PYG 101: Are you an activator or a maintainer?

On episode 100, I briefly shared the concept of being an activator or a maintainer.

Understanding whether you’re an activator or maintainer can help you figure out the best way you’re called to serve others if you’ve decided to package your genius by working with people.

Do you know which one you are?

As a start, activators tend to feel very energized up front; they’re excited and often have the ability to transfer their energy to others. Activators get people unstuck and projects off the ground.

Activators can focus intensely for a pre-determined set of time, from an hour to three months to a year – as long as there’s an end in sight. They appreciate knowing the starting point and ending point up front. Some are commitment-phobic.

Activators like brainstorming, getting projects off the ground, being a part of the creation process, and tend to lose patience if projects or problems linger without ever reaching a sense of completion or resolution.

Maintainers, on the other hand, don’t find the day to day mundane. They keep projects going.

They enjoy long relationships sustained and developed over time. Maintainers get excited by open ended arrangements; they prefer a commitment as short term projects scare them.

Maintainers’ best work often comes out over time once they have had a chance to ‘warm up’.

Maintainers also don’t mind keeping up what someone else created or first put in place. They often work through relationship – the longer you know and work with them, the deeper and richer the experience gets.

Which type do you resonate with?