KNOW YOUR TEMPERAMENT (Mwenda E. G.

)
What exactly is your temperament? This exercise will assist you discover your temperament
combination. It is intended to help you know your potential, what you are good at, as well as
what area you probably need to work on in order to achieve your best – That‟s God‟s will for
you. The exercise is divided into 4 (four) sections.

PART ONE
Answer these questions as honestly as you know yourself – the way you are at first instinct/ the
natural you, not the renewed you or as you would like to be.
1. You succeed when some people fail, not because your plans are better, but because you
keep pushing when others get discouraged and quit. TRUE/ FALSE
2. Your calm tranquil nature usually keeps you form getting upset in the face of external
turmoil or stress. TRUE/ FALSE
3. You seem to be able to diagnose fairly accurately the obstacles and dangers of projects
you are planning. TRUE/ FALSE
4. You are annoyed by the enthusiasm of some people, and you guess that you kind of need it
sometimes. TRUE/ FALSE
5. You usually allow other people to meet you rather than pushing forward to meet them.
TRUE/ FALSE
6. Your leadership ability is more the result of persistence than charisma. TRUE/ FALSE
7. You are not able to converse easily with other people, but you are quite good at planning
them and analyzing them. TRUE/ FALSE
8. You frequently find yourself arriving late for engagements and forgetting resolutions.
TRUE/ FALSE
9. You are the kind of person who is deeply loyal to the few friends you have than the kind
of person who has a lot of friends. TRUE/ FALSE
10. You tend to be motivated by the crowd (or situation). If they are too busy you get busy, if
they are not, you are not. TRUE/ FALSE
11. You are self-motivated. If something is there to be done, you can‟t be satisfied until you
have completed it. TRUE/ FALSE
12. You usually prefer solitary activities such as reading, to activities, which involve other
people. TRUE/ FALSE
13. You go over decisions and you make them, asking yourself if you chose right. TRUE/
FALSE
14. You sometimes only half-heartedly help others because deep down inside you, you think
you have a better plan and an easier way. TRUE/ FALSE
15. You tend to remember when people have insulted you and to think about it every now and
then. TRUE/ FALSE
16. You really enjoy yourself and your attitude seems to be contagious to those around you.
TRUE/ FALSE
17. In your introspection you tend to relive over and over again the events of the past. TRUE/
FALSE.
18. You have a fairly keen mind and can usually plan worthwhile long - range projects.
TRUE/ FALSE
19. You‟d probably be more sociable if you weren‟t afraid people would reject you. TRUE/
FALSE
20. You like to be where there is something going on all the time. TRUE/ FALSE
21. It makes you gloomy when other people ignore or avoid you. TRUE/ FALSE
22. Some people say that you are a born leader because of your tendency to „take over‟‟.
TRUE/ FALSE
23. You know where you want to go and you usually discipline yourself to get there. TRUE/
FALSE
24. You have a tendency to hold grudges against people who are rude to you. TRUE/ FALSE
25. You tend to be emotional, things arouse or upset you pretty easily. TRUE/ FALSE
26. It usually takes something drastic to get me excited or upset. TRUE/ FALSE
27. You have a rather even-tempered emotional response to things. TRUE/ FALSE

