Imagine you sit down to your laptop, ready to work on your business.
Do you…
…Grab your to-do list, and easily check off tasks one by one?
…Quickly complete your client work but struggle to commit to your personal business projects?
…Love your business but find it challenging to stay on top of mundane tasks?
No matter your modus operandi (M.O.), none of these are wrong ways of working. They simply demonstrate your personal tendencies.
But it’s important to understand that your natural tendencies affect your struggles and successes in business.
How can you learn to work with your default operating mode to ensure you’re growing your business with less hassle and heartache?
That’s exactly what I’m talking about today.
Keep reading to discover your tendency and how you can work with it to create a more successful business.
Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies
For the past few years, Gretchen Rubin has been refining a framework she calls The Four Tendencies (first appearing in her book, Better Than Before).
In a nutshell, this framework distinguishes four ways that people tend to respond to deadlines, resolutions, tasks, and rules.
Here are the four tendencies as she defines them:
Upholders respond readily to outer and inner expectations. The downside is that these people can get boxed in by the rules and can feel frozen if they don’t understand what’s expected of them.
Questioners question all expectations and will meet an expectation only if they think it makes sense. The downside is that sometimes they ask so many questions, they exhaust themselves and others.
Obligers meet outer expectations, but struggle to meet expectations they impose on themselves. They require accountability from an outside source.
Rebels resist all expectations, outer and inner alike. If someone asks or tells them to do something, they’re likely to want to do the opposite. Rebels might love the freedom of running their own business but get bored by the mundane tasks they have to do.
When I discovered this framework, I was so excited, I immediately asked my Make It Work Online and Make 10k clients where they found themselves within in this framework.
You might know which tendency describes you simply by reading the descriptions above. But if you’re not sure, you can take the quiz here. (Personally, however, I found that reading about all of them in Better Than Before was more helpful than the quiz.)
Once you know your tendency, the next step is to learn how to work with it so that it doesn’t control you. (And who wouldn’t want that?)
Working with your tendency
Once you know your tendency, it’s time to take action. (You know me! I don’t just teach you the theory; I help you put what you learn into practice.)
An important note before I share the ways to work with your tendency: You can’t change your tendency; it’s part of you. Instead, you can learn how to work with it so you know what you need to be successful.
For example, Questioners must have someone they can ask questions of, Obligers must have external accountability, and so on.
Make sense?
Okay, so you know your tendency (take the quiz if you don’t). Now, it’s time to set yourself up for success in business by creating systems and strategies that work to your natural advantage.
The Upholder advantage
If you’re an upholder, you don’t need a lot of supervision. You simply need to understand what the rules are so that you can accomplish what’s expected.
To set yourself up for success, try using checklists and breaking down projects into bite-sized steps. Because you like to see your progress over time, you can also try time-tracking apps that show your growth.
You need help knowing the rules, staying informed, and having someone there to continue to guide you… so you can go and do your thing.
The Questioner advantage
If you’re a questioner you’re motivated by reason. You want to feel like what you’re doing is logical. The upside of this is that once you make up your mind to do something, you stick to it.
When faced with an important task, remind yourself why you’re doing it. What’s the reason that you’re doing it in this way, at this time? Having these answers will help keep you motivated.
To help you grow even faster, find a trusted coach or mentor who can answer your questions so you don’t stay stuck forever.
The Obliger advantage
If you’re an obliger, you’re motivated by external accountability. Your main concern is what has to get done. A good example of how this shows up in your work is that you find it easy to focus on client work but neglect your own business tasks.
The key for you is to create a system of accountability. That means you must find a coach or a group that gives you clear deadlines and solid action steps, and that requires you to report back on your progress.
The Rebel advantage
If you’re a rebel, you’re motivated by freedom. Because you’re so in touch with what you want, you can use your feelings to your advantage.
When you have to complete an important task, focus on what makes it enjoyable to you: Can you listen to your favorite music while you get things done? Do you love being alone in your office with distractions? Do you prefer the buzz of a local coffee shop where you can eat pastries and sip a latte?
Finding ways to enjoy the moment will help you stick to your obligations.
To uplevel your growth, you need someone to help you keep your eye on the prize and to allow you the freedom to experiment in your business. You want someone who sets a solid foundation that allows you to run your business in the way that feels right for YOU.
Click to TweetAre you an Upholder, Obliger, Questioner, or Rebel? How to use the Four Tendencies from Gretchen Rubin in business.What’s your tendency?
I’m curious! Which tendency best reflects your behavior and habits?
