You don’t have to watch the news to realize that something is going on with the economy. If you pay your own bills, you’ve surely noticed that electricity, natural gas, and communication services are all more expensive than they were a year ago. If you drive, it’s likely that you’ve been gritting your teeth whenever you put gasoline in your car for some time now. And maybe you’ve noticed that, when you go grocery shopping, you can’t buy quite as much as you used to with the same amount of money.
Oh, the joys of inflation! (That’s meant to be sarcastic.)
Despite the fact that many people received pay raises over the last year, more than half of all workers recently surveyed in the United States said their wages are not keeping up with the cost of living. Another poll done by the American Psychological Association revealed that 87% of US adults surveyed admitted that money struggles due to inflation are a major source of stress. People might be having such a hard time, at least in part, because most of us have never experienced economic turbulence quite like this – inflation recently reached a 40-year high. Simply put, many of us are woefully unprepared to deal with it.
Personality, Stress Response, and Coping
Even though we feel stress as an emotional experience, it starts as a physical process in the body. It’s a fundamental part of the fight-or-flight response, which is your brain’s way of keeping your body out of danger. Considering that money is fundamental to survival in this modern world, it’s only natural to feel stressed out when you don’t think you’ll have enough of it to get by.
Now, what you do with that stress and how you cope with the challenges confronting you have a lot to do with your personality. But it’s not so much about your specific personality type. Rather, it’s the Strategy (with a capital S) with which you take on the world.
Let me explain.
Of the five traits that make up your personality type (you know, the ones represented by those four letters plus the A or T), the Extraverted or Introverted trait combined with the Assertive or Turbulent trait are hugely influential in how you respond to and cope with life’s circumstances. There are four different ways that these traits combine.
Constant Improvement
Constant Improvers, who share both the Introverted and Turbulent traits, are among the personality types most likely to consider all of their possible options for how to navigate their way through financial struggles. But in the end, their tendency toward Avoidant coping strategies means that they might end up just hoping that things work out for the best rather than dealing with their situation. They may also be more at risk than Extraverted types of sinking into feelings of isolation, but in general, they’re more open than not to seeking help and advice from family and friends.
Confident Individualism
Confident Individualists share both the Introverted and Assertive traits. They typically hold up well in the face of stress, tending to employ Detached and Rational coping styles when approaching life’s complications. They find it easier to reframe the challenges they face and not to get too hung up on their feelings, but when they do get overwhelmed, their independent nature might prevent them from seeking help. Personality types with this Strategy can fall into the trap of thinking that they are the ones to blame for their circumstances, potentially causing them to feel more isolated.
Social Engagement
As Extraverted, Turbulent types, Social Engagers are more likely than other personalities to favor an Emotional coping style when confronting financial uncertainty, acknowledging their stress, fear, or other unpleasant emotions as they experience them. They might also be less likely to rush themselves to move on from their difficult feelings. In some ways, this can be really healthy. When unbalanced, however, it can lead to Avoidant coping behaviors, such as denying or ineffectively dealing with the realities of their situation. Fortunately, they know how to keep loneliness at bay when facing challenging times by leaning on their friends and family for help, support, or advice.
People Mastery
Sharing the Extraverted and Assertive traits, People Masters may be vulnerable to the feelings of isolation that can accompany financial hardship, especially if they feel forced to cut their preferred socializing activities from their personal budgets. They tend to use Rational or Detached techniques for coping with difficulties, making them quite resilient. They are the most likely of all Strategies to try to understand the hows and whys of their particular circumstances, which allows them to adapt more confidently to changing economic conditions.
Curious to know whether your primary coping style is Rational, Detached, Avoidant, or Emotional? Try our premium Coping Styles Test to find out and explore how you react to the stressors in your life.
Practical Tips for Surviving Recession (for Every Personality Type)
When you feel the stress of survival mode kicking in, it can be a struggle to get a realistic – let alone hopeful – perspective on things. It’s common for people of all personality types to fall into unhealthy coping habits like eating or drinking too much. Anger and resentment are very real and very common feelings that you might experience when you are working as many hours as possible and your pay still doesn’t cover your ever-increasing expenses. It’s easy to feel trapped, to think that your life is out of your control, and to be pessimistic about the future. Hopelessness and fear can plague even the most rational-minded among us.
