate in experiments Create responses to challenges Try out new ideas Sustain innovations Use metaphors |
Navigate through uncertainty Interject spontaneously Adjust deadlines Reduce risks Mediate between the vision and the given |
|
Implementor
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Your best way of tackling space and tangibles is to Envision. | |
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For instance, you might: Create virtual presentations Conceptualize solutions Envision circumstances Capture the essence Portray symbolically |
Find intangible methods Jury-rig fixes Sketch ideas Simulate actual situations Concoct out of thin air |
|
Deal with information in the way that’s best for you and let others do the rest.
Conables® Tips
Take charge of your Fact Finder instinct!
When organizing, you have an instinct to Maintain. Don’t let others force you into doing it their way!
Conables® Tips
It's how YOU Follow Thru that matters.
In the midst of uncertainty you shine because you Modify.
Conables® Tips
How you deal with uncertainty is actually quite certain.
How you show what you mean is part of your “charm.” You’re perfect just the way you are.
Conables® Tips
Handle things YOUR way.
TIME AND ENERGY
Everyone runs out of time and energy.
You can’t get time back – once it’s used, it’s gone – but energy can be renewed.
YOUR PYRAMID OF MENTAL ENERGY
Your 100 “ergs” of mental energy are equal to the energy available to every other human being. This gives you the same potential power as any CEO or rock star.
Pyramid of Energy.
Specify
37%
Maintain
21%
Modify
32%
Envision
10%
Each of your 100 ergs has the same intensity - whether it is in the Initiating, ReActing, or CounterActing zone.
You lead with background information, making sure it helps promote future possibilities. You also use your Fact Finder strengths to justify the Quick Start need for urgency. This sets you up for using all your conative strengths to make unconventional, yet practical decisions.
Don’t let anyone stereotype you as contributing or “being” just one of the Action Modes. Your contribution begins with specifying and continues until you envision the solution.
Self-manage your use of these limited, but renewable, resources. Use them purposefully and they will bring joy to your life.
TRUSTING YOUR SENSE OF TIME
It’s tough to allocate your time, especially when no one but Kolbe has explained the role of your conative assets.
You use time according to your MO. So forget time management advice that doesn’t take it into consideration. Everyone has an equal amount of conative energy, used in differing amounts and orders. You use it in your particular order and percentages per mode.
Fact Finder
37%
Quick Start
32%
Follow Thru
21%
Implementor
10%
When free to use your strengths:
1. You’ll start the problem solving process by fact checking and determining practical and appropriate priorities.
2. Next you adjust to changes.
3. Then, you look for ways to fit the project into the system.
4. Finally, James, you visualize solutions.
If you work against your grain, you’ll never have “enough” time. You will squander it by taking non-productive paths.
GET MORE DONE IN LESS TIME.
We can't give you more time, but we have proven leveraging your conative strengths can more than double your productivity.
Here are some ways you can get the multiplier effect from your MO of 7-4-6-2.
Conables® Tips
- Commit–but to very little. Target your top priorities. Unlike time, you can replenish conative energy, but it takes downtime to do it.
- Save time by calculating the odds of success before taking on a challenge.
- Protect your energy by walking away from what your instincts tell you are deal breakers.
- Self-Provoke to get where you want to go. You’re responsible for goading yourself to initiate necessary action.
Expand Your Horizons
Listen to customized audio of Kathy Kolbe discussing YOUR initiating strengths. Gain great insight into how to make them work for you in the Natural Advantage - Manager Audio (check Audible.com to purchase download).
Get Conative, James!
Set priorities and allocate time for the top three or four, making sure you have gathered appropriate resources and background information.
Conables® Tips
Because most of the world hasn't recognized conation, you may actually have been taught ways of taking action that are absolutely wrong for you.
The truth is you need to describe what's in your mind rather than trying to make it yourself.
A good way to start your day is to zero in on the top priorities and get them done first.
Don't just take our word for it; try it! You may surprise yourself with how much you can get done, and by how natural it feels.
Conables® Tips
You’re likely to procrastinate if you don’t have a system or format to follow.
When you need to be persuasive in an unfamiliar situation, play off what others say and respond to their needs.