What unique challenges do you face as a result of your tendency?
How do you plan to work with your tendency to get better results in your business?
Leave a comment below.
I’m a Questioner (with a strong Rebel streak) 🙂
I read the book last year and never thought about it in terms of business, but it’s true that habits are really important in business too. I’m not there yet, but I’m starting to create systems. I finally tracked my time this week and it was helpful to see that I actually DO spend a lot of time with family (versus my blog/biz). It feels like I spend a lot more time on my biz because I’m thinking about it a lot (and want to spend more time on it!)
So good to notice what is really getting done (vs what it’s easy to think is getting done). Way to track it!
I’m excited to see you post about this, Jenny! I love the Four Tendencies, am eagerly awaiting the book, and have been thinking about how to use it in my self care coaching.
I’m an Upholder, and a unique challenge for me is trying to live up to the VERY high standards I have for myself. A simple to-do item, once I put it off or procrastinate on it, can become this emotionally charged thing. (“Why haven’t you done it yet? What if you lose an opportunity? Better remember to do it today!”…thanks a lot, internal dialogue!) It helps me to remember to relax, and realize that no one else is stressing out about it – I don’t have to either!
As a fellow upholder, I can very much relate to the challenge of high standards! At each stage of my business growth, I have to asses where that supports my business, my brand, and my clients… and where it holds me back. My growth always comes from a reset in that department 🙂
Hi, Jenny,
I’m a big fan of Rubin, and have used these tendencies with my health coaching clients.
Personally, I’m a Questioner and find group programs to be less useful for my own business development. Mostly because I play devil’s advocate and go back to those clarifying coaching questions that impede my own growth.
It’s good that you know what you need best!
I turned out to be a rebel. Thanks for talking about this; I downloaded the app and I’m going to read the book too!
I did notice throughout my life that I hate being told what to do; hence me leaving corporate but I’m also realizing that I need a schedule…not sure if this contradicts my rebel nature.
Love that you know this about yourself. Knowledge is power, as they say! I think they key for rebels is to find a way to make following structure rebellious — but you have to believe it’s true (rebels can’t fake it!). So if you believe that building your own business (which will create the freedom you want most) is a bit rebellious and you’re committed to doing that, then you can say “I’m going to use a schedule because that lets me create the rebellious/free life I really want.”
But you’ve got to believe it and stand behind it. Hunt until you find the ninja mental trick that gets you on board.. or make the schedule work for your rebel self 🙂
Love this Jenny! I am currently taking Gretchen’s course on this. I want to understand each of them so I can better support my clients! As you know, I am an Upholder!
Without taking any test, I already an certain I’m a Rebel! I will happily do client work AND work for myself–as long as it’s the creative, fun stuff–but when it comes to reports and bookkeeping, I feel like I am being tortured! And I almost always have music playing, insense burning, a great view to look at over my laptop–whatever makes work enjoyable.
What I have found has helped me tremendously with the mundane chores is gamification–beating my best times to get things done faster, beating last week’s ‘scores’, making up small rewards–anything to make it all more fun and that builds in blocks of free time between tasks. Since I started my little ‘score boards’ for mundane tasks, I’m vastly more productive each day–and have gained more time to do what I want to do!
I love this, Christine! Knowing yourself is essential to creating the business and lives we want. I know sometimes Rebels struggle to figure out what will make them follow through, so I LOVE LOVE LOVE that you know games make it work for you. Thank you for sharing!
I’m a questioner, and that’s exactly why MIWO was an awesome fit for me! Throughout the program I had opportunities to ask questions and better understand the “why” behind different strategies. I’d taken a couple of other programs, and they left me feeling frustrated, confused, and stuck. Having access to the MIWO coaching team throughout the program made all the difference for me and really helped me keep my momentum going throughout the entire 12 weeks…and beyond! A completely unsolicited endorsement, but I thought about this a lot throughout MIWO and couldn’t help but share. 🙂
Oh my goodness! What a glowing testimonial for MIWO. Thank you!
I love that you know your type, and truly, that’s what makes MIWO so special—it’s designed to help all of the types. Questioners get their endless questions answered, Obligers stay accountable, Upholders make sure they’re not just doing work because they “should” but are focused on the right work, and Rebels are given room to be themselves and tap into what maters to them.
And this is such a testament to you and your own “get what you came for” attitude, Miranda! Knowing yourself and being willing to get what you need to be successful… that’s how it’s done! Bravo, and I’m so glad to know you!