Are you looking for a type A personality strengths and weaknesses?
If you’re a type A yourself, that’s a great way to know yourself better. If you’re only acquainted with one, you’ll know much better about them once you give this think-piece a thorough read.
The world might portray type As only with their negative traits, but they have really cool sides too. So, type As, here’s a way to show the world how good you can be! Others, you can actually learn from type As and avoid major landmines.
So, let’s plunge deep in here…
Type A Personality Strengths
The skills of Type As were always underrated. Though they bring immense results with their cutthroat ways, hardly enough people praise them for that. So, if you’re a type A, use your strengths in your favor and grow and shove your skills in the haters’ faces.
And if you know a type A, learn to delegate them better tasks based on their skills with these…
1. They might have a longer lifespan
People with Type A Behavior Pattern (TABP) personality traits are more aware of their body needs. They try to lead a healthy and stable life with a balanced diet, regular exercise, and avoiding any kind of drug addiction.
This is mainly because they’re so driven towards their goals. They don’t want any health issues caused due to their carelessness to become an obstruction in their growth. As a result, they have a chance of a longer lifespan. They stress on healthy practices in life. This is also supported by medically reviewed studies.
2. They can perform well even in a crisis
Individuals with type A personalities know that panicking won’t help them go far in life. So, even under higher levels of stress, they don’t lose their calm and have their aim on the objectives.
So, whether it’s in their personal or professional life, they can handle the worst situations all by themselves. They think logically and practically in demanding situations which leads them to the quickest route out.
Loved ones and coworkers always count on them because they always come up with the best solutions within a short time. Their confident decisions can make the tables turn instantly. This is also backed by medical reviewers.
3. They’re more likely to be scholars
When compared to type B personality, type A children have a higher chance of becoming scholars. They score better academically. As per researchers, it’s possibly due to their high drive to make the best of all situations. They’re driven by achievements and the desire to stand out in all fields of life.
Partly, this might also be because type A’s hate the idea of losing. Their traits kick in since childhood and that makes them thrive the most in their academic life. They’re also aware of the reality and value of education in the later years which as a whole contributes to their academic performance.
4. They have higher chances of success
They have a strong will and are always determined. Their immense dedication to academics and work is bound to produce the best results in terms of finance and satisfaction.
The finance part is because they give their ultimate best in their workplace, stay updated with deadlines before time, and are highly efficient and persistent.
This helps them stand out to their superiors which leads to further growth in their work life and finances. They also feel satisfied because they give their best efforts and get recognized for it. They leave no chance of not reaching their goals.
5. They can deal with any kind of change
Most people like a stable life once they achieve certain things in their life. They fear that if they take any challenge that’s beyond their capacity, they might lose it all.
But type A personality people are risk-takers. They can’t sit idle because they attained certain goals. They’re hungry for challenges every single day.
They don’t mind the fact that a wrong move might bring them back to square one. Rather, they’re quite confident in their skills and don’t stop unless they reach their goals.
They’re commended in their professional life for this. But if they’re surrounded by stability-minded people, they might be discouraged.
6. They make great leaders
Type A people are great at leadership positions. Due to their thorough judgment skills and intolerance towards failure, they can find out everyone’s strengths and weaknesses in their team or department.
As a result, they choose the suitable person for each job and delegate the correct responsibility based on their skills.
Moreover, since they’re passionate and competitive, they look forward to their team being highly productive. For that, they provide the best guidance to create new perfectionists like themselves.
Due to their goal and achievement-driven nature, they make sure they get the best results from the team.
7. Their performance is best in an independent situation
Individuals with TABP personality traits are extremely ambitious which makes them work out any situation at hand single-handedly and with maximum freedom. They can tackle a single project all by themselves.
They work at a fast pace which helps them cover everything necessary within a given time limit. Moreover, in independent situations, they don’t feel distracted or worried about collaborating with someone else of different productivity.
This allows them to work with utmost peace and wrap things up earlier and efficiently. For the same reason, they flourish with a direct management style. They like to have complete control over a situation to produce A-class results to avoid balancing with others. They
8. They’re great multi-taskers
Type As are always known for their fast-paced working style. They can’t handle wasting time, instead, they’re obsessed with making things happen within time. If they have a lot on their plate, they don’t worry about it. Instead, they undertake multiple tasks by themselves to meet the expectations.
Their determined nature is the source of their high drive to get everything they aim for. Once they set an eye on something, they’re too stubborn to back off.
Whether in their professional or personal life, they always focus on high productivity. Even if they do mere chores, they can handle more than one at once at the same time.
9. They’re passionate about their goals
People usually assume that Type As can thrive so much because they’re driven by money and status. However, it’s because they’re passionate about their job. Without passion, it’s easy to get bored of a certain goal and jump from one goal to another.
However, type As can stay committed to their duties and responsibilities till the end because of their passion. More than anyone else’s praise, they focus on their own feelings. They hate to lose and become one of the failures of society which pushes them to work harder.
10. They’re dominant everywhere
People with type A personality traits always find their way to a dominant position. For instance, among students in the same class, if one of them has type A traits, they’re usually chosen as the class monitor or student council president.
In a debate competition, they always overpower the opposition with their tactics and reasoning. After their office presentation, the boss praises them and asks others to follow suit. In short, they’re good at almost every field because of hard work and sheer effort and they can become the teacher or higher-ups’ favorite.
