I discovered my PRINT – and it was incredibly revealing…

This blog is brought to you by our work experience superstar Chloe Campbell-Hamilton, who’s been busy reflecting on her PRINT Profile and exploring how her unique Unconscious Motivators influence how she performs in the workplace.

One of my favourite experiences at H&H has been receiving the most scarily accurate thing I have ever read – my PRINT report.

So, what is a PRINT report? It’s a write-up of your PRINT – which comprises your unique Unconscious Motivators, your Best Self, and your Shadow Self, so you can see exactly how these influence your productivity and performance at work.

To receive your PRINT report, you have to partake in a perceptive questionnaire which asks you a series of questions to figure out your Unconscious Motivators. Knowing your Unconscious Motivators allows you to understand why you think and behave the way you do.

The motivations behind our actions

Everyone has two Unconscious Motivators (from a set of nine) – a major and a minor. I’m a major PRINT 1 (so my major Unconscious Motivator is ‘For things to be perfect, correct and right’ and I’m a minor PRINT 2 (so my minor Unconscious Motivator is ‘To be needed and appreciated’). Both of which, in my opinion, are highly accurate!

The PRINT survey is remarkably intelligent. During my meeting with Nicola (H&H’s very own PRINT expert), she explained to me that it doesn’t stop asking questions until it has eliminated any ‘fluke’ answers and is fully satisfied that it’s uncovered your Unconscious Motivators. Nicola also explained that there’s no right answer to PRINT and that I shouldn’t worry (although this proved rather difficult for me, since my major Unconscious Motivator comes with a perfectionist tendency to worry about such things!).

And while my minor Unconscious Motivator initially made me think, ‘does this make me some kind of desperate sad person?!’, I came to learn there is more than meets the eye to my Unconscious Motivators.

My major Unconscious Motivator: ‘For things to be perfect, correct and right’

My mum often playfully calls me ‘Little Miss Perfect’ (which always reminds me of the quirky characters from the ‘Mr Men’ book series). It is not of course, because I constantly do everything perfectly – but rather that I always try to.

This is (as most of my close friends would vouch for) a result of my major Unconscious Motivator. Having it spelled out in my PRINT report made it clear for me to see how my everyday behaviour is influenced by it.

I am quite a perfectionist, and I am easily annoyed by more lax people, and a lack of organisation in general. On a more positive note, my PRINT report informed me that when I’m in my Best Self (at my most productive and collaborative) I can inspire those around me to be more productive too.

My penchant for being really efficient and productive can be very helpful in many cases, such as when I’m working on big projects or meeting strict, looming deadlines. And it can be beneficial outside the workplace too (one example being that the task of planning and organising the girls’ summer holidays often falls to me!).

But my Best Self is only one side of the PRINT coin. On the other side is my Shadow Self. We all have Shadow Selves – where we’re less productive, less collaborative, and less inclined to perform to our potential. And we all have unique ‘Triggers’ (the specific actions and behaviours of others that send us into Shadow). For example, a seriously lazy, unproductive person would likely Trigger my major PRINT, and send me into Shadow.

According to my PRINT report, in Shadow, I may become irritated very quickly, or sometimes come across as overly controlling or inflexible. However, this is the point of PRINT. It’s designed to help you identify your positive and negative traits so you can formulate coping methods to stay in your Best Self and avoid being Triggered into Shadow.

My minor Unconscious Motivator: ‘To be needed and appreciated’t’

This Unconscious Motivator, as I’ve since learned, doesn’t make me a desperate sad person at all – but rather someone who always strives to provide a valuable contribution and be a key member of a team. I feel this is a useful Unconscious Motivator to have, since most working environments require a lot of teamwork!

I also like to feel that my work is recognised and appreciated and be properly listened to – another occasion where my PRINT report hit the nail on the head! Admittedly I do find it difficult to stay quiet (I’m probably way too chatty, I know). However, again with my minor Unconscious Motivator, there are some things I need to be cautious of to prevent being Triggered into Shadow. My minor Unconscious Motivator could make me unintentionally present my ideas too forcibly and end up attracting resentment from my peers – which clearly wouldn’t be ideal!

Would I recommend PRINT?

Overall, I’m very happy that I got the chance to discover my PRINT. My PRINT report was incredibly accurate, and identified certain behaviours and traits that I exhibit on a daily basis which I hadn’t picked up on! It was also helpful to see what Triggers me into Shadow so I can consciously create coping strategies to stay in Best Self – something I realised that I’ve being doing since my school years.

A PRINT report is very easy to understand and enables you to clearly see how your actions and behaviours are influenced by your Unconscious Motivators – meaning you can actively put steps in place to ensure you’re at your most productive.

Now that I know my PRINT, when I eventually do enter the world of work after University, I’ll have an advantage and will be able to understand how I can really make the most of my skills. I now have a deeper understanding of my own personality, which I find reassuring, and I would really encourage others to try PRINT out. Ultimately, if you don’t know yourself, how can you expect to know how you’ll best perform in the workplace, and with others?

So why not discover your PRINT?

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