Supportive traits are like great personal assistants that help us navigate through life’s challenges more smoothly. From handling day-to-day responsibilities to tackling complex issues, we often and consciously rely on these trusted aides—our supportive traits—knowing that they are capable and reliable at what they do. Ultimately, living in the absence of our supportive traits is akin to losing both our arms; we would struggle tremendously to function without them.

Your habits shape your identity,
and your identity shapes your habits.

James Clear

As our supportive traits come naturally to us, we tend to employ them effortlessly, as if we are writing and drawing with our dominant hand. Therefore, we often take our supportive traits for granted, not realizing how valuable they are to someone of a different archetype. If left unchecked, we might even run the risk of overusing them, preventing other parts of ourselves from flourishing.

Like our dominant traits, our supportive traits are simply facets of our personalities. Whether they are strengths or weaknesses is entirely dependent on the way we utilize them. If we cultivate and develop our supportive traits well, they can become valuable additions to our toolbox of super strengths. However, if we use them in an unhealthy manner, the same traits will ultimately lead to our undoing.

With curiosity built into their core, Idealists love exploring a great deal of things whenever possible. There are so many interesting concepts in the world for them to stick their heads into, from magic tricks all the way to urban legends. Even if they were to live for an eternity, they would still never run out of things to discover. As such, Idealists often juggle between many different passions at a time, engaging each and every one of them with the same amount of enthusiasm as always.

Sadly, nothing lasts forever. But for Idealists, their passions barely last at all. When they first fall in love with a concept that fascinates them, they feel really charged up. However, much like a tiny battery, their interest towards these concepts often drains out quickly. Once it hits zero, they will not hesitate to toss these old passions aside in search of new ones. Because of that, Idealists who do this might be acquainted with a wide range of things but never truly understand them.

Alas, all the knowledge in the world is useless if Idealists don't put them into practice. Unfortunately for them, this is often the case. Most Idealists are reluctant to dig in for the long haul when it comes to getting things done. The amount of planning, effort, and brainpower required to get something up and running can often seem like a hassle in their eyes. This mindset serves only as a barrier in their life and Idealists who hold on to it will amount to nothing in the end.

Idealists are like firecrackers when it comes to creativity. When their fuse is sparked by something interesting, little pockets of ideas will start popping rapidly in their heads, flooding their minds with infinite possibilities. They don't even need to move a single muscle; ideas just flow through them like breathing. This is because Idealists see things not as what they are but what they can be. As such, they never fail to generate a myriad of ideas that go beyond the imaginations of many.

But as creative as Idealists may be, their ideas are usually impractical. They see the world through eyes of awe and wonder, often dismissing the constraints of real life in favor of an unbridled fantasy. Harboring a sense of hopeless idealism, they insist that even the most impossible of ideas are within reach as long as they believe hard enough. Without tethering their imagination to facts, their ideas will certainly collapse when confronted with the harshness of reality.

On top of that, Idealists may also get carried away with all their ideas. Although their limitless creativity allows them to come up with streams of ideas in a flash, it is also the reason why they struggle to focus on one. Reluctant to commit, Idealists would often hop on to the next idea the minute they feel like it. Therefore, their ideas usually come and go like a breeze. Sadly, regret will dawn on them when they finally realize the amount of potential they have buried along with those ideas.

While most are chained to the ways of the past, Idealists break free from them. They know that barricades in the mind often give rise to barriers in the world, as those who are closed-minded will build walls both mentally and physically to seal off new perspectives. As such, Idealists will never turn a concept away, even if others find it silly. Only by accepting ideas that illuminate life from a different angle can one uncover perspectives that are truly meaningful.

Unfortunately, Idealists often struggle to narrow concepts down. Seeing tremendous potential in every idea that comes their way, they find it hard to toss any of them out the window. They fear that by committing to an idea, they will lose out on all other possibilities. To escape this, Idealists may distract themselves by looking for more possibilities when it is time to settle on a decision, not realizing that doing so will cost them more opportunities in the long run.

When Idealist buy into ideas for the sake of it, they might fall prey to ideas that are absolutely ridiculous. Having an open mind is great but it will turn their lives upside down when they believe in concepts that aren't backed by a shred of factual evidence. To make matters worse, Idealists might even cover their ears and push away those who doubt them. If they continue to accept ideas without checking the facts, they will eventually find themselves in a world of trouble.

Thus far, we have explored both the Idealist's dominant and supportive traits. In our jargon, these traits are known as one's heroic traits. Think about it, don't we all look like heroes when we put these traits to use? Not just wannabe heroes, but real ones—those who are truly powerful yet unimpressed with their own abilities.

Superhuman strength and the ability to fly are awesome superpowers that we all wished we had. But Superman doesn't pride himself in any of those abilities. To him, using those powers to save the world is just another day on the job. Similarly, even though we are great at our dominant and supportive traits, we do not find them the least bit amazing. From our perspective, there is nothing special about these mundane things that we do every day.

That said, as heroic as our traits may seem, no hero in the world is perfect. Even the most powerful heroes, such as Naruto, Thor, or Wonder Woman, have their own flaws and weaknesses. However, that does not invalidate them as heroes; it only makes them all the more admirable. The same goes for our own heroic traits. They may not be perfect, but our strive to improve them is what sets us apart.

I am not a hero. I just did what any
decent person would have done.

Miep Gies

When our heroic traits bask in the light, they will inevitably cast shadows—traits that we tend to neglect. Our shadows are foreign to us, as they are the complete opposite of our natural traits. Because we fear what we don't understand, most of us will subconsciously push away or suppress these parts of ourselves. Unfortunately, if we allow the fear of failure to overpower our minds, these suppressed shadows will eventually swallow us whole.

Nevertheless, shadows are not our weaknesses. They are simply parts of ourselves that we are unfamiliar with, and therefore, would rather avoid. But if we harness our shadows, they will eventually become our hidden strengths. It may be daunting at first to explore these dark and unknown parts of ourselves. However, with a curious mind and a compassionate heart, there's nothing to be afraid of. With that said, let us venture deep into the shadows within us.

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Shadows Within [Idealist]