However, type As aren’t blemish-free characters. So, let’s further know about those here…
Type A Personality Weaknesses
Yes, you probably heard a lot about the bad sides of being a type A. But if you know their weaknesses and discuss those with them, you might be able to help them out. Being a type A yourself, you must also look through the list and find out a way to improve yourself from within…
1. Their personality increases the risk of cardiovascular health issues
Originally, cardiologists Meyer Friedman and Ray Rosenman in the 1950s observed similarities among patients that were more likely to have heart disease.
No research or study till yet successfully proved the link between cardiovascular diseases and TABP personality. However, the increased risk of heart problems is undeniable.
For instance, any cardiac patient is irritable, impatient, short-tempered, or stressed. and even judgemental which are the basic traits of a type A personality person. This naturally increases the chances of heart issues. All of these lead to hypertension which might again lead to coronary heart disease.
2. They grow distant from loved ones every day
As mentioned before, Type As are extremely passionate about their work, responsibilities, and duties. They’re ready to work 24/7 as they’re ambitious.
However, they devote less time to their loved ones. When someone asks them to spend time with them, they believe that the other person is meddling in their life or is troubling their life.
This creates lots of misunderstanding in their personal, professional, and social circles. Some research also found that type As are extremely vulnerable to social dysfunction because of this. They’re more prone to push away everyone faster if they easily lose their temper.
3. They’re more prone to mental health concerns
Though there’s no in-depth research on the relationship between mental health issues and type A traits, a small-scale study found a connection between type A personalities and symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Usually, type A’s are inflexible and passionate perfectionists. The idea of losing or not being able to reach the desired goal shakes them from within.
They’re also fast-paced because they’re constantly afraid of losing time. They burden themselves both physically and mentally which might be the root cause of the situation.
If anything, this only makes them anxious about unfavorable situations in life.
4. They’re susceptible to stress and its impacts
Type A individuals put excess pressure on themselves to succeed without a hitch in every field and reach their goals faster. This kind of pressure on oneself can stress them excessively. It also makes them more susceptible to all the negative consequences of health.
One study proved that people with TABP personality traits had twice the chance of suffering from strokes in comparison to others. Another research found a connection between job stress and stroke incidences.
Other than that, it’s also known that due to high stress, the body releases high levels of cortisol hormone. This hormone is responsible for gastrointestinal issues, high blood pressure, and anxiety.
5. They’re a misfit in groups
Whenever they’re allocated tasks in groups, whether at work, at school, or at home, type A individuals become a real pain for others. However, it’s not something they do knowingly. They like to take charge of things, and as said they’re great leaders.
But in groups, everyone must coordinate with each other… on the other hand, type As by default act like the leader. This gets the other group members angry. Moreover, the methods of type As (fast pace working, my-way-or-highway rules, and extreme dedication) also intimidate others.
People can’t take a type A as a group member. Type A people also don’t like to follow someone else’s leads. They also hate the idea of sharing their power with someone else.
All of these make them a misfit in group settings.
6. They act stubborn
When a type A individual decides something, they just can’t back off. This is great when it’s just about their goals. However, when it comes to arguments, it’s hard to change their mind.
Even if you give them a good reason to prove your point, they won’t accept facts. Instead, they’ll find roundabout ways to prove you wrong. You and even they know that your ideas are better, but they just won’t give in. Arguments with a type A individual is just draining and not worth it.
For this, they can come off as insensitive to others and create a tense atmosphere around them.
7. They lose their temper over the slightest things
Type A folks also have the shortest fuse. They easily get angered by the slightest mistakes. So, if your boss is a type A, they might make you want to quit work. If they’re a team member, you’ll feel they’re unreasonable and arrogant and want to join another team.
Type A’s have extreme and unreasonable methods to reach their goals. They don’t focus on their personal life and prioritize their professional life over everything else. They expect others to do the same. This makes working with them a bitter experience.
They’re also extremely strict in their personal life. They look down on their close ones if they don’t achieve the best.
8. They have poor communication skills
The communication skills of type A people are different in their professional and personal life.
In their workplace, they usually talk more, i.e., give others strict orders, scold others, and never listen to even logical arguments. They show aggressive signs towards their coworkers which makes it quite frustrating. They don’t try to understand any personal difficulties and have no leeway for others.
On the other hand, in their personal life, they’re bad with emotions. They don’t try to or can’t express their feelings well. This creates lots of resentment and misunderstanding in their personal and social interaction.
9. They’re hard to please
Individuals with Type A personality traits only want the best of the best. They can’t take anything mediocre in themselves, others, or even the things they receive.
For instance, if you have a Type A parent, they always want to score 100/100… even a 99.5 will make them scrunch up their nose and disregard your efforts. For them, it’s all or nothing.
People around them can’t keep up with these expectations and often burn out or give up.
A word from ThePleasantPersonality
Being a type A can be tough because they’re supposed to be great achievers. Others tolerate their negative traits just so that they can spill their productivity. Loved ones judge them for being so distant.
So, if you’re a type A yourself, make sure you use your strengths to achieve your goals. But don’t go overboard to the point that close ones think you don’t care about them… and definitely don’t ruin your health.
If you know a type A, try to help them out the best you can. If they act argumentative, share the link and let them decide for themselves. Let them know that you only want the best for them.
Article Sources
1. https://www.insider.com/guides/health/mental-health/type-a-personality
2. https://www.healthline.com/health/what-is-a-type-a-personality
3. https://www.betterup.com/blog/type-a-personality
