Exhibit A003
For those of you who might be confused, this is SKelch.
I had a nice chat yesterday with Marta about the people here at MIT. Among other things, I came up with a quick classification of people that I see. This is nothing original, it's pretty well known, but I wanted to put it into a definition. I've also come up with some subcatagories. Here we go:
The Follower
This is your generic Millenial. These people have difficulty thinking in a progressive manner. They have all their ducks in a row, and are not accepting any more ducks at this time, thank you. These people can be very intelligent, very enthusiastic, very useful, but lack the skills to get things done on their own. They are absolutely lost without someone telling them what to do. You can recognize a Follower by their note-taking habits. These people have notebooks that are literal carbon-copies of the blackboard. Notice that they don't take notes from what the prof says. They don't try to make their own connections. They don't write down only what's important or internalize fundamental rules. These are the people in high school who got the best grades because they memorized their notes. They had trouble in English analyzing literature, until they found out they could memorize Cliff's Notes.
Sub-catagories:
The Nodder - This person sits in lecture writing down everything as long as it was first written in chalk. The Word of God would need to be chiseled into stone before their eyes before they would take note of what was said. When the prof says something they've heard of before, they nod their head as if to confirm that the prof is right. They want people to know that they knew this already, and can confirm that the prof does in fact know what he's talking about. But they still write it down if it's on the board. This person is enthusiastic, but needs to be directed where to put that enthusiasm. Also can be identified by the quick, nervous laugh they give after everything they say. God, these people are so desperate for approval.
The Mute - This person has never spoken up in class, has never been seen outside of class, and is barely even noticed in class at all. They sit and take notes, too shy to mention that the prof has made a mistake on the board (they write down the mistake anyway, since it was on the board). Outside of class this person has a friend or two. If they are in a group of 3 or more, the Mute won't utter a word. Can be very talkative when alone with one close friend, or their overbearing mother. These people are the most likely of a Follower to have an original idea, but are almost exclusively too shy to make it heard.
The Westy - This person tries desperately to be a Leader, and thinks that they are a Leader, but always seem to fall short. They have a tendency to get in over their head, and then become belligerent or depressed when they come up short. These people get very excited about ideas that have already been tried, and usually add an unoriginal twist to make them seem unique. ("Hey guys, let's throw a party Saturday. We can make it a beach theme! And we will have a pool inside!") This idea inevitably fails because the Westy lacks micromanaging skills. This person takes notes like other Followers, but with the bonus that they also actually listen to what the prof says. Usually this is so that they can find something to argue with him about. The trick to a Westy is that they are often outgoing, surrounded by friends, and in the 'popular' crowd. They can be the leader of their pack, but rarely lapse into being an actual Leader. How does this happen? A Westy tends to be good looking, privileged, or surrounded by Mutes and Nodders. Two Westies who become friends are entertaining to observe. Watch as both vie for control of a situation, while still trying to appear best friends with the other. Neither are capable of handling the situation in the first place. Hours of fun.
The Relaxer - This person could easily be a Leader, but finds it more agreable to just Follow. Sometimes they have a lapse, and briefly take charge when things get out of hand. A Relaxer can usually be found in a Westy's posse, where he is actually the one who calls the shots. Everyone in the group looks up to him, but he defers to the Westy, so the Westy is the one "in charge." The Relaxer is the one who keeps the Westy in line, actually does the micromanaging, and controls the group, and everyone knows it (and it drives the Westy nuts). The Relaxer takes the least notes during class, but still manages to get them all from his other Follower buddies. This is not to be confused with a Come-What-May.
There's a few. The Leaders will come some other time. When I refer to people in my LiveJournal, I may make reference to these catagories. Obviously they are not all encompassing and are general guidelines. You can have mixes, or even unique types. Most difficult are people on the fringe, like Relaxers, who may cross back and forth.
I had a nice chat yesterday with Marta about the people here at MIT. Among other things, I came up with a quick classification of people that I see. This is nothing original, it's pretty well known, but I wanted to put it into a definition. I've also come up with some subcatagories. Here we go:
The Follower
This is your generic Millenial. These people have difficulty thinking in a progressive manner. They have all their ducks in a row, and are not accepting any more ducks at this time, thank you. These people can be very intelligent, very enthusiastic, very useful, but lack the skills to get things done on their own. They are absolutely lost without someone telling them what to do. You can recognize a Follower by their note-taking habits. These people have notebooks that are literal carbon-copies of the blackboard. Notice that they don't take notes from what the prof says. They don't try to make their own connections. They don't write down only what's important or internalize fundamental rules. These are the people in high school who got the best grades because they memorized their notes. They had trouble in English analyzing literature, until they found out they could memorize Cliff's Notes.
Sub-catagories:
The Nodder - This person sits in lecture writing down everything as long as it was first written in chalk. The Word of God would need to be chiseled into stone before their eyes before they would take note of what was said. When the prof says something they've heard of before, they nod their head as if to confirm that the prof is right. They want people to know that they knew this already, and can confirm that the prof does in fact know what he's talking about. But they still write it down if it's on the board. This person is enthusiastic, but needs to be directed where to put that enthusiasm. Also can be identified by the quick, nervous laugh they give after everything they say. God, these people are so desperate for approval.
The Mute - This person has never spoken up in class, has never been seen outside of class, and is barely even noticed in class at all. They sit and take notes, too shy to mention that the prof has made a mistake on the board (they write down the mistake anyway, since it was on the board). Outside of class this person has a friend or two. If they are in a group of 3 or more, the Mute won't utter a word. Can be very talkative when alone with one close friend, or their overbearing mother. These people are the most likely of a Follower to have an original idea, but are almost exclusively too shy to make it heard.
The Westy - This person tries desperately to be a Leader, and thinks that they are a Leader, but always seem to fall short. They have a tendency to get in over their head, and then become belligerent or depressed when they come up short. These people get very excited about ideas that have already been tried, and usually add an unoriginal twist to make them seem unique. ("Hey guys, let's throw a party Saturday. We can make it a beach theme! And we will have a pool inside!") This idea inevitably fails because the Westy lacks micromanaging skills. This person takes notes like other Followers, but with the bonus that they also actually listen to what the prof says. Usually this is so that they can find something to argue with him about. The trick to a Westy is that they are often outgoing, surrounded by friends, and in the 'popular' crowd. They can be the leader of their pack, but rarely lapse into being an actual Leader. How does this happen? A Westy tends to be good looking, privileged, or surrounded by Mutes and Nodders. Two Westies who become friends are entertaining to observe. Watch as both vie for control of a situation, while still trying to appear best friends with the other. Neither are capable of handling the situation in the first place. Hours of fun.
The Relaxer - This person could easily be a Leader, but finds it more agreable to just Follow. Sometimes they have a lapse, and briefly take charge when things get out of hand. A Relaxer can usually be found in a Westy's posse, where he is actually the one who calls the shots. Everyone in the group looks up to him, but he defers to the Westy, so the Westy is the one "in charge." The Relaxer is the one who keeps the Westy in line, actually does the micromanaging, and controls the group, and everyone knows it (and it drives the Westy nuts). The Relaxer takes the least notes during class, but still manages to get them all from his other Follower buddies. This is not to be confused with a Come-What-May.
There's a few. The Leaders will come some other time. When I refer to people in my LiveJournal, I may make reference to these catagories. Obviously they are not all encompassing and are general guidelines. You can have mixes, or even unique types. Most difficult are people on the fringe, like Relaxers, who may cross back and forth.