The Perilous Plight of the Peppered Moths

It's good to be smart and adaptable. If not, you have to take what life gives you...and if you are a peppered moth, that may mean becoming a light (or dark) snack for a hungry bird. Here's the highly summarized story of the perilous plight of the peppered moth. The facts:

• Some peppered moths are predominantly light colored.
• Some peppered moths are predominantly dark colored.
• Some trees (where peppered moths hang out) are predominantly light colored.
• Some trees (where peppered moths hang out) are predominantly dark colored.
• Birds think peppered moths are tasty and like to eat them.
• Birds are most likely to eat the peppered moths they can easily see.

So what's a peppered moth to do...or more importantly...where should a weary peppered moth land and hang out for a few minutes of rest? You can mentally run through the possibilities and finish the story. Here's a link to an article and a photo of a couple of peppered moths (look closely...unlike a dumb, hungry bird) and you can better understand the benefits of matching your characteristics with your environment and the perils of not doing so. So what can we learn from the peppered moths that can help us improve our chances of career survival and success? Let's use the facts above related to the plight of the peppered moth as a template and apply them to humans. Here's just one example of how the story might unfold:

• Some people are predominantly extroverted and spontaneous.
• Some people are predominantly introverted and methodical.
• Some careers call for people to be predominantly extroverted and spontaneous (for example, some people-oriented careers where you must constantly interact with others and operate in a highly unstructured environment).
• Some careers call for people to be predominantly introverted and methodical (for example, some task-oriented careers where you must work alone in a highly structured environment).
• Bosses like downsizing and especially like to get rid of people who do not seem to fit their job.

Once again, I think you can finish the story. Now let's draw a few conclusions:

• Moths are not smart enough to know they should adapt to their environment. They don't really understand the implications of landing on a dark versus light tree.
• Some people are like moths...they land a job that calls for them to be extroverted when they are introverted or spontaneous when they are methodical...or vice versa...or they mismatch some other predominant personality trait.
• Other people understand the implications of trait mismatches and take the time to fully explore and understand their predominant personality traits and then...they wisely select an environment and career path (or make changes to their current career path) that will most likely allow them to take advantage of their strengths and minimize their struggles. For example...some people have their personality assessed and pay close attention to it when they are making major career decisions.

In other words, know thyself...and as Willie S. said, "To thine own self be true."

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Chris Crouch, president of DME Training and Consulting, has spent years researching and studying both the mental and physical aspects of being productive.