03 August 2017 By Jonathan Gibbs at The Body Matters in Psychotherapy

Which Personality Type Are You?

Warriors, Settlers and Nomads are the three personality-types that eminent professional therapist Terence Watts describes in his book ‘Warriors, Settlers and Nomads’ – published in 2000.

Of course, in our ancient past, our ancestors were all nomads – moving across the earth as the seasons changed. Later, people made settlements and developed the use of agriculture, working together in a co-operative fashion. At times, however, these settlements would have been taken over through the use of force, by more warlike warrior groups.

In the modern setting, each of us tends towards being one of these three personality types. The Warriors have a need to be in control – of themselves and others – and for this reason can make powerful leaders. Settlers have a need to be liked and for things to be peaceful and in harmony. These people tend ‘to keep their heads down’ and work well with others – very useful in a whole range of settings in our age, as it was in the past. Nomads, on the contrary do not keep their heads down – preferring to get themselves noticed. Nomads can be colourful characters, who frequently inspire others – again useful in various modern day settings where there is a need for there to be a vision that people will buy into. Nomads frequently dominate the space in social settings, being the life-and-soul-of the party.

Of course each of these types, taken to extremes can lead to problems: the Warrior can become a bullying tyrant, the Settler a doormat and the Nomad an unreliable, irresponsible character who wreaks havoc in both personal and work situations. But even in their most positive aspects, incorporating each of these elements into our way of being can enrich our lives and lead to greater success – whatever success means to us.

Warrior, Settlers and Nomads, or WSN as this model has come to be known, is a powerful tool for making positive changes in our lives. Often people tend to make use of just one of these ways of being, in which case the other two ways of being are left unused – in the background as it were – or it may be that a person makes use of two, so that the third is unused. The WSN model is used by therapists, such as myself, to help people to make use of these three resources – starting with creating VMIs (vivid mental images) of each of them.

The WSN model also has implications for relationships. What, for example, are the implications if we are a Warrior and our partner is a Warrior? Or if we are a Settler and they are a Nomad? Or if two Settlers have a child who is a Warrior?

To arrange a free 30-minute consultation to discuss how BWRT®, hypnotherapy or counselling can help you to change your life for the better, contact Jonathan at The Body Matters on 01702 714968.