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28. Sometimes when you see two people laughing you wonder if they are laughing at you.
TRUE/ FALSE
29. You have a quite even disposition, not too many ups and downs. TRUE/ FALSE
30. Your friends would describe you as relaxed and even-tempered. TRUE/ FALSE
31. You should have more self-confidence; you tend to underestimate (your) abilities. TRUE/
FALSE
32. If a job needs to be done, you do it regardless how unpleasant it is. TRUE/ FALSE
33. You tend to reflect a good deal on your dreams, hopes and aspirations. TRUE/ FALSE
34. You can put up with frustration without becoming depressed or angry. TRUE/ FALSE
35. You make new friends so easily that you tend to forget old friends. TRUE/ FALSE
36. You wouldn‟t mind belonging to several clubs at the same time. TRUE/ FALSE
37. You have a tendency to think gloomy, pessimistic thought. TRUE/ FALSE
38. You often have trouble finishing things you had started. TRUE/ FALSE
39. In social situations, you are talkative and spontaneous. TRUE/ FALSE
40. You are usually uncomfortable in a group of people. TRUE/ FALSE
41. You enjoy (being with) people and just like to be around them. TRUE/ FALSE
42. You should probably be less moody and sensitive. TRUE/ FALSE
43. You somewhat have a defensive, touchy nature. TRUE/ FALSE
44. Sometimes you think about getting revenge for old wrongs. TRUE/ FALSE
45. Adversity just stimulates you to push a little harder. TRUE/ FALSE
46. You are somewhat serious and very deeply emotional. TRUE/ FALSE
47. You like to spend time planning things way ahead of time. TRUE/ FALSE
48. You have a warm spirit. You are lively and enjoy living. TRUE/ FALSE
49. By nature you seem to be a pretty good “peace maker.” TRUE/ FALSE
50. Your friends consider you to be a tactful person. TRUE/ FALSE
51. You tend to be quite tolerant of other people. TRUE/ FALSE
52. You are usually well organized in your work. TRUE/ FALSE
53. When things go wrong, you knuckle down and try harder. TRUE/ FALSE
54. You have a pretty good ability to get things done. TRUE/ FALSE
55. You are calm, relaxed and rather unemotional. TRUE/ FALSE
56. You tend to get your feelings hurt fairly easily. TRUE/ FALSE
57. You see yourself as cheerful, sociable person. TRUE/ FALSE
58. You have a tendency to feel sorry for yourself. TRUE/ FALSE
59. Socially, you are a pretty out-going person. TRUE/ FALSE
60. A strong will is one of your best assets. TRUE/ FALSE
61. You usually have a good time at parties. TRUE/ FALSE
62. You usually make friends easily. TRUE/ FALSE
63. Your life is fast-paced and active. TRUE/ FALSE
64. You (feel that you) need to worry less. TRUE/ FALSE
65. You tend to move, speak slowly and calmly. TRUE/ FALSE
66. You have a tendency to brood about things. TRUE/ FALSE
67. You tend to be a pretty easygoing person. TRUE/ FALSE
68. You usually finish whatever you begin. TRUE/ FALSE
69. You don‟t get upset very often. TRUE/ FALSE
70. You are rarely at a loss for something to say. TRUE/ FALSE
71. You usually get a lot of fun out of life. TRUE/ FALSE
72. Your friends would call you an extrovert. TRUE/ FALSE
73. You tend to analyze yourself frequently. TRUE/ FALSE
74. Unfinished tasks really bother you. TRUE/ FALSE
75. You don‟t get upset easily. TRUE/ FALSE
76. You tend to be a hard, persistent worker. TRUE/ FALSE
77. You tend to resent people who oppose you. TRUE/ FALSE
78. You seldom get angry or overemotional. TRUE/ FALSE
79. You don‟t make friends easily. TRUE/ FALSE
80. You should probably be less lazy. TRUE/ FALSE

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 PART TWO
Now put a tick (√) against the answer that corresponds to what you said
applies to you in part 1. T represents TRUE while F is for FALSE. For
instance, if in Qn. 2 you answered TRUE, put a tick against it in part 2. If you
answered FALSE, leave it blank. It does not apply to you.

PHLEGMATIC CHOLERIC SANGUINE MELANCHOLIC

2–T 1–T 5–F 4–T
25 – F 3–T 7–F 13 – T
26 – T 6–T 9–F 14 – T
27 – T 8–F 12 – F 15 – T
29 – T 10 –F 16 – T 17 – T
30 – T 11 – T 19 – F 19 – T
34 – T 18 – T 20 – T 21 – T
42 – F 23 – T 22 – T 24 – T
43 – F 32 – T 35 – T 25 – T
49 – T 38 – F 36 – T 28 – T
50 – T 45 – T 39 – T 31 – T
51 – T 47 – T 40 – F 33 – T
55 – T 52 – T 41 – T 34 – F
56 – F 53 – T 48 – T 37 – T
65 – T 54 – T 57 – T 42 – T
67 – T 60 – T 59 – T 43 – T
69 – T 68 – T 61 – T 44 – T
75 – T 74 – T 62 – T 46 – T
78 – T 76 – T 63 – T 56 – T
80 – F 70 – T 58 – T
71 – T 64 – T
72 – T 66 – T
79 – F 73 – T
77 – T

PART THREE
Count the ticks per temperament and put them here below as the score.
PHLEGMATIC CHOLERIC SANGUINE MELANCHOLIC
Score Score Score Score
( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

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 PART FOUR
Use the following conversion table to turn the score you got in part 3 into
your temperament percentage. Write it down at the bottom of the table. Now
rank the % from the highest to the lowest. Your character (the natural you) is
influenced mainly by the first two. So what are their (your) strengths and
weaknesses?

SCORE PHLEGMATIC CHOLERIC SANGUINE MELANCHOLIC

0 1 0.3 1 1
1 3 0.5 3 2
2 6 1 5 5
3 9 2 7 8
4 14 4 9 12
5 19 5 12 17
6 23 8 16 22
7 28 11 19 28
8 33 14 23 33
9 38 19 27 38
10 43 24 32 44
11 49 29 37 49
12 55 35 42 54
13 61 41 47 59
14 68 48 52 64
15 74 56 58 69
16 81 65 63 74
17 88 47 70 78
18 94 83 76 82
19 98 91 82 86
20 97 89 90
21 94 93
22 97 96
23 99 98
24 99
%

(Adapted from Dondo, Rev. Guidance and Counselling for Schools and Colleges. Unpublished
manual)