This is why it is so helpful to become aware of how your particular Strategy influences the way that you handle stressful situations – like inflation and economic uncertainty. Understanding the tendencies of your personality can give you the upper hand when it comes to actually dealing with the challenges that your situation presents. If you acknowledge that you have a tendency toward isolation or trying to solve all of your problems yourself, you can more easily recognize when those patterns are unhelpful. The same is also true when it comes to our strengths. If you know you have a habit of considering all your options, you can learn to focus on this natural tendency and find solutions that help improve your situation.
It would be impossible to offer extensive type-specific suggestions on how to survive an economic recession. Everyone has a unique situation and will feel the pinch of inflation and economic uncertainty differently, depending on their circumstances. All the same, there are some helpful tactics that people with any personality, regardless of Strategy, can use to manage their mental well-being and possibly improve their overall economic stability.
Focus On Your Strengths and Advantages
First, look inward. The study of personality theory can help you understand the strengths inherent in your combination of personality traits. You’ll want to call upon these strengths – and develop them to their fullest potential – to get through the darker days of a recession.
Then, look outward. What real, tangible advantages do you have that you can lean on in these uncertain times? What are your marketable skills? What physical assets, such as a car or a house, do you count on? Do you have a tight-knit family? Do you have a community of friends? If you find yourself falling into worry or despair, take a moment to focus on what you do have rather than what you don’t.
Practice Mindfulness
Pay attention to and accept your feelings. Allow yourself to experience them. If you are angry, be angry. If you are stressed or feeling pessimistic, that’s okay too. Mindfulness also includes accepting those external factors that you have absolutely no control over. There are some things that you just can’t change, like those rising prices at the grocery store.
Reframe the Situation
Learn to look at your situation from a different perspective. If you are feeling frustrated by a tightened food budget, for example, and find yourself cooking at home more often than you’re used to, it may help to adopt an attitude of curious experimentation in the kitchen. What new recipe can you try out this week? Try to find the positive in every situation, and embrace every challenge as a learning opportunity.
For those personality types who like to look at difficult situations from every perspective, do so with the goal of finding that angle that allows you to experience your challenges with less frustration and more understanding. Changing the way that we look at our difficulties is essential to moving forward.
Bite the Bullet and Make a Budget
In times like these, it’s impractical to say that it’s “just not my personality” to make a budget. To feel like you have some sense of control over your finances, you need to have some sort of control over your finances. This means taking personal responsibility for how you move your money around. If you’ve never made a budget, it might seem a little daunting. Fortunately, there are a ton of resources available online to help you track your spending, organize monthly expenses, and continue adding to your savings account.
Figure Out How to Increase Your Income
Every bit of cash helps when prices are constantly rising. Be proactive and figure out ways to increase your cash flow without jeopardizing your mental or physical health. Maybe taking on a roommate would be helpful for your budget. Consider selling things online or monetizing your hobbies. Who knows – you might end up founding your own business!
Ask for Help if You Need It
Even the most confident and independent personality types can’t handle everything themselves. Whether it’s emotional strain, financial stress, or both, sometimes it’s necessary to ask for help. Learn to recognize the signs and symptoms of clinical depression and anxiety. Seek financial counseling or aid before things spiral out of control. There is no need to suffer in silence. There are plenty of free services to help you get through your darkest moments.
Final Thoughts about Coping with Uncertainty
The last few years of our collective history have been defined by uncertainty. First, the pandemic threw everything into disarray, and since then there has been one “new normal” after another. It seems like there is barely enough time to adjust before a whole new set of challenges is thrown our way. Inflation and economic uncertainty are just the latest troubles in a society trying to find its balance.
It’s times like these when we must discover our strengths and study our weaknesses – not only to pull through but to actually thrive and prosper in the process. Personality theory can help you do this.
When you study your particular Strategy and then dig deep into your specific personality type’s traits, you can find insights and inspiration to help you keep your head high as you navigate troubled waters.
Further Reading
- Surviving Recession: Navigating Job Insecurity in Uncertain Times
- Spending and Saving Styles and Personality Type
- Building Financial Literacy According to Personality Type
- Take our Resilience and Grit Test to explore how you respond to challenges in life and discover areas that you might need to improve to bounce back even stronger. (Premium resource.)
Comments
Please to join the discussion.