The Fantastic Four

Everyone is special. Everyone is unique. Our differences are what make the world go round. 

Now wait a second. Differences can cause problems too. They cause frustrations, confusion, and annoyance between people. Dealing with my boss? My classmate? That’s easy. It’s my own family I have to worry about. Or my good friend. My spouse. They don’t understand me and I sure don’t understand them . . . 

Why does Jake blow up every time I try to give him advice? 

I know Sara’s back hurts, but she complains all the time. 

Lydia spends way too much time hanging downtown and not enough time finishing her homework. I don’t think she has a practical bone in her body.

Ben just doesn’t care where he goes to college. It’s as if he has no ambition and no life. In fact, sometimes I think he has no emotions at all. 

Ironically, it’s the people we care about the most that drive us the craziest. They often act in ways that we would never choose to act. Ways that make absolutely no sense. 

Why do they do that? 

It’s easy enough to understand that people think differently. It’s harder to understand why. Learning about their temperament—and yours—can help. 

So what is a temperament?

Temperament is not the same as personality. There are billions of personalities. There are only 4 temperaments. And despite their funny names—choleric, sanguine, melancholic, and phlegmatic—learning about them can be a key to understanding why different people are well, different. Why they act in certain ways. Why we think in certain ways. So the more we understand the temperaments, the more we understand people. 

Choleric. The choleric is the leader. Cholerics are ambitious, daring, and love a challenge. They can turn problems into challenges. They have goals and know how to achieve them. They like to debate and are not afraid of conflict. They are good at telling people what to do and have no trouble expressing their opinions. Cholerics are driven to succeed. 

Sanguine. The sanguine is a people person! Sanguines love parties, hanging out with friends, and often enjoy being the center of attention. They love to talk and are generally very outgoing. They are compassionate and complimentary. Sanguines are easy to talk to because you never have to worry about what to say. They are great fun to be around! 

Melancholic. The melancholic is very reflective and thoughtful. They are deeply interested in upholding ideas such as justice, beauty, and goodness. Melancholics are generally focused and methodical in their thinking and movements. They are cautious. They are often shy and usually take longer to make friends because they don’t have the ability to jump into conversation the way sanguines do. Their deep reflection can produce great insight and advice about the important things in life. 

Phlegmatic. Phlegmatics are laid back. They don’t sweat the small stuff. They don’t lose their temper easily and are willing to go with the flow in most situations. Their ability to remain relaxed in stressful situations makes them easy to be around. They are peaceful people who are good at listening and extremely patient. Because of their accepting and relaxing demeanor, phlegmatics are generally loved by everyone. 

So there you have it. The 4 temperaments. Believe it or not, it really only scratches the surface. At least it tells you what each of the temperaments are. It does not, however, explain what they are not. 

The temperaments are not for making excuses. So, just because I have a choleric temperament doesn’t mean I can just talk over other people. Nor does it mean I can sit on the couch because my phlegmatic temperament makes me less motivated. That’s not the point. Learning about the temperaments is supposed to help strengthen good qualities. And learn how to overcome the bad ones. And just as importantly, encourage others in their strengths. And understand their weaknesses—while also kindly helping them to defeat them. 

That’s why it would help to provide a list of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the given temperaments. As well as some information about their self-worth from a temperament book by Authors Art and Larraine Bennet. 

Choleric

Strengths: Quick-thinking, problem-solving, ambitious, driven, daring, goal-oriented, courageous, persevering, determined, logical, practical, methodical, passionate. 

Weaknesses: Overbearing, dictatorial, bossy, unsympathetic, uncaring, easily angered, argumentative. 

Self-worth: Based on accomplishments achieved. 

Sanguine

Strengths: Loving, friendly, sympathetic, cheerful, optimistic, complimentary, open, forgiving, generous. 

Weaknesses: Overly-chatty, scatter-brained, frivolous, distracted, unfocused, tendency to shallowness, easily gives into peer pressure. 

Self-worth: Based on what others think of them. 

Melancholic

Strengths: Reflective, dedicated, meditative, focused, analytical, unfailingly loyal, a keen sense of justice. 

Weaknesses: Moody, easily depressed, pessimistic, hesitating, worrying, anxious, irritable, complaining, tendency to mull things over and over in the mind. 

Self-worth: Based on their own high expectations.  

Phlegmatic

Strengths: Patient, peaceful, relaxed, accepting, kind, non-confrontational, good listener, a desire to please. 

Weaknesses: Unambitious, passive, unmotivated, dispassionate, tendency to laziness. 

Self-worth: Would rather be unhappy than be in the midst of conflict. 

Hope this list helps! One final thing to remember: there is no best temperament. There is no worst temperament. Each one has strengths that are equally good. Each one has weaknesses that are equally bad. Each one is a tool for understanding—and not just to understand the qualities of 4 different personality types. They are an instrument for understanding each one of the amazing personalities we encounter throughout life. Each one deserves to be recognized.