You may be acting against your grain without even knowing it. When we work against our grain, we are not only unhappy but also unproductive, wasting our time on things that require too much energy. Instead of robbing yourself of your valuable time and energy, modify the things you need to do so that you can accomplish them in your own way.
COMMUNICATION & RELATIONSHIPS
Communication is at the Heart of a Relationship
Communication involves Action, ReAction, CounterAction and InterAction. Of course, emotions cause the desire to communicate while thoughts provide the content. However it’s your conative instincts that drive how it plays out.
If you aren’t communicating through your conative strengths, you are likely to come across as acting out of character or not being authentic.
We’re taught that there is a “right way” to do things. Our essays have the same structure and our resumes look like we’ve all had the same experiences.
How can you be true to who you are, and win approval too? We give you individualized Conables Tips for communicating in your own way without turning other people off.
“If you get out of kilter with your MO, how do you expect others to “get” who you are?”
Kathy Kolbe
It’s Not Just What You Say, It’s How You Say It
Conables® Tips
You can be so good at convincing people of your point of view that they buy your argument, but later have buyer’s remorse. Avoid the boomerang effect by championing shared causes. Your combination of strengths is like a boxer’s one – two punch: First, you give others substantial written evidence; and second, you give the oral arguments targeting benefits.
It’s best if you consider the end-game before you get in the ring. Knowing the conative strengths of the people you’re dealing with will help you know who will be the best sparring partners and with whom not to get in the ring.
James, Communicate Your Way
Conables® Tips
- Your instincts won't change with age. Be obstinate with people who expect you to conform to age stereotypes – or any other kind of stereotype.
- Position yourself as an expert. State your case with examples.
- Let others know you'll adjust to changes as long as you are informed ahead of time. They can throw your day off kilter by not doing what they promised they’d do.
WIN–WIN RELATIONSHIPS
There is no perfect combination of Kolbe results for relationships. The ideal spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, colleague or friend will respect your conative truth and allow you the freedom to be yourself.
“Trying to avoid conflict between people with strong conative differences is impossible. No use pretending – it will come out sooner or later. Discussing the differences doesn’t resolve them. It involves them. It turns a clash of wills into a meeting of the minds. You are impelled to act according to your instincts, but you can’t compel others to respond the same way.”
Conative Connection by Kathy Kolbe
People trust what they sense comes from your conative truths.
Conative action never happens in isolation from the other two parts of the mind, the affective and cognitive.
You can improve relationships by understanding similarities and differences in your conative MOs.
In situations with someone who is pretty much your conative clone, you might be able to finish each other’s sentences, but it could also lead to: inertia in what you do together or competition for who could do things better or more than the other.
Conables® Tips
When working with someone whose MO is similar to your own:
- Avoid getting stuck in your shared methods by bringing in others with diverse approaches.
- Don’t evaluate others by what works best for both of you. For instance, when parents think kids should do things the same way they do them, it often leads to false expectations.
In situations with a person who has very different conative strengths than you do, you can benefit from the resulting Synergy, or the differences can cause conflict and stress.
Conables® Tips
When working with someone whose MO is very different than yours:
- For you, togetherness may mean doing different things in the same room.
- Don’t try to get the other person to work toward shared goals the same way you do.
Career Considerations
Look for Opportunities to Contribute Your Conative Strengths
James, you do your best work when you strive according to your MO. You're most likely to succeed in jobs that use your conative strengths according to each of the Action Modes.
Finding Careers that Give You the Freedom to Be Yourself
You have many strengths that could contribute to an organization.
In job interviews, people often say things they think employers want to hear. Yet if they get a job based upon false promises, they usually become frustrated and regret having to live up to them.
Finding a job that lets you use your natural strengths is a formula for success.
It pays to be truthful in promoting your MO
Conables® Tips
- Evaluate career opportunities not only for the ways you will be able to Initiate Action, but also ways to use your energy to CounterAct. Steer away from careers where your CounterActing abilities will be perceived negatively.
- When considering a specific career, see if you can find out the MOs of those who are successful in that role.
Summary & Share
James, the information in every section of this report was individualized for you, whether you remember it by:
However you visualize your MO – it's important to keep the message of your conative strengths in the front of your mind as you make life empowering decisions.
Now that you know the power of your MO, it's up to you to use it for good purposes. The world needs your conative strengths!