HARES: Idea Machines (CREATORS)

Thinkers, with new behavior, Hares easily solve problems and come up with new ideas. They see the larger context of a situation, and the variety of options available. Some of their ideas may seem outlandish, but many are potential home runs.

• Hares break rules. Just because a procedure has been followed the same way for years does not mean a Hare will do things that way. Life is one big brainstorming session for them. They enjoy stream of consciousness conversations, often changing the subject as new thoughts occur. These people see life in terms of solutions. They love the creative process. The ideas never stop for Hares, but they can find it hard to choose one and follow it through to completion.

• Hares despise details. They can invent a revolutionary theory, but will rarely get around to balancing their checkbooks.

• Hares do not want to hear about the holes in their ideas. They get upset when traditional people point out the drawbacks to their breakthrough solutions. Often, Hares enjoy having an idea and handing it off to someone else. They like to see their brainchildren come to life as long as they do not have to deal with the details themselves.

• Hares sometimes find themselves categorized as dreamers, people who convey a sense that the sky’s the limit. Hares may also come across as pragmatic idea people who find obstacles challenging rather than defeating. Without Hares, we would still be sitting in caves somewhere, without so much as a fire or wheel to our names. As Hare Frank Zappa once said, “Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible. Albert Einstein also lauded the importance of out-of-the-box ideas when he asserted, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

Hares make good research and development people, inventors, consultants, litigation attorneys, and advertising writers.

The Hare Motto: “Don’t bother me with the details.”

Famous Hares include: Albert Einstein, Tom Sawyer, Eddie Murphy, Robin Williams, Bill Clinton, Steve Martin, Ronald Reagan, Shakespeare’s Romeo, Phoebe from Friends, and Seinfeld’s Kramer.

OWLS: On Their Way to the Future (ADVANCERS)

As people who think in practical terms and are natural doers, Owls know how to get things done. They can easily come up with ways to implement Hares’ ideas. These people naturally plan tactics, make key phone calls, or introduce the right people to each other. They have the ability to choose the best, most workable idea from many. Owls keep their team from wasting time and money on ideas that won’t work. They also help avoid the other extreme of failing in the market with a clone concept that doesn’t stand out.

• Owls enjoy selling an idea and putting it on the road to success.

• An Owl thinks a problem has been solved when a workable plan exists. They like to achieve goals by providing direct, effective solutions.

• Consummate planners, Owls are married to their “to-do” lists. When you tell them you want to do something, they will tell you the five most effective steps to take and give you a list of six people to call who can help you. They tend to be enthusiastic, persistent, and supportive. Owls are people of action.

• The instinct to plan a course of action is so innate in Owls that they sometimes have difficulty hearing an idea without constructing a regimen to make it happen. One Owl lashed out at her Hare C.E.O., who had been brainstorming in a meeting. “Will you make up your mind?” she sputtered.

  “What are you talking about?” he asked in surprise.

  “You’ve had six different ideas in the last twenty minutes and I’ve thrown away five almost complete implementation plans,” she explained in exasperation. “Every time you have a new idea, I waste tons of work.”

• Though Owls know how to get things done, they do not always think the original concept through completely. Consequently, they can miss obstacles and drawbacks, so they sometimes take elaborate steps to implement an idea that has a huge hole in it. Having a very detail-oriented support staff can help them succeed.

Owls make good producers, agents, politicians, campaign managers, mortgage brokers, and product salespeople.

The Owl Motto: “What you need to do is...”

Famous Owls include: Dick Cheney, best-selling author Harvey Mackay, Hillary Clinton, actress/activist Susan Sarandon, Iran/Contra get-it-done guy Oliver North, and Hamlet’s Laertes are all examples of Owls.

TURTLES: Protect by Finding Holes (REFINERS)

This is the person who loves to make rules, and can get efficiency put into any process. That is. as long as there’s an Owl/Turtle combination to do most of the detail work.

As people whose thinking and doing focus on the tried and true, Turtles recognize the weaknesses in a plan and enjoy doing step-by-step work. Often seen as skeptics by others, they challenge new ideas. They also love setting up routines and procedures. Comfortable with proven, more traditional solutions to problems, these people view themselves as sensible and well-paced.

• Because Turtles instinctively want to make sure an idea is foolproof, they love to play the devil’s advocate and point out the drawbacks of anything new or non-traditional. They are the wrong people to turn to if you just want a little encouragement.

• Turtles make sure a concept gets executed properly in the production stages. Keen organizers, they easily see where current procedures are ineffective or not properly followed. As one Turtle-manager put it, “I can be gone a week, and the moment I walk in I see what’s been done wrong.” They can both strengthen new ideas and troubleshoot the current process.

• If allowed to lead, Turtles can focus so much on what is wrong that the rest of the team feels stifled and criticized, paralyzing significant breakthroughs. Hares often feel that Turtles are negative and uninspired. Turtles can find Hares lofty, impractical, and disorganized.

• Turtles sometimes benefit from learning to understand the value of other work styles. They can also start to communicate their observations in more supportive ways. For instance, instead of saying, “This will never work. It’s illegal in three states,” a Turtle can ask a Hare, “What are your ideas for overcoming the fact that it’s illegal in three states?”

• One Hare from the mid-west built his dream house, a half million-dollar project, with an Owl architect. He never showed his mother, a Turtle, the plans, giving her a tour only when the house was complete. At the end of the tour, she said, “It’s beautiful, but where’s the laundry room?” It took over $20,000 to tear out the existing plumbing, walls, and basement to build that laundry room. This Hare could have avoided all the trouble if he had just shown his Turtle mother the blueprint at the start.

Turtles make good editors, accountants, tax and estate attorneys, financial planners, and managers of tradional processes.

The Turtle Motto: “It’ll never work.”

Famous Turtles include: Simon from American Idol, Donald Rumsfeld, Jerry Seinfeld, Colin Powell, comedian George Lopez, and Felix Unger of The Odd Couple.