There is a gap in your brand archetype. There is. Very few companies actually achieve no brand archetype gap. I want to tell you how this quiz will help you shrink that gap and why it’s in your company’s best interest to do so.

Let’s start with a definition of an archetype:

A symbol, theme, setting, or character type that recurs in different times and places in myth, literature, and rituals so frequently as to suggest that it embodies essential elements of ‘universal’ human experience.

Archetypes are stories, which can define your organization’s values, beliefs, strengths, and more. Business owners, CEOs, business leaders, entrepreneurs and the like, use them as a truth. Those that understand and use them often find that strategies come more naturally, communication is easier, and transitions are seamless.

The purpose of this quiz is to give you a quick snapshot of the archetype (there are 12 brand archetypes) that rises to the top in your organization. Let’s dive deeper into this quiz and discuss the potential gaps that may also arise in your results.

The first gap

You can take the quiz based on your ideal business instead of basing it on the business you are currently running, but I can tell you that your answers may not match. This is because – more than likely – your ideal business with the ideal brand archetype is very different from that of your actual business.

Your business is always growing and in reality it may never reach your ideal standards. There are too many variables to owning and operating a business that may be causing this. So base your answers on your actual business, not your ideal business.

Here’s a good example:

My co-founder of our magazine took this quiz first basing it on how he would run and operate his ideal business. He then took it again, but this time basing his answers on how he felt we were running the magazine (an actual company). His resulting archetype was different each time.

When he took it based on the magazine – the company he co-founded and that that actually existed – his result was Sage.

“The Sage Archetype has faith in humankind’s ability to learn and grow, to make smarter decisions. Therefore the Sage is dedicated to discovering the truth or spreading knowledge.”

This makes sense because the magazine is all about helping entrepreneurs and business leaders learn from others and grow in their own business endeavors. Its purpose is to spread knowledge by sharing real stories from real founders and CEOs.

The Sage Archetype certainly matches this mission.

When he took it based on his ideal company – the company he didn’t yet own or actually have, but the one he imagines he may someday create and operate – his result was Explorer.

“Explorer brands understand that there are no limits to becoming and no end to learning. They cultivate experiences to stretch and grow, opportunities to step out of life and into living.”

Notice how similar this is to the Sage Archetype. It’s about continuous learning and growing to achieve a better life. However, this result says something more about the person (in this case my co-founder) than the actual business he hopes to build someday because it’s more about his personal values than something of real substance.

It’s clear that someone’s ideal brand archetype is a goal and not based on actual evidence (like that of the magazine). However, this does not mean that once the magazine has grown and matured – along with its co-founders – that it would not someday result in the Explorer brand archetype years down the road.

What does this mean?

It means that the brand archetype results are not static. They are instead, dynamic and ever-changing based on the quantity and quality of the different businesses you will own and operate in your lifetime.

In the very recent Becoming Steve Jobs: The Evolution of a Reckless Upstart into a Visionary Leader by journalists Brent Schlender and Rick Tetzeli, it was immensely clear that Steve Jobs grew and matured with each new business he owned and operated. He finally returned to Apple in 1997 a very different businessman, which inevitably changed the course of the company and its brand for better or for worse.

The point here is that Steve Jobs’ improved management skills and ability to lead his company probably not only changed the brand archetype over time, but it also helped closed the gaps. Think about this in terms of your own business.

Mind the gap

This is very similar to a common personality test that companies often use when hiring new job candidates. It’s called the DISC profile (something we use extensively here at Smith Durant). We also recommend it to our clients when doing their own hiring. DISC profiling basically explains how individuals communicate with the world around them. It also allows others to better communicate with them, which can often change and evolve based on how the candidates answer the questions.

For example:

If a candidate answers based on how they would ideally communicate rather than how they actually communicate, then their DISC results will likely come out differently. DISC results may also come out differently when taken at different points in a person’s career. Growth and experience will of course change how people communicate with the world around them.

You can see how the results of DISC profiling are similar to the results of the 12 archetypes. Both are based on someone’s’ perception of either the people or the company around them.

The second gap

It is also important to know that you can take this quiz as the business owner or an employee of the organization. Whatever the results, your brand archetype is basically your perception of how your business operates – which is subjective. This is a very good thing.

**Your brand archetype results are subjective, which is a very good thing.

This is a good thing because if a business takes enough time to consider the results of his or her employees, he will begin to see just how big (or small) the archetype gap is. The bigger the gap, the less his views of the company are aligned with the employees.

Here’s another good example:

Let’s go back to my co-founder of the magazine and compare his results with my brand archetype results. We both took the quiz and answered based on how we felt we were running and operating the magazine.

When I took the archetype quiz based on the magazine my result was Hero.

“The secret of a Hero Archetype is who they are, not what they do. In fact, they don’t even think of themselves as heroes at all. They are competent, courageous and responsive, inspiring others to triumph over challenge.”

As you can see, our results were different (Hero v. Sage). Similar? Perhaps. The point here is that our brand perceptions as co-founders of the magazine were different.  This leads to differences in business objectives and at times has caused conflict in overall direction.

Much can be learned from the 12 archetypes results. When reflected on and continuously worked on, the archetype gaps will surely begin to close.

Your brand archetype

Do you want to uncover your truth archetypal? Does your company have a brand archetype gap that you’re having trouble closing? Are you hiring job candidates and want to learn more about DISC profiling? Smith Durant business coaches are experts in these areas.