Sitting down and trying to get the creative juices flowing for a spectacular piece of literature is not always the easiest task. For some people, they may use the struggle for a masterpiece as a sign that it is not the right time to write. Me? I am a Type A person, which means I won’t leave this word document until I have enough words on the page that make me feel peachy. And they cannot be just any words, no, the sentences that spew from my fingertips need to make me feel like I am the next Jodi Picoult. Obviously this is not a realistic desire, but like I said, I am Type A, and it’s normal to me.
When I say that I am Type A, I am talking about my meticulous way of living life. My dad always said, “Kate, you’re the biggest perfectionist I know, besides your mother.” When you get to know someone really well, you conclude that they are generally either a Type A or a Type B person. When I think of a Type B person, I think of a free spirit–someone who accepts what they cannot change and does not overanalyze their choices. When I think of Type A, I picture someone who is constantly sporting a professional suit. I’ve always been told that Type A people get the job done; they’re structured to a point where all out freedom seems uncanny. For example, when my professor told me I was in charge of picking the topic of my final project, I nearly lost my sanity. In my experience, being Type A is a competitive job. You believe that there is always something to win. I have found myself walking to class, and trying to powerwalk ahead of people who are not preparing for the race I have made up in my mind. Someone might say, “why can’t you just stop and smell the roses?” … roses? I must be at least 10 minutes early to class; honestly I don’t think anything would happen, but I could never take the risk.
Going away to college gave me a run for my money. The never-ending opportunities and free time to explore made my mind go into panic mode. How about when it comes to picking a club to join as a freshman on campus? Let’s just say, I have been a part of more clubs than I can remember since I was 10 years old. The idea of not having an extracurricular activity makes me feel anxious to the point where my palms sweat. You may be thinking, “this chick has some issues,” but honestly many of my friends are the same way; that’s another thing, Type A people flock to other Type A’s. I get amped up when I see that the person on the treadmill next to me is running .5 mph faster than me, as if it even matters. When my co-workers at the coffee shop butter bagels and pour coffee faster than me I immediately think it is a bad reflection of my abilities. For all of you Type A people out there, does any of this sound familiar?
If there is one thing I can say to make you believe that Type A people aren’t all neurotic psychopaths in the making, I will also tell you that I take naps like nobody’s business; I need to in order to refuel for my busy days of competing with myself. One thing I can say for sure is that if it weren’t for college, I probably would not have recognized all of this about myself. Yes, I always knew I was a perfectionist, but I used to fear that I could not let go of some of the stress that came with that. I learned here at Oneonta that being Type A can bring you a lot of success, but that you also need to know when to take off the professional suit.