Clashes and Complements

Good storytellers are master observers of human nature. In a really good book, you'll find characters who we instinctively 'know'. We've all dealt with strong-willed know-it-alls; cautious, meticulous types; ho-hum folk that take life with a shrug; party people that just want to have fun! The author, A.A. Milne who wrote the Winnie the Pooh stories built characters with personalities and temperaments with whom even children could relate: Bossy Rabbit, Pensive Eeyore, Bouncy Tigger, and Diplomatic Pooh. Understanding temperament and personality - yours and your children's could help you in clearing a path through problem areas in relational issues and learning needs.

There are many books and resources for further information. One of my favorites is by Florence Littauer called Personality Plus, How to Understand Others by Understanding Yourself. But for our purposes here, I'll just boil down a few points. In this post, you'll meet "Rabbit".

Rabbit(often called choleric)*

Strengths
Leader, strong-willed, decisive, goal oriented, prefers an organized environment, likes to organize others, delegates work, thrives on opposition, doesn't seem to need friends, is usually right, good in emergencies
Weaknesses: egotistical, can be a compulsive worker, must control everything,
intolerant of weakness, can be manipulating, gives un-asked for advice, can be argumentative, has difficulty admitting mistakes or weaknesses, does not like to apologize
The Rabbit Parent:
Strengths: exerts sound leadership, likes to establish goals, family-motivator, usually has a correct answer, likes an organized household

Weaknesses: can be over-domineering, too busy for the mundane of family activities, provides answers too quickly, can be impatient with less than perfect performance, has a hard time allowing children relaxation time (considers it non-productive)

Next: Winnie-the-